Mike Weaver, Principal JOHN A. FORREST ELEMENTARY SCHOOL Fair Lawn Public Schools

1. Take the Journey: Putting Independent Reading into Practice Mike Weaver, PrincipalJOHN A. FORREST ELEMENTARY SCHOOLFair Lawn Public Schools

2. JOHN A. FORREST ELEMENTARY SCHOOLFair Lawn Public Schools Growing Readers

3. Seven Basic Tenets • Creating Time • Structure for Instruction • Classroom Libraries • Just Right Books/Assessment • Curriculum • Professional Development • Family Involvement

4. At every age level, reading more pages in school and at home each day (on the child’s reading level) is associated with higher reading scores. At each grade level, students who read more pages every day are more likely to achieve the proficient level of performance on the NAEP Reading Assessment. -U.S. Department of Education Creating Time

5. “The volume of a student’s reading during school is one of the most important differences between children’s experiences in more and less effective teachers’ classrooms. Lower-achieving readers simply read less during the school day than their high-achieving peers, spending more instructional time on other activities.” -Richard Allington, What Matters Most to Struggling Readers Creating Time

6. Creating Time Instructional time devoted to ‘pull-out’ comparison: 2009-20102010-2011 Grade 2 69 minutes 42 minutes (20.5% of total instructional time) (12.5% of total instructional time) Grade 3 74 minutes 46 minutes (22.1% of total instructional time) (13.7% of total instructional time) Grade 4 79 minutes 52 minutes (23.6% of total instructional time) (15.5% of total instructional time) Total 74 minutes 47 minutes (22.1% of total instructional time) (14% of total instructional time

7. Structure for Instruction • Reading Workshop • Mini-lesson (10-12 minutes/Read Aloud is separate) • Independent Reading/Writing • Individual conferences • Mid-workshop interruption • Table conferences • Strategy lessons/Guided reading • Partner work • Share (Select a few student to share something you saw, they tried or learned)

8. Structure for Instruction Reading Workshop: Conferring • Eavesdrop on active involvement in the mini-lesson. • Review notes from previous conferences. • Recycle a teaching point from someone else’s conference. • Preview a teaching point that comes later in the unit of study. • Consider the management issues that are involved. • Consider the qualities of good writing. • Consider a list of reading skills and try to observe them. • Harvest teaching points from a mentor text.

9. Structure for Instruction Reading Workshop: Classroom Environment • Carpeted meeting area with chart paper, SMARTBoard, library • Tables for independent work • Small group instruction space • Display of charts and authentic student work • Writing workshop area for supplies • Comfortable seating/carpeting in and around the library

10. Classroom Libraries Expectations: • A goal of 1,500 books per classroom • A range of text types (e.g. fiction, non-fiction, poetry) • Organized multiple ways into baskets (e.g. level, genre, author), book covers facing out and easily accessible • Baskets are clearly labeled with the level; book level noted on the front cover of each book • Leveled library matches the needs of the students: 1 level below the lowest level / 1 level above the highest level

11. Classroom Libraries Building and Maintaining: • $300 per classroom/per year from the school’s general budget (approximately 100 books per classroom) • $250 per classroom/per year from the district’s general budget to support specific units of study (approximately 75 books per classroom) • $250 per classroom/per year using Book Fair Reward Dollars (approximately 75 books per classroom) • Summer reading initiative using $200 per classroom/per year and 4,000 Reading Club Points per classroom/per year (approximately 150 books per classroom) • Approximately 20 books added per year/per student at an average value of $58 per student (approximately $1,160 per classroom)

12. Classroom Libraries USING BOOK FAIR REWARD DOLLARS USING READING CLUB BONUS POINTS • Host 3 fairs throughout the year: September, February and June • In September 2012 and 2013, spent $1,800 from the school’s general budget when bonus point incentives were greatest. • Over $20,000 generated in total sales ($66 per student) produces $10,000 reward dollars • Books used for the principal’s birthday book club and prizes for school events • Orders generated 60,000 bonus points each at an approximate value of $2,400 each • Each child receives a $5 voucher at each fair from our bank of reward dollars to use toward the purchase of any book (approximately $5,000 reward dollars redeemed) • Monies devoted to the purchase of approximately 600 books each year for our school’s summer reading initiative • Remaining $5,000 reward dollars are distributed to classroom teachers and spent on school initiatives as needed

