Breaking Through the Language Arts Block Organizing and Managing the Exemplary Literacy Day

This innovative book helps K–6 teachers infuse the entire school day with research-based literacy best practices. Classroom-tested strategies are presented for planning and implementing each component of the "exemplary literacy day"--vocabulary and word study sessions, literacy work stations, differentiated guided reading groups, reading and writing workshops, and interdisciplinary projects. Teachers get tips for organizing a print-rich classroom, supporting students' social–emotional well-being, and using assessment to guide instruction. User-friendly features include vivid vignettes, classroom management tips, questions for discussion and reflection, and 15 reproducible forms, checklists, and lesson templates. Purchasers get access to a Web page where they can download and print the reproducible materials in a convenient 8 1/2" x 11" size. Note: this book is a contemporary follow-up to Morrow's influential earlier title Organizing and Managing the Language Arts Block.

Lesley Mandel Morrow, PhD, is Distinguished Professor of Literacy and Director of the Center for Literacy Development at the Graduate School of Education at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. Her research, which she conducts with children and families from diverse backgrounds, deals with early literacy development and the organization and management of language arts programs and literacy-rich environments. Dr. Morrow has published more than 300 journal articles, chapters, and books. Her work has been recognized with awards including the Outstanding Teacher Educator in Reading Award and the William S. Gray Citation of Merit, both from the International Literacy Association (ILA), and the Oscar S. Causey Award from the Literacy Research Association for outstanding contributions to reading research. Dr. Morrow is past president of the ILA and