Education Commons^™

How Do We Get These Kids Reading? Supporting Readerly Identity In Secondary English Classrooms, Jenelle Williams, Jay Haffner

Michigan Reading Journal

In this article, we aim to clarify the specialized purposes for reading in secondary English language arts (ELA) classes. We will suggest ways ELA teachers can help build (or repair) students’ readerly identities while also ensuring they graduate with the necessary skill sets to transfer their knowledge into further studies, careers, and lifelong pleasure reading.

Blended Genres: Pairing Picturebooks And Poems Across The Curriculum, William P. Bintz

Michigan Reading Journal

Abstract

This article reports on an action research project conducted by a teacher educator in literacy education as part of a graduate course entitled Reading and Writing across the Content Areas. The purpose of the project was to actively engage graduate students, all of whom were pre-service and in-service teachers, in a course-related project in which students developed and implemented blended genres across the curriculum. It begins by situating blended genres within the traditional notion of paired text as a curricular resource and instructional strategy to support the process of intertextuality. It provides a brief overview of the course-related …

Toward A Theory Of An Integrated Theoretical Approach Of Literacy For Black Boys, Aaron M. Johnson

Michigan Reading Journal

In the education landscape the literacy of Black boys is viewed from deficit framing. Often, educators, politicians, and laypeople point to scores on standardized assessments such as the MSTEP, NAEP, ACT, SAT, and NWEA, these tests only tell a part of the story. The part of the story that those assessments do tell is the abject failure of schools’ ability to engage Black boys in school-based literacy and catapult them into proficient and advanced proficient reading levels. The part of the story that those assessments do not tell is the literate lives that Black boys lead. Furthermore, schools do a …

Taking Up The Work: Snapshots Of Disciplinary Literacy Instruction, Part I, Laura Gabrion, Jenelle Williams

Michigan Reading Journal

This article is part of a series devoted to unpacking disciplinary literacy instructional practices for educators at all levels. Here, we explore the role of disciplinary literacy instruction at all levels, in light of recent changes to Michigan's teacher certification grade bands. This article provides suggestions for getting started with addressing disciplinary literacy in instruction, as well as practical examples of what this might look like within English Language Arts classrooms.

Book Review Letting Go Of Literary Whiteness: Antiracist Literature Instruction For White Students, Jeremy Hyler

Michigan Reading Journal

Race, racism, and literary whiteness are at the forefront of many conversations in education today. In Letting Go of Literary Whiteness: Antiracist Literature Instruction for White Students, authors Carlin Borsheim-Black and Sophia Tatiana Sarigianides highlight what should be addressed in our classroom today to address race and racism.

Teacher Of Literature And Literacy: Rethinking Secondary English Language Arts, Jenelle Williams, Laura Gabrion

Michigan Reading Journal

This article aims to explore the complexity of instruction in secondary English Language Arts (ELA) classes, addressing the role of teacher identity, educator preparation programs, equity and access, and the role of the Essential Instructional Practices for Disciplinary Literacy in the Secondary Classroom. We suggest that there is a possibility to attend to both teaching literature and literacy within middle- and high-school ELA classrooms and provide a vision for working toward this balance.

Writing As A Vessel For Thinking: Incorporating Self-Regulation, Metacognition, And Formative Assessment In The Middle School Ela Classroom, Alyssha N. Ginzel

Michigan Reading Journal

This article examines three approaches to teaching writing: self-regulated instruction (Graham, 2018; Graham, 2020; Graham & Perin, 2007), metacognitive strategies (Hacker, 2018; Madison et al., 2019), and formative assessment (Black & Wiliam, 1998; Fleischer, 2013; Madison et al., 2019). Implementing these approaches, secondary ELA teachers can strike a balance between order and chaos while empowering adolescents to recognize, develop, and take ownership of their thinking and writing. Writing can and should be about grappling with big ideas that ultimately help us come to deeper, fuller understandings of ourselves and the world. This article explores how secondary ELA teachers can help …

Lift Every (Student) Voice With The Essential Instructional Practices For Disciplinary Literacy, Jenelle Williams, Laura Gabrion

Michigan Reading Journal

In this article, the authors make the case for re-engaging students in learning during the 2021-2022 school year by prioritizing social emotional learning and whole child principles, along with student voice and discourse. The Essential Instructional Practices for Disciplinary Literacy in the Secondary Classroom: Grades 6 to 12 are one tool to define instructional practices that align to these efforts.

