Metacognition News (Freebie)

Now that I'm working with K-4 students I've been challenged by ways to pass along what we're working on each month without having to create something for each grade level....Luckily, I started a "Metacognition News" a few years ago when I was in the classroom. It's based upon my most favorite book, "Comprehension Connections," by Tanny McGregor. (If you haven't read it yet...You probably should!)

Today I sat down to make it usable for any grade. I've posted it on my TpT Store. Feel free to head on over to snag the FREE download. 

If there is any reading materials that you pass along to families, I'd love to see it!

READ-O...Updated Version!

Do you remember this READ-O????

Steve and I've had such a huge response...and we heart you so much, we've made a READ-O for the school year! 

READO-O can be used in a variety of ways to keep your students practicing important skills at home during each month of the school year. READ-O is especially useful for helping parents practice important literacy skills with children and offers a fun effective way to keep kids engaged in academic activities...especially during winter, spring, and summer breaks! We've scaffolded the ELA Common Core month by month in a black and white template, easy for printing for each of your students!

• August/September: Reading Foundation & Reading Literature
• October: Reading Foundation, Reading Literature, & Language
• November: Reading Foundation, Reading Literature, & Language
• December: Reading Foundation, Language, & Speaking and Listening
• January: Reading Foundation, Reading Informational Text, & Language
• February: Reading Foundation, Language, & Writing
• March: Reading Informational Text, Language, & Writing
• April: Reading Literature, Language, & Writing
• May/June: Reading Literature, Language, & Writing

Our TpT Store

Head on over to our TpT Store to download a free sample and purchase our year long READ-O! Please leave us some feedback and let us know what you think! 

Schema Stuff

I'm always on the look out for new ways to introduce & reinforce the comprehension strategies to my students. (I'm a big fan of Tanny McGregor's book, "Comprehension Connections"). If you'd like to see some of her great ideas, check out ReadingResource.net!

This summer I found my old Mr. Potato Head I had when I was a kid. (Luckily, he wasn't missing any body parts!) Mr. Potato Head keeps all of his belongings inside of his head, in much the same way we all have different schema inside of our own heads! My Super-Smart 1st Graders made a pretty brilliant connection today; sometimes Mr. P might need his glasses, but some days he might not. He can put them back in his head and keep them safe until he needs them again! (Seriously? They just summed up 'metacognition' in a nut shell! Proud teacher).

I purchased a Rolodex to show them how it can file important information in special places (A-Z). I haven't shared this with the class yet...I'm just waiting for a kid to ask me what it is! 

And then I have a kid who tells me that he'd really like it if he could see the inside of a brain. Since our SmartBoards haven't been installed yet, I do the most logical thing I could think of...I hop on eBay and purchase a brain model. It's a little bit smaller than I'd hoped it'd be, but know we have a visual reference when we refer to our brain [thinking].


If you have any other comprehension tips, please send them my way!