I told you this before, but every time I read Reader Leader, I get some little nugget (or two, or three) that is just pure genius. If you haven't stopped by in a while, here's what I love:
Classroom Libraries by Katherine Sokolowski
Katherine recently moved from teaching fifth grade to teaching seventh grade, and describes the process of considering how to handle the large classroom library she had built over the years. On the surface, this post is about the importance of access to books--one of the most charming passages is when she tells her fifth-graders she'll be teaching seventh grade, and one student shouts, "what about our books?"
However, Katherine also dives into some more thorny issues (the elephants in the room), around teaching and building classroom libraries, among them, How do you build your classroom library? When a teacher moves, what happens to the books? and What makes a classroom feel like a home (for the students and the teacher? Lots of interesting ideas in one post!
Simple Steps to Build a Literacy Culture, by LaQuita Outlaw
LaQuita is a middle school principal who admits that her focus was not always on reading. However, a single event in her school totally turned around her perspective, and she started implementing fun and easy ways to create a culture of reading in her school. (Her ideas are all things she could do right away...like, tomorrow!) I won't give it away...read for yourself!
If you're interested in books and reading, are a parent or a teacher, I recommend stopping by Reader Leader.
