The holiday season is a great time to read books that teach kids about winter holidays like Christmas, Hannukah, and Kwanzaa. In my experience, students love when I read aloud chapter books with highly relatable plot lines that allow us to discuss the story and work on comprehension skills. And there are so many Christmas-themed…
Are you looking for some secular winter read alouds? If so, I have you covered from picture books to novels that are about winter or take place during the winter. I’ve rounded up several of my favorite winter read alouds that you can read to your kids. Remember that read alouds provide the perfect opportunity…
Summer is the perfect time to brush up on your teaching skills and learn about any new or updated teaching strategies. I’m sharing my top recommendations for professional development books for reading and phonics. I don’t know if you’re like me, but I love a good book on the latest research and recommendations for educators,…
And what to do next—without a curriculum or complicated assessments Teaching reading at home can feel like trying to hit a moving target.One day your child sounds out cat, and the next they’re guessing cheese from a picture. Are they behind? Are they in the “right level”? What are you even supposed to teach next?…
When you’re teaching reading at home, without a curriculum, it’s easy to second-guess everything. Should we be working on sight words?Are they ready to spell?Do we need more phonics? It’s not that you’re not willing to help. It’s that no one told you where to begin. And without knowing what your child actually needs, it’s…
Because not every child needs to practice sight words right now When you’re teaching reading at home, it’s easy to feel like you have to teach everything.Letters. Sounds. Sight words. Spelling rules. Fluency. Comprehension. But here’s the truth:Not every skill needs to be taught right now. The key to building reading skills that stick is…
Halloween books are popular during the month of October, and Halloween read-alouds are a great tool for teachers and parents. When I was teaching, Halloween was a favorite holiday for most of my students. Students would start talking about Halloween in September and it lasted all through October. And the week of Halloween was always…
Before kids can learn to read, they need to understand how print works. Print concepts are the basic rules that show how books and written language function. These early skills help children make sense of text and build a strong foundation for reading success. As a parent or teacher, you play a big role in…
Do you remember using reading logs as a kid? I remember having them throughout elementary and middle school. And as a teacher, most schools have required me to assign reading logs to my students. But as I have learned more about reading and best practices (based on research), I have learned that they are not…