Summer is in full swing and I am trying to enjoy every moment of it. Immediately after school ended, I spent two weeks at the beach with my daughters just enjoying the sunshine and decompressing from our nonstop routines during the school year.
For most of the rest of the summer, my daughters are back in preschool (my twins) or enrolled in camp (my oldest) and I am catching up on doctor and dentist appointments and reconnecting with friends. I am working on turning resources I have used in my classroom into ones you can also use in yours and writing blog posts sharing my experiences teaching all things ELA. I am also making more time for exercise, trying to reclaim my garden, and sitting down to read a book in the middle of the day whenever I feel like it. Summer is glorious.
What I’m Reading
With June complete, I have read 66 books toward my goal of 104 books for the year (that is two books a week). I am over halfway to my goal (63% to be exact). June was a slower month for me. Two straight weeks with my own children doesn’t leave a lot of read for downtime. I did read a mix of books some middle grade (fiction, dystopia, science fiction), some young adult (historical fiction, science fiction, fiction), and even some adult fiction.
If you are looking for some titles to read this summer, my top five recommendations for the year so far would be:
1. Crossing the Line by Kareem Rosser (adult memoir)
2. All The Best Liars by Amelia Kahaney (YA thriller)
3. The Crossroads by Alexandria Diaz (middle grade fiction)
4. The Marrow Thieves by Cherie Dimaline (YA dystopia)
5. Ancestor Approved edited by Cynthia Leitich Smith (MG short story collection)
Titles I am hoping to read this month include:
The Peonies: Summer in the City by Alix Sloan and Jennie Willink (MG fiction)
Reclaim the Stars edited by Zoraida Cordova (YA fantasy collection)
Home Field Advantage by Dahlia Adler (YA romance)
Trevor Noah: Born A Crime by Trevor Noah (YA memoir)
Crenshaw by Katherine Applegate (MG fiction)
Troublemaker by John Cho (MG historical fiction)
The Peonies: Summer in the City by Alix Sloan and Jennie Willink (MG fiction)
Reclaim the Stars edited by Zoraida Cordova (YA fantasy collection)
Home Field Advantage by Dahlia Adler (YA romance)
Trevor Noah: Born A Crime by Trevor Noah (YA memoir)
Crenshaw by Katherine Applegate (MG fiction)
Troublemaker by John Cho (MG historical fiction)
How to Find What You're Not Looking For by Veera Hiranandani (MG historical fiction)
Before the Ever After by Jacqueline Woodson (MG verse novel)
I used bell work with success previously as both a high school and middle school teacher. For me, bell work is a five minute written task. To help create a sense of urgency, I set a countdown timer and at the end of the five minutes, I stamp students’ work only if it is complete. I use a recording sheet with space for each day of the week and collect the sheet at the end of the week. For bell work, I am planning on creating a spiral review of literary elements, vocabulary, word parts (roots, prefixes, suffixes), grammar, writing, capitalization, usage, punctuation, and spelling.
While I teach on the gambit of literary elements throughout the year, returning to many of them more than once, I find that many students struggle with retention of definitions. I’m hoping that more frequent and repeated exposure will help cement the concepts. Vocabulary, especially direction instruction about word parts, is something I currently do rarely, so in addition to adding into a bell work routine, I am also considering incorporating it into students’ homework assignments. Including grammar, writing, capitalization, usage, punctuation, and spelling will reinforce the writing instruction I layered into my curriculum this past year.
I’ve already created an outline of the type of questions and practice I’d like for students to do and I’m hoping that by the start of the school year I’ll have enough questions and practice created to last the year. The only other summer project I’m currently planning is somewhat related. I want to redesign my agenda slides so that about half of the space can be dedicated to the bell work.
What I’m Planning
One change I’d like to make to the routine of my class next year is to start with bell work instead of independent reading. This part of our class routine is a sacred ten minutes to me and starting class with it helps to signal its importance. If it is first, independent reading never gets forgotten and we never run out of time for it. However, my students need a more urgent task at the beginning of class to help them get settled. I had far too many students that even at the end of the year needed to be prompted to get out their independent reading book and get started reading.I used bell work with success previously as both a high school and middle school teacher. For me, bell work is a five minute written task. To help create a sense of urgency, I set a countdown timer and at the end of the five minutes, I stamp students’ work only if it is complete. I use a recording sheet with space for each day of the week and collect the sheet at the end of the week. For bell work, I am planning on creating a spiral review of literary elements, vocabulary, word parts (roots, prefixes, suffixes), grammar, writing, capitalization, usage, punctuation, and spelling.
While I teach on the gambit of literary elements throughout the year, returning to many of them more than once, I find that many students struggle with retention of definitions. I’m hoping that more frequent and repeated exposure will help cement the concepts. Vocabulary, especially direction instruction about word parts, is something I currently do rarely, so in addition to adding into a bell work routine, I am also considering incorporating it into students’ homework assignments. Including grammar, writing, capitalization, usage, punctuation, and spelling will reinforce the writing instruction I layered into my curriculum this past year.
I’ve already created an outline of the type of questions and practice I’d like for students to do and I’m hoping that by the start of the school year I’ll have enough questions and practice created to last the year. The only other summer project I’m currently planning is somewhat related. I want to redesign my agenda slides so that about half of the space can be dedicated to the bell work.
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