Top Five Articles of 2023-2024
A round-up of posts that resonated with readers the most this school year
The following articles found the most readers over the past twelve months. Communication, feedback and teaching readers were the most popular topics. If you already read these posts, maybe they are worth revisiting as you think about the upcoming school year. And if not, you now have a curated list of what your colleagues found most compelling! Take care, Matt
7 Questions I Ask Myself When Working with Educators Resistant to Change
When I facilitate professional learning for educational leaders at a conference or a workshop, I usually leave time for questions at the end. I’ve started documenting these questions; here are a few: “How do I help a teacher become more independent when they aren't being open-minded about where they might grow?”
This article was one of three summarized in The Marshall Memo. It’s a cautionary list to review before giving feedback to a teacher who is seemingly resistant to change.
You can't buy the science of reading
As a principal in a previous school, a reading interventionist engaged in action research chose to focus on a challenging student. For reasons beyond school, this student struggled to transition from the classroom to this teacher’s room. Learning a little bit more about the student’s background and interests, the teacher d…
A story of a interventionist motivating a reluctant reader with a Venus flytrap highlights what teachers bring (and cannot be bought) to the classroom.
Teaching Reading is Not Simple
“‘The science of reading’ is a phrase representing the accumulated knowledge about reading, reading development, and best practices for reading instruction obtained by the use of the scientific method.” - Petscher, Y. et al (2020). Earlier this week, I was in a Zoom with some literacy luminaries, discussing how to brin…
Current research points to the complex nature of teaching readers. So why do some educators and the media continue to paint a simple picture of this practice?
To Teach Readers, You Must Love Reading
A couple of years ago, I attended a virtual meeting with literacy leaders from a variety of positions. We were sharing what we found working for us in our respective schools regarding our literacy initiatives. I kept quiet at first. I wanted to know where other leaders in the ro…
In this post, I juxtapose a jaw-dropping comment from a colleague (they were okay if their kids didn’t love reading) with the importance of teachers being readers.
How to write a weekly staff newsletter that at least 80% of teachers will read
Thank you to full subscribers for keeping much of his newsletter free. Take care, Matt A weekly newsletter can be an effective way to keep your school informed and engaged around your literacy initiatives. The key word is “effective”. A newsletter written doesn’t mean people will read it. It’s the proverbial “if a tree falls in the woods and no one was a…
I unlocked this popular post for all subscribers. Weekly staff newsletters are a powerful way of communicating and reinforcing your school’s mission, vision, beliefs and values.
Are there any posts not listed here that resonated with your this school year? Let the community know.
This Tuesday, full subscribers can join me in a live conversation via Zoom with Paul Thomas about the reading wars and translating research to practice.