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You are here: Home / freebies / Need Reading Minilesson Ideas?
freebies, literacy, writing

Need Reading Minilesson Ideas?

July 6, 2012

As many of you know from Facebook, we were at the beach last week celebrating our first wedding anniversary. I think I’m just now getting back into the swing of things at home again, but I had to take a little trip down memory lane and look at a few of our wedding pictures. Aww… memories. I can’t believe it’s been a year since we were married. I also can’t believe I hiked up the east coast’s biggest sand dune in my wedding dress for some of the pictures. It must have been pure adrenaline because it seemed so much harder this year. 😉 The week certainly flew by too. It was so nice to get away and have a schedule-free week with lots of sand between my toes and salty ocean air in my lungs. As much as I love teaching, I live for our week at the beach each year!


My husband loves to play in the waves, but I’m more of a read-on-the-beach kind of girl. I finished several just for fun books, but also read a couple professional ones too. Several of you asked about the Notebook Connections: Strategies for the Reading Notebook picture I posted on Facebook. It’s Aimee Buckner’s reading version that follows up her earlier writing version, Notebook Know-How: Strategies for the Writer’s Notebook. I loved the writing one, so I was hopeful the reading one would give me several new ideas too. 


You can definitely tell Aimee is a real teacher working with real students in a real classroom. She talks about the different ways to use a reader’s notebook, other than just writing letters back and forth. I found some of her ideas very fresh and can’t wait to try them. I love writing the letters with my students, but I like to sprinkle in other ideas to keep the notebooks from becoming stale. Aimee gives several suggestions (which would make great mini lessons) and shows actual student samples from her class too.


One idea that I can’t wait to try is having my students sift through their sticky notes/thinking marks after they finish a book. They’ll only keep the notes that are still meaningful and can be explained. Those go in their notebooks to be used for letters or other written responses and the rest are recycled. I love that this teaches them to monitor their own comprehension and really learn to focus on only making meaningful sticky notes as they read more books. So many times I have students who finish their books with a pile of sticky notes, but then they still have trouble remembering/writing about the book. It’s because their sticky notes aren’t meaningful or they don’t have enough “meat” to them. I like the idea of actually having students sort through the notes one-by-one at the end of the book in an effort to prioritize them. In the past, I’ve encouraged my students go find a “good” note to use for their notebook, but I need to spend more time teaching them what makes one note more meaningful than the next.


I could go on and on. If you don’t already have the book, I’d recommend picking up a copy. Her writing one is great too!


Psst…Did you find me as a gust poster yesterday? Some of you guessed from my hint. 🙂 I was over at Laura Candler’s Corkboard Connections blog. Here it is if you missed me. Click over to grab your writing freebie and leave some love. Be sure to sign up for her newsletter while you’re there too… tons of good stuff in there!


resources writing minilessons
by Christi Fultz 

About Christi Fultz

wife • mom • teacher • writer • tech obsessed • sometime crafter • beach lover | Empowering entrepreneurs through branding & website design

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Comments

  1. Patti Wilson says: July 6, 2012 at 11:27 pm

    Happy Anniversary!

    Patti
    One Class, One Sound

  2. Melissa says: July 7, 2012 at 3:17 pm

    Happy Anniversary! I looked at those 2 books on Amazon and added them to my wishlist. They look wonderful! Thanks for the recommendation. 😀

  3. Kelly says: July 8, 2012 at 7:19 pm

    Happy Anniversary! The book Notebook Connections looks great…but do you think it is geared more for the upper elementary? I teach 1st and started using reader notebooks with my students last year and would love to learn more. 🙂

    • Christi at Ms. Fultz's Corner says: July 9, 2012 at 3:16 am

      Yes, it's definitely geared for the upper grades. She's a fourth grade teacher. Having taught second grade, I think using them with first grade would be challenging, but so rewarding!

Christi Fultz

wife • mom • teacher • writer • tech obsessed • sometime crafter • beach lover | Empowering entrepreneurs through branding & website design

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As an experienced third grade teacher with a Masters in Elementary Education and K-12 reading license, I know educational resources need to be both inviting and engaging to capture students' interests. I am passionate about creating user-friendly resources to help all students learn while saving valuable prep for teachers. Read More…

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This Is 3 // Charlotte girl, being your momma is a This Is 3 // Charlotte girl, being your momma is a gift. I cannot believe you turn THREE tomorrow! You have the most adventurous heart, love your babies, and always keep us on our toes. We love you!
Lake Love // Even though our trip was cut short th Lake Love // Even though our trip was cut short this year, I’m thankful we made it to Marblehead. It’s my absolute favorite spot on Lake Erie. Just swipe to see that sailboat and sunlight on the water. Absolute peace.
Happy Last Day // We had a lot of changes last sum Happy Last Day // We had a lot of changes last summer, but the move back home to Louisville has been even better than I expected. Kindergarten was so special and Carter had the sweetest teacher. Today was a much-needed bright spot. Here’s to what’s next.
Joy // I shared this in stories, but it deserves a Joy // I shared this in stories, but it deserves a permanent place in my feed too. When do we lose this endless wonder and joy?? These kids are here for a good time all the time. 

They loved a night in a hotel to swim and play. It wasn’t a relaxing experience away with a spa like many of my trips pre-kids, but it was exactly what we needed.
Proof Of Mom // Took the kids to opening day at @k Proof Of Mom // Took the kids to opening day at @kentuckykingdom today. After moving back to Louisville last summer, it’s been fun exploring old places that are “new” to my kids. The new ownership seems to have big plans for the park. Carter is eager for the water rides to open. We’ll be back soon!

#kentuckyblogger #kyblogger #louisvilleblogger #igerslouisville #derbycitymama #kentuckymom ⁠#locallouisville #louisvillelove #mylouisville⁠ #howwelou #louisvilleigers #momsaroundlouisville #momlife
Happy Easter // So blessed to be their momma. 🐰 Happy Easter // So blessed to be their momma. 🐰

#kentuckyblogger #kyblogger #louisvilleblogger #igerslouisville #derbycitymama #kentuckymom  #locallouisville #louisvillelove #mylouisville⁠ #howwelou #louisvilleigers #momsaroundlouisville #momlife #instagrammom #momsofig
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Spring break was so much fun. It makes me really excited for summer break with them. This is such a fun age.

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