With this unique approach to literature circles, our students are reading more, are writing more and are excited about talking about their books! The enthusiasm in the class is contagious with even our more reluctant readers wanting more time – and more books - to read. It is a pleasure to join a group and participate in the conversation. Our students’ ability to make deep connections to one and other and to their reading is amazing. Tanis Anderson, Literacy Programme Consultant, K-12 and a team of Burnaby teachers Grand Conversations, Thoughtful Responses is built upon the premise that all students can become active, independent, thoughtful readers. The structures and strategies in this book are proven to help students develop confidence and competence in their reading. Student engagement with text soars through participation in grand conversations with peers and reflecting on reading with thoughtful, written responses. This unique approach includes: student choice in books students reading at their own pace, thus creating flexible groups literature circle groups where students discuss the shared text they are reading strategies for teaching written response strategies for co-creating assessment criteria additional activities to develop and deepen comprehension book lists

Grand Conversations, Thoughtful Responses is built upon the premise that all students can become active, independent, thoughtful readers. The structures and strategies in this book are proven to help students develop confidence and competence in their reading. Student engagement with text soars through participation in grand conversations with peers and reflecting on reading with thoughtful, written responses. This unique approach includes: student choice in books students reading at their own pace, thus creating flexible groups literature circles where students discuss the shared text they are reading strategies for teaching written response strategies for co-creating assessment criteria additional activities to develop and deepen comprehension book lists This new edition has been expanded to include examples and book lists for grades K to 12.

R.E.A.D will help educators turn their students into strategic readers. It presents a collection of strategies based on the 5 + 2 essential elements of literacy instruction: oral language, phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, comprehension, and writing. Each section contains a brief conceptual overview as well as specific strategies that can be used to facilitate the development of that literacy process. A graphic at the beginning of each strategy identifies when it should be used, the most appropriate group size, and the grade levels for which it would be most applicable. Additional references and/or other resources are also provided at the end of each strategy description to provide educators with more information.

This book offers strategies, activities, and tools to help teachers and reading specialists teach elementary and middle school students to become better readers, writers, speakers, and listeners. Written in a lively and accessible style with one chapter for each letter of the alphabet, Literacy from A to Z offers practical advice and fully realized examples to improve your lesson plans.

Provides detailed instructional strategies, sample lesson plans, and sample assessments which can be adapted in your classroom to help create better readers and more effective writers.

Committed to embracing the power of oral language, Literacy Out Loud recognizes the important role "talk" plays in developing the reading and writing abilities that students need in school and beyond. The book offers strategies where oral language takes centre stage and is fostered through engaging activities. Literacy activities and events focus on all aspects of listening and speaking, and emphasize enjoyable, purposeful, social learning. The book argues that listening and speaking, or "talk," is at the heart of a vibrant classroom. It shows teachers how to nurture dynamic classroom talk that is essential in its own right, and makes all learning possible.

This updated edition of a 1990 classic advocates the use of real books in a classroom context that places children's enjoyment and interpretation of literature at the center. New material includes a foreword by Shelley Harwayne and tributes to the book's influence by Stephanie Harvey, Lester Laminack, Frank Serafini, and Mary Glover. In addition to illuminating the powerful components of a literature-based reading program, the authors provide a number of assessment tools. For use with Grades 2- 6.

Whether you’re newly together and eager to make it work or a longtime couple looking to strengthen and deepen your bond, Eight Dates offers a program of how, why, and when to have eight basic conversations with your partner that can result in a lifetime of love. “Happily ever after” is not by chance, it’s by choice– the choice each person in a relationship makes to remain open, remain curious, and, most of all, to keep talking to one another. From award-winning marriage researcher and bestselling author Dr. John Gottman and fellow researcher Julie Gottman, Eight Dates offers an ingenious and simple-to-implement approach to effective relationship communication. Here are the subjects that every serious couple should discuss: Trust. Family. Sex and intimacy. Dealing with conflict. Work and money. Dreams, and more. And here is how to talk about them—how to broach subjects that are difficult or embarrassing, how to be brave enough to say what you really feel. There are also suggestions for where and when to go on each date—book your favorite romantic restaurant for the Sex & Intimacy conversation (and maybe go to a yoga or dance class beforehand). There are questionnaires, innovative exercises, real-life case studies, and skills to master, including the Four Skills of Intimate Conversation and the Art of Listening. Because making love last is not about having a certain feeling—it’s about both of you being active and involved.

In this inspirational and unflinchingly honest memoir, acclaimed author Reyna Grande describes her childhood torn between the United States and Mexico, and shines a light on the experiences, fears, and hopes of those who choose to make the harrowing journey across the border. Reyna Grande vividly brings to life her tumultuous early years in this “compelling...unvarnished, resonant” (BookPage) story of a childhood spent torn between two parents and two countries. As her parents make the dangerous trek across the Mexican border to “El Otro Lado” (The Other Side) in pursuit of the American dream, Reyna and her siblings are forced into the already overburdened household of their stern grandmother. When their mother at last returns, Reyna prepares for her own journey to “El Otro Lado” to live with the man who has haunted her imagination for years, her long-absent father. Funny, heartbreaking, and lyrical, The Distance Between Us poignantly captures the confusion and contradictions of childhood, reminding us that the joys and sorrows we experience are imprinted on the heart forever, calling out to us of those places we first called home. Also available in Spanish as La distancia entre nosotros.

Suppose you could ask God any question and get an answer. What would it be? Young people all over the world have been asking those questions. So Neale Donald Walsch, author of the internationally bestselling Conversations with God series had another conversation. Conversations with God for Teens is a simple, clear, straight-to-the-point dialogue that answers teens questions about God, money, sex, love, and more. Conversations with God for Teens reads like a rap session at a church youth group, where teenagers discuss everything they ever wanted to know about life but were too afraid to ask God. Walsch acts as the verbal conduit, showing teenagers how easy it is to converse with the divine. When Claudia, age 16, from Perth, Australia, asks, "Why can't I just have sex with everybody? What's the big deal?", the answer God offers her is: "Nothing you do will ever be okay with everybody. 'Everybody' is a large word. The real question is can you have sex and have it be okay with you?" There's no doubt that the casual question-and-answer format will help make God feel welcoming and accessible to teens. Conversations with God for Teens is the perfect gift purchase for parents, grandparents, and anyone else who wants to provide accessible spiritual content for the teen(s) in their lives.