The Spark!
Practical. Honest. From people who teach this.
Summer's winding down and the lesson planning starts. Most back-to-school literacy prep centers on decoding. Here's what to put in place for writing, starting at the sentence level.
Read the post → On making it stickWe drill phonics patterns in isolation and in real reading. But when we teach a grammar or writing concept, does it get the same in-context treatment? What the research on transfer says, and a few small ways to close the gap.
Read the post → On finding what fitsAsk a room of practitioners what they use for reading and you get ten answers. Ask about writing and the room goes quiet. Here's why, and one thing you can do about it Monday.
Read the post → On writing strugglesThe blank page, the sharpened pencil, the sudden hunger. That shutdown is almost never about attitude. Here's what's really going on, and what actually helps.
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