13. Just Right Books/Assessment Insert Video Link

14. Just Right Books/Assessment Pa XXXX Joanie with his dirty XXXX. Spoon rose to follow Pa, but one of the XXXX XXXX in the window caught the light of the real XXXX and sent off pure white XXXX directly at Spoon. He sat down again, XXXX by the XXXX orb, feeling as if he was on the brink of a meaningful XXXX, on the verge of XXXX his XXXX. His eyes darted from one XXXX to the next. Something of Gram’s. Thinking, thinking. • 4th grade reading level, 85% accuracy

15. Just Right Books/Assessment Pa followed Joanie with his dirty XXXX. Spoon rose to follow Pa, but one of the XXXX suns in the window caught the light of the real XXXX and sent off pure white XXXX directly at Spoon. He sat down again, XXXX by the XXXX orb, feeling as if he was on the brink of a meaningful thought, on the verge of XXXX his XXXX. His eyes darted from one XXXX to the next. Something of Gram’s. Thinking, thinking. • 90% . . . A little better, but still not “just right”

16. Just Right Books/Assessment Pa followed Joanie with his dirty dishes. Spoon rose to follow Pa, but one of the XXXX suns in the window caught the light of the real XXXX and sent off pure white flashes directly at Spoon. He sat down again, mesmerized by the XXXX orb, feeling as if he was on the brink of a meaningful thought, on the verge of solving his XXXX. His eyes darted from one sun to the next. Something of Gram’s. Thinking, thinking. • Starting to clear up, let’s see 100% . . .

17. Just Right Books/Assessment Pa followed Joanie with his dirty dishes. Spoon rose to follow Pa, but one of the stained-glass suns in the window caught the light of the real sun and sent off pure white flashes directly at Spoon. He sat down again, mesmerized by the gleaming orb, feeling as if he was on the brink of a meaningful thought, on the verge of solving his problem. His eyes darted from one sun to the next. Something of Gram’s. Thinking, thinking. • So, what does that show?

18. Just Right Books/Assessment • Under 96% is really unclear • Better to be too easy than too hard • Importance of matching kids to “just right” books

19. Just Right Books/Assessment Grade One Literacy Assessment Checklist Grade Five Literacy Assessment Checklist

20. Curriculum • Consists of reading and writing units that have been selected from the Calkins Units of Study for Teaching Reading (for K-2 and 3-5) and the Calkins Units of Study for Teaching Writing (for K-2 and 3-5)- further supported by the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project (http://readingandwritingproject.com/about/overview). • A revised Fair Lawn Language Arts Department unit plan was created to narrow focus to particular teaching points with proper alignment to the Common Core State Standards. • Teachers are encouraged to create additional mini-lessons for the whole group, small-group, and individual conferences based on student needs, taught within the workshop structure, and aligned to the unit goals, standards, and outcomes. • Teachers have access to comprehensive unit plans in desk or e-book copies of Calkins’ work. In addition, supporting texts are provided in a professional library in each elementary school.

21. Professional Development • Lab sites established in each school with literacy coach for teachers to observe lessons from the units of study and strategies for workshop-style teaching • Literacy coach’s work with teachers starts with a meeting before school from 8:15am – 8:45am to set the focus for the session • The day ends with a summary and follow-up with questions, comments, and/or ideas to share

22. Family Involvement

23. Family InvolvementForrest SchoolParent Reading Survey September 23, 2013 How often does your child read without being required to do so by homework expectations? (Percentages based on 196 responses.) Never Rarely Sometimes Regularly

24. Family InvolvementForrest SchoolParent Reading Survey September 23, 2013 How many minutes does your child spend reading each day when NOT required by homework? (Percentages based on 196 responses.) 0 10 - 20 20 - 30 30 or more

25. Family InvolvementForrest SchoolParent Reading Survey September 23, 2013 How comfortable do you feel contacting the school about your child’s reading progress? (Percentages based on 196 responses.) Somewhat Moderately Highly Unapproachable

26. Family InvolvementForrest SchoolParent Reading Survey September 23, 2013 In one word, how do you feel when you read with your child? Happiness, accomplishment, encouraged, joy, curiosity, frustration, comfortable, togetherness, excitement, great, snuggly, pleasure, warmth, hesitant, adventure, torture, special, empowered, fun, peace, sharing, unity, closeness, unfocused, amazing, love

27. “And the Survey Says…”