Connecting The Dots Between Academic And Social-Emotional Learning With Literacy, Allison Phillippe

Michigan Reading Journal

This article emphasizes the importance of supporting Social Emotional Learning (SEL) with literacy instruction, which could benefit both the academic and emotional success of students in your classroom. Currently in education there is a growing rate of students who have experienced trauma and could greatly benefit from SEL (Price & Ellis, 2018). The ability to incorporate SEL into current literacy instruction can help ensure we are meeting the individual needs of each student. This article will begin by defining SEL and explain its growing importance in education today. Then, it will discuss how social-emotional and academic learning are connected. Finally, …

No More Random Acts Of Literacy Coaching, Annie P. Spear

Michigan Reading Journal

No abstract provided.

Essential Practices For Disciplinary Literacy Instruction In Secondary Classrooms, Jenelle Williams

Michigan Reading Journal

This article describes the role of student-centered, problem-based instruction, and it offers practical tips and resources for secondary English Language Arts educators in using effective problem frames for units of instruction.

Pizza, Pages, And Family Engagement: A Simple Approach To Family Literacy Night, Jennie Baumann

Michigan Reading Journal

Family engagement in schools is a worthy but difficult pursuit. Between scheduling challenges, family needs, and other systemic factors, how can educators encourage family participation? This article details a simple practice using pizza, existing curriculum, and local resources as a way of working smarter to create a culture of family engagement around literacy.

Feedback As A Connector In Remote Learning Environments, Heather Rottermond, Laura Gabrion

Michigan Reading Journal

In March, Michigan educators unexpectedly found themselves rethinking instruction. As schools throughout the state were shuttered due to the COVID-19 health crisis, educators at every level needed to consider ways to sustain relationships with students in an effort to move learning forward. Feedback has always served as a natural connector between teachers and their students, but students’ use of feedback is based upon trust. This article examines the importance of formative assessment and the feedback cycle while exploring ways to deliver feedback in remote settings. By prioritizing the student-teacher relationship, teachers foster students’ active engagement with feedback, thereby raising students’ …

Reading With Our Heads And Our Hearts To Build Empathy, Heidi Gibbons

Michigan Reading Journal

Reading in schools can often become very focused on text-level strategies, leading to expectations of students that result in monological responses, very little beyond-the-text interaction, and an absence of personal student growth. The purpose of this study was to determine how using the Book Head Heart approach created and shared by Kylene Beers and Bob Probst to interact with a text changed intermediate students on a social-emotional level, specifically how it affected their empathy skills. Student journal responses were coded before and after students learned the Book Head Heart method; in addition, students completed two surveys measuring empathy. Also, student …

No More Teaching Without Positive Relationships, Annie P. Spear

Michigan Reading Journal

No abstract provided.

Essential Practices For Disciplinary Literacy Instruction In Secondary Classrooms, Laura Gabrion, Michelle Renna, Megan Schrauben, Jenelle Williams

Michigan Reading Journal

In response to the call for increased literacy and more equitable learning opportunities across the state of Michigan, the 6-12 Disciplinary Literacy Task Force formed. The group’s first charge was to revise and publish the Essential Practices for Disciplinary Literacy Instruction in the Secondary Classroom: Grades 6 to 12, based on the work of lead researchers from the University of Michigan, Drs. Elizabeth Moje and Darin Stockdill. During the 2019-2020 school year, education consultants and educators from around Michigan participated in the Regional One-Day Institute, which served as an introduction to the Essential Practices for Disciplinary Literacy Instruction in …

From A Distance: Teaching, Learning, And Parenting During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Melanie Love

Michigan Reading Journal

No abstract provided.

An Educator's Response To Michigan's Stay At Home Order, Kristin M. Scherkenbach

Michigan Reading Journal

This article examines the educational impact of the stay at home order issued in the spring of 2020. It explores methods that were used to connect with students during this time such as YouTube videos, book drop offs, parent education PowerPoints, and online teaching. It concludes with the understanding that a passion for literacy can be ignited in students even in challenging situations.

Let's Read A Story!: Collaborative Meaning Making, Student Engagement, And Vocabulary Building Through The Use Of Interactive Read-Alouds, Shaya Helbig, Susan V. Piazza

Michigan Reading Journal

The interactive read-aloud has long been a practice during early literacy instruction in schools and in homes. Reading aloud to children provides a platform for teachers or caregivers to model meaning-making interactions with text. Students are able to collaboratively engage in conversations to create a collective understanding of texts. Interactions during a read-aloud can foster engagement, create meaning, and promote vocabulary acquisition. This article examines current research that supports the use of interactive read alouds to engage learners in meaning-making processes and translates research and theory into practical recommendations for effective interactive read-alouds.