Heinemann Blog

when a teaching community comes together in a shared study of a topic, they become a community of learners. They become more open to not having all of the answers, and to letting go of old ways of thinking.

Developing lifelong reading begins with books and we, as educators, have the power to make a school’s book supply seem endless in the eyes of its readers.

Just as conferring is one part of the readers’ and writers’ workshop and could not be implemented in isolation, conferring in mathematics must take place on a broader instructional stage. But if tasks in the classroom don’t demand deep thinking, we’re left with thin conversations about answers.

How do we encourage students to genuinely engage with challenging or difficult texts? Today on the Heinemann Podcast, Marilyn Pryle, author of “Reading with Presence” suggests a method of writing and sharing reading responses, which differ from the usual short essay answer.

If you’re an experienced workshop teacher, the book will help you imagine new possibilities for getting started. If you’ve ever longed for beginning writers to show more independence during units of study across the year, then this book is for you.

Confident readers know how to choose books. Which is not to say that we are immune to error. Every avid reader has experienced book droughts where nothing you pick up has what you are looking for.

There are six identifiable processes that support the development of numerical fluency. these processes are not unique to numerical fluency−in fact, the same processes are essential for the development of spatial sense, algebraic reasoning, and other big ideas in mathematics.

Most reading workshop experts suggest that students spend no more than 10% of their reading time writing about reading. During the other 90% of reading time, students should be reading, engrossed in books they can read with a high level of accuracy in order to achieve the kind of reading volume that leads to maximum growth.

In her latest book, What’s the Best That Could Happen?, Debbie Miller explores how questions help us look beyond the limitations of what we’ve done and discover powerful new opportunities for teaching and learning.

Lucy Calkins and her TCRWP coauthors recently sat down and answered some frequently asked questions about this essential series. Read the excerpts below and follow the link to view the full interviews.

This October, we're celebrating the two year anniversary of the Heinemann Podcast! We love bringing our listeners engaging conversations about the topics that matter to educators around the world.

As I begin my journey as a Heinemann Fellow, I would like the following question to guide my action research: In what ways does teacher vulnerability impact student engagement and classroom community?

Today on the Heinemann Podcast, what drives us to read? In her latest book, “The Book in Question: Why and How Reading is In Crisis,” author Carol Jago highlights the importance of reading, and what we stand to lose when it is devalued.

When you ask the question, 'How’s it going?' at the beginning of writing conferences, you’re doing much more than inviting students to talk about what they’re doing as writers. The question initiates your relationship with each student and deepens each of these relationships.

Writing can be terrifying: a blank page holds the potential of failure. Writing can be difficult: a pen can presents challenge with letter formation and grip. Writing can be intrusive, especially when the expected topic is one’s life.

In the process of writing reading responses, the importance of choice cannot be understated. Students feel like they are in control of their responses; they can view the text through whatever lens they choose.

When we plan for work time, we ask: What will children do to get smarter tomorrow? What will they read, write, and talk about? What will they read that’s worthy of what we’re asking them to do?

We believe that teachers must embrace nine pivotal understandings to support the development of numerical fluency in all students.