The Literacy Dive Podcast: Reading and Writing Strategies for Upper Elementary Teachers and Parents

I hope you’ve been enjoying this month’s biography theme. The last two episodes I gave tips for introducing biographies to your students and tips for using mentor texts. At this point your students should be familiar with the genre, which leads me to today’s episode. I will be sharing how to use biographies to focus on key reading skills that go hand in hand with this genre.

These reading skills really lend themselves beautifully to this genre and I’m going to tell you why. Although I could think of even more, today I will specifically be sharing seven key reading skills to target with biographies. The reason I want to talk about this is because you don’t have to always grab that fiction text when you want to introduce certain skills!

In this episode I share:

• 7 reading skills that can be easily practiced through biographies
• Tips for incorporating these reading skills into biography exploration
• How biographies can be used to have student expand their answers
• Why biographies are beneficial for test prep

SHOW NOTES: https://theliteracydive.com/7-key-reading-skills/

Resources Mentioned:

• Free Biography Templates
• Easy Reader Biographies
• Black History Biography Activity Bundle

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Welcome to another episode to highlight February’s topic of biographies! If you listened to last week’s episode then your students should know what biographies are now that you’ve introduced them. Biographies may not seem like the most interesting genre, so today I’ll be sharing nine mini-lesson ideas that are going to be engaging and interesting for your students. These ideas should leave you inspired and focused on this nonfiction genre.

In this episode, I share:

• 9 exciting mini-lesson ideas to explore biographies
• Whole group and individual activities for teaching biographies
• How to use graphic organizers to make learning memorable
• Tips for taking advantage of available resources

SHOW NOTES: theliteracydive.com/podcast-episode69

Resources Mentioned:

• Free Biography Templates
• Easy Reader Biographies
• Black History Biography Activity Bundle

Connect with me:

• Check out my TpT Store
• Subscribe to my E-mail list
• Instagram Posts
• Blog Posts
• Facebook Posts
• Watch my YouTube channel 

If you are enjoying The Literacy Dive Podcast, please follow, leave a rating, and a helpful review! It is much appreciated and thank you for listening!

Black History is celebrated this month, but I have been one to celebrate Black and diverse history all year long.

This episode will support teachers who are wanting to implement African American history into their classrooms whether it's their first year or tenth year. You will gain helpful reminders when navigating your conversations about Black influential individuals with students, as well as activities that can be easily implemented throughout this month and beyond.

Episode Highlights:

• Black History Month is celebrated in February but is encouraged to be taught year-round
• It is the duty of teachers to help fill in the gaps that are left out of textbooks and omitted from curriculum standards
• 3 helpful reminders when discussing Black history with students
• 5 ways to implement Black history in the classroom - activities you can get up and running today!

Links referenced:

• Read my blog post, 5 Activities to Implement Black History in the Classroom

• Read my blog post, Teaching Black History in the Classroom

• Printable & Digital Black History Biographies and Research Activities

• Digital-Only Black History Biographies and Research Activities

• Diverse Read Alouds + Books for Black History

• Donorschoose

• BrainPop

• Creating an Amazon Wishlist

Show Notes: https://theliteracydive.com/podcast-episode17/

If you are enjoying The Literacy Dive Podcast, please subscribe, leave a rating, and a helpful review! It is much appreciated and thank you for listening!

As we enter the month of February it is time that we discuss and celebrate what Black History Month really stands for with our students. My favorite way to do this is by acknowledging iconic Black and African American figures. 

This is truly a great opportunity to teach biography and I have so many creative ways to do this that I’m going to share with you today. In this episode I will share how to teach this nonfiction genre so your students get the most out of their reading experience.

In this episode I share:

• Simple ways to help your students understand how biographies work
• Ways to use mentor texts when teaching your students biographies
• How to identify biographies from a big group of texts 
• Tips for recognizing the main purpose of the genre
• My favorite techniques to let students share their ideas with others

SHOW NOTES: theliteracydive.com/podcast-episode68

Resources Mentioned:

• Free Biography Templates
• Easy Reader Biographies
• Black History Biography Activity Bundle

Connect with me:

• Check out my TpT Store
• Subscribe to my E-mail list
• Instagram Posts
• Blog Posts
• Facebook Posts
• Watch my YouTube channel 

If you are enjoying The Literacy Dive Podcast, please follow, leave a rating, and a helpful review! It is much appreciated and thank you for listening!

