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Stenhouse Newslinks
September 28, 2006

C O N T E N T S

1) Helping your struggling readers
2) Author Conversations: David Booth and Larry Swartz, Part II
3) PD Corner: Establishing parents as partners
4) Reading First audit fallout

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1) Helping your struggling readers
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"I already have a strong reading and writing workshop established 
in my classroom, but I still have a few students whom I just don't 
know how to help."

"A few of my students seem to level off or make little progress. 
These readers need so much help from me; I don't even know where 
to begin."

"My struggling readers sound okay, but don't comprehend what they 
read. I've tried everything I know. What else is there?"

In the new book One Child at a Time, Pat Johnson draws on her 
twenty-five years as a reading teacher working side-by-side with 
elementary classroom teachers to provide a framework for teaching 
struggling readers. She helps teachers increase their 
understanding of the reading process, tailor instruction, and 
impart strategies to understand text and solve words.

The four-part framework--"here's what/so what/now what/
then what"--enables teachers to observe, analyze, plan, and take 
action with children who struggle. The book is filled with 
examples of actual conferences with students and follow-up 
assessment over days and weeks, illustrating what teaching 
struggling readers looks like. It also includes a chapter for 
supporting English language learners.

One Child at a Time will be available in print in late October, 
and you can browse the entire text online now:

http://www.stenhouse.com/0434.asp?r=n97

One Child at a Time: Making the Most of Your Time with Struggling 
Readers, K-6
Pat Johnson * 144 pp/paper * $18.00
http://www.stenhouse.com/0434.asp?r=n9

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2) Author Conversations: David Booth and Larry Swartz, Part II
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In the second part of their audio podcast, David Booth and Larry 
Swartz discuss the importance of encouraging authentic responses 
to texts--especially with boys--and how fostering conversations 
with students is a skill that needs to be practiced:

http://www.stenhouse.com/booth-swartz.asp?r=n97

To explore books authored and coauthored by David Booth and Larry 
Swartz, start here:

http://www.stenhouse.com/booth-swartztitles.asp?r=n97

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3) PD Corner: Establishing parents as partners
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Research shows that when parents are involved in their child's 
education their children do better in school. Here are some 
resources for fostering home-school connections.

In "Wonderful Wednesdays" (Fall 2004 Responsive Classroom), third-
grade teacher Caltha Crowe describes weekly or biweekly open 
houses where parents join the class as full participants, 
typically starting in October or November:

http://www.responsiveclassroom.org/newsletter/16_4NL_2.asp

Jennifer Rowsell's new book Family Literacy Experiences (now 
available online in its entirety) explores how to bring family 
literacy from home to school through all kinds of texts. Chapter 1 
includes a contribution from Lesley Morrow with suggestions for 
making families feel welcome (p. 12):

http://www.responsiveclassroom.org/newsletter/16_4NL_2.asp
(Scroll down to the Chapter 1 link under the Table of Contents.)

Reading Rockets offers one-page "tips for parents" to encourage 
literacy development in preschool through grade three:

http://www.readingrockets.org/article/7833

In their new book "The Words Came Down!" Emelie Parker and Tess 
Pardini show how they create opportunities for parents of English 
language learners to be part of their classrooms (p. 30):

http://www.stenhouse.com/0414.asp?r=n97
(Scroll down to the Chapter 2 link under the Table of Contents.)

The Family Involvement Network of Educators (FINE) promotes a 
partnership between educators, parents, and communities and offers 
a wealth of resources for supporting parent involvement:
 
http://www.gse.harvard.edu/hfrp/projects/fine/fineresources.html

In "Taking the Conversation Home" (Chapter 7 of Beyond Leveled 
Books), Franki Sibberson and Karen Szymusiak share how they bridge 
the home/school connection by engaging parents and students in 
conversations around reading:

http://www.stenhouse.com/0330.asp?r=n97
(Scroll down to the Chapter 7 link under the Table of Contents.)

And explore these books and videos by James Vopat that describe 
proven ways for increasing parent involvement:

http://www.stenhouse.com/rdvopat.htm

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4) Reading First audit fallout
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Last week's release of the U.S. Education Department's internal 
audit of the Reading First program has sparked responses from all 
quarters. Here's a summary of the report:

http://www.thompson.com/public/newsbrief.jsp?cat=EDUCATION&id=1362

The International Reading Association and National Council of 
Teachers of English are both calling for further investigation:

http://blog.reading.org/archives/002016.html
http://www.ncte.org/about/press/key/125668.htm

USA Today reports that Reading Recovery and Success for All will 
ask Education Secretary Margaret Spellings to write to all fifty 
states to tell them that their programs are eligible for Reading 
First funds:

http://www.stenhouse.com/rdutreadingfirst.htm

Gary Stager, an editor for District Administration magazine and 
contributor to its recently launched online forum, "The Pulse," 
recaps the audit's lowlights in this recent post:

http://www.stenhouse.com/rdstager.htm

The entire report from the Department of Education's Inspector 
General is available here:

http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/oig/aireports/i13f0017.pdf
(2.9 MB PDF file)


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