Instead of glancing quickly and drawing a single conclusion, we can lean in and look with the same spirit of curiosity and interest that our youngest students have taught us to have.
-Jennifer Serravallo
I wanted to write a book that helps you really see your students, writes Jennifer Serravallo. From a kindergartner's loops and pictures to a second grader's reading log, her Literacy Teacher's Playbook details exactly how she comes to understand them deeply and meet everyone's literacy needs-and the standards.
My I-wish-I-knew-then-what-I-know-now experiences are the main inspiration for this book, writes Jen. So her workshop-in-a-book shares a powerful approach to assessment, planning, and teaching. Go beyond curriculum to develop differentiated reading and writing goals then plan targeted instruction with her four-step assessment protocol:
- collect data-student work and everyday assessments-that will be the most useful to you
- analyze the data to understand deeply what kids know and can do
- synthesize data from multiple assessments to create learning goals
- develop instructional plans and follow-ups to monitor progress.
What you can pull out of a child's messy seat pocket is data. So Jen provides downloadable assessment packets from real children representing two puzzling types of young learners. Spread Marelle's packet out and let Jen model how she analyzes little kids' work. Next try a guided practice with Emre's work. Then you'll be ready to try it with your own students.
My goal, writes Jen, is to help you understand your students with the depth that allows you to tweak your units and ensure you're giving every student opportunities for success. Follow the play tens of thousands of teachers have succeeded with: trust Jen Serravallo and feel the confidence that comes from making winning instructional decisions based on powerful assessments.
Preview a sample chapter from the Literacy Teacher's Playbook, K-2.
NEW Printable Materials
word pdf Blank Reading Log Levels D-I
word pdf Blank Reading Log Levels J-M
word pdf Blank Reading Log Levels L+
word pdf Blank Re-reading Log Levels D-I
word pdf Blank Reading Interest Survey K-2
word pdf Blank Reading Interest Survey 3-6
word pdf Blank High-Frequency Word List
word pdf Blank Engagement Inventory
About the Author: Jennifer Serravallo is the author of the New York Times bestseller The Reading Strategies Book and The Writing Strategies Book, which have been translated into Spanish, French, and Chinese. These and her other popular books and resources help teachers make goal-directed responsive strategy instruction, conferring, and small group work doable in every classroom. Her newest titles are Teaching Writing in Small Groups, A Teacher's Guide to Reading Conferences, Understanding Texts and Readers, and the assessment and teaching resource Complete Comprehension for Fiction and Nonfiction. Jen is a frequently invited speaker at national and regional conferences and travels throughout the US and Canada to provide full-day workshops and to work with teachers and students in classrooms. She is also an experienced online educator who regularly offers live webinar series and full-day online workshops, and is the creator of two self-paced asynchronous online courses, most recently Strategies in Action: Reading and Writing Methods and Content. Jen began her career in education as an NYC public school teacher. Now as a consultant, she has spent the last fifteen+ years helping teachers across the country create literacy classrooms where students are joyfully engaged, and the instruction is meaningfully individualized to students' goals. Jen is also a member of Parents Magazine Board of Advisors for education and literacy. Jen holds a BA from Vassar College and an MA from Teachers College, where she has also taught graduate and undergraduate classes. Learn more about Jen and her work at Hein.pub/serravallo, on Twitter @jserravallo, on Instagram @jenniferserravallo, or by joining The Reading and Writing Strategies Facebook Community.