I don’t know about you, but I have really been enjoying this Resetting Series to start off this new 2022 year! We’ve talked about topics such as routines and writing blocks, but this episode will be focused on something more pragmatic: parents. It is never too late to reset your relationship with parents, or as I like to call them,”your student’s grown ups!” This episode is important for so many reasons, and I’m going to share those with you today.

In this episode I share:

• Why building relationships with parents has become more difficult during the pandemic
• 3 areas to form healthy relationships with parents
• 5 simple and effective ways to communicate with parents
• How to support parents and students at home
• 5 fun ways I have gotten parents involved in my classroom

SHOW NOTES: theliteracydive.com/podcast-episode67

Resources Mentioned:

• Guided Reading Question Cards
• Reading Reference Sheets
• Writing Reference Sheets

Connect with me:

• Check out my TpT Store
• Subscribe to my E-mail list
• Instagram Posts
• Blog Posts
• Facebook Posts
• Watch my YouTube channel 

If you are enjoying The Literacy Dive Podcast, please follow, leave a rating, and a helpful review! It is much appreciated and thank you for listening!

This time of the year is perfect for resetting, and I personally find it to be such a powerful opportunity. In my previous episode I provided tips for resetting your writing block and in this episode we’re going to speak about the other part of literacy, which is reading. We all know that reading is a complex skill and you may be surprised to learn that the reason your students are having difficulty is solely due to needing a reset. 

This episode will follow a similar format as my previous episodes with five questions and actionable tips for you to put into place. These questions will make you consider what you like about your reading block and how you may be able to change it for the better. You will get an accurate idea of what skills and strategies your students are able to apply to their reading or need additional instruction. It’s not too late to reset and establish new goals for both you and your students!

In this episode I share:

-The benefits of making daily reading a priority

-The dos and don’ts for how to organize your mini-lessons 

-Why you shouldn’t worry about providing multiple scaffolds

-Various approaches to collecting data on your students reading abilities

-A surprising idea to get your students to read every day

SHOW NOTES: theliteracydive.com/podcast-episode66

Resources Mentioned:

Episode 64, Reset Your Routine: 5 Questions to Ask Your Students

Running Records Cheat Sheet Freebie

Reading Choice Boards freebie

Reading Reference Sheets

Reading Activities Bundle

Reading Skills and Strategies Anchor Charts

Reading Response Sentence Stem Anchor Charts

Small Group Observation Notes Data Tracker

Reading Workshop Bundle

Connect with me:

-Check out my TpT Store

-Subscribe to my E-mail list

-Instagram Posts

-Blog Posts

-Facebook Posts

-Watch my YouTube channel 

If you are enjoying The Literacy Dive Podcast, please follow, leave a rating, and a helpful review! It is much appreciated and thank you for listening!

In today's episode I’m going to address the elephant in the room, which is the fact that teaching literacy is hard. There, I said it! In my personal experience, I found that compared to all other subjects, reading and writing were without a doubt the most difficult for my students. If you’re anything like me and refuse to let your students fail because something is difficult, this episode is for you!   Last week I recommended that you start the new year off by asking your students questions to get an idea of what was and wasn’t working in your classroom. Now, I have questions for you! In order to make sure your lessons are effective for those struggling readers, I have questions and tips for you to consider. I talk about topics such as when to remove graphic organizers and how to create an environment that elicits creative writing no matter the grade. Most importantly, I hope you take these tips to your classroom and make writing fun!   In this episode I share: -5 questions you should ask yourself about your literacy lessons -Reasons you don’t want to skip your writing block -Why you shouldn’t rush to take away writing supports and scaffolding -What to focus on when helping your students set their goals -Tips for making the writing process fun for your students

SHOW NOTES: theliteracydive.com/podcast-episode65

Resources Mentioned:

-Primary and Upper Elementary Writing Office

-Writing Reference Sheets

-Descriptive Writing Anchor Charts

-Writing Prompts

-Writing Process Sticky Note Checklists

-Literacy Choice Boards freebie

-Episode 32, Setting Up Effective Writing Centers

-Episode 23, Using Centers for Upper Elementary Kids

-Episode 9, Using Quick Writes to Strengthen Student Writing

-Episode 2, 5 Components of a Mini Lesson

Connect with me:

-Check out my TpT Store

-Subscribe to my E-mail list

-Instagram Posts

-Blog Posts

-Facebook Posts

-Watch my YouTube channel 

If you are enjoying The Literacy Dive Podcast, please follow, leave a rating, and a helpful review! It is much appreciated and thank you for listening!

