Inside Information Developing Powerful Readers and Writers of Informational Text Through Project-Based Instruction

Most teachers understand the importance of teaching children to read and write informational text. But how do they do it effectively? And in a way that is truly engaging? Nell K. Duke has the answer. With this book, she shows teachers how to build skills in reading and writing major informational text types—informative/explanatory, procedural/how-to, persuasive, nonfiction narrative, and biographical—through project-based instruction. Children read and write for real purposes and real audiences on topics that matter to them. In the process, they make a difference in the world. Drawing from the latest research, Duke explains how to design and carry out instruction, providing a blueprint for developing project-based units from start to finish—units that move children through a logical progression of phases: Project Launch, Reading and Research, Writing and Research, Revision and Editing, and Presentation and Celebration. Packed with clear, precise connections to Common Core State Standards, classroom-tested teaching ideas, and the work of practicing teachers and their students, this book will become an essential resource for years to come. For use with Grades K-5.

Nell K. Duke, Ed.D., is a professor of literacy, language, and culture and faculty affiliate in the combined program in education and psychology at the University of Michigan. Duke’s award-winning research focuses on early literacy development, particularly among children living in poverty. Her specific areas of expertise include development of informational reading and writing in young children, comprehension development and instruction in early schooling, and issues of equity in literacy education. She is author and co-author of numerous journal articles and book chapters as well as co-editor of the Handbook of Effective Literacy Instruction: Research-Based Practice K-8 (Guilford) and co-author of Literacy and the Youngest Learner (Scholastic) and Reading and Writing Genre with Purpose in K–8 Classrooms (Heinemann).