Happy New Year! After all the reflection that you did in December, it’s now time to decide which processes you should continue and what needs to be changed in your classroom. A lot of people think that it’s a necessity to reset or restart their procedures when they return from break. This isn’t always the best strategy, so I’m going to make sure you are prepared to make the best decision on what stays and goes in 2022.

In order to get a better idea on what is working, you will first need to speak with your target audience- your students. I say this from experience since I learned the hard way after being influenced by Pinterest too many times! I found that even with the best intentions it sometimes did more harm than good to change a classroom procedure. Once I started asking questions to my students, I realized I had more insight on what made my classroom engaging and conducive to learning. It’s true what they say, if it’s not broken, don’t fix it.

In this episode I share: -5 questions I like to ask my students prior to making changes -When to change your routine and when not to change your routine -Why it’s important to do a midyear check-in -Methods to collect your student’s responses

SHOW NOTES: theliteracydive.com/podcast-episode64

Resources Mentioned:

-FREEBIE: Would You Rather/This or That Slides

Connect with me:

-Check out my TpT Store

-Subscribe to my E-mail list

-Instagram Posts

-Blog Posts

-Facebook Posts

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If you are enjoying The Literacy Dive Podcast, please follow, leave a rating, and a helpful review! It is much appreciated and thank you for listening!

I can’t believe I’m saying this, but this is my last episode of 2021! I’m going to take this opportunity to continue my conversation from my last episode when I shared my personal reflections from 2021. In my opinion, January is the perfect time to reflect on the past year and set goals for moving forward and this episode I’m going to share how to do that with your students.

By looking at the positive and negative parts of the previous year you can learn and grow in the future. This is an important concept for not only adults, but our students as well. That’s why I created a 5-page writing activity for them to do just that! This is not just your typical hand-made book because I’ve incorporated illustrations, polaroids, and more! I can’t wait to hear how your students enjoyed this activity, so don’t forget to grab check out this flipbook linked below!

In this episode I share: -A description of my 5-page student reflection and goal writing flip book -Why my flipbook is my favorite activity for the first week back from break -Ideas to get students motivated to generate creative goals -Fun suggestions for how to make self-portraits

SHOW NOTES: theliteracydive.com/podcast-episode63

Resources Mentioned:

-2022 New Year Flipbook

Connect with me:

-Check out my TpT Store

-Subscribe to my E-mail list

-Instagram Posts

-Blog Posts

-Facebook Posts

-Watch my YouTube channel 

If you are enjoying The Literacy Dive Podcast, please follow, leave a rating, and a helpful review! It is much appreciated and thank you for listening!

It seems like just yesterday we were ringing in 2021 and yet I can’t believe it’s almost 2022! I always like to think back on the good times and the challenging times as the new year approaches. In this episode, I reflect on the priorities I will be carrying over to 2022. These routines and practices have been important to me and I think you’ll find they can be important to you as well!

Every year I find myself thinking back on those moments of insight that I want to focus on for the future. Those realizations have allowed me to move on and accept whatever difficult situation that may come my way. Life is not about the positive or negative situations you’re faced with, but how you perceive them. By practicing these strategies and mindfulness ideas there is no doubt you will have a joyful year ahead!

In this episode I share: -Tips for setting boundaries for people who can’t say no -How to accept those things that can’t be changed -Strategies for saving your energy for positive things rather than negative -My daily practices for maintaining a joyful life -Self-care you can incorporate into your daily routines

SHOW NOTES: theliteracydive.com/podcast-episode62

Resources Mentioned:

1 Second Everyday: Video Diary

Connect with me:

Check out my TpT Store

Subscribe to my E-mail list

Instagram Posts

Blog Posts

Facebook Posts

Watch my YouTube channel 

If you are enjoying The Literacy Dive Podcast, please follow, leave a rating, and a helpful review! It is much appreciated and thank you for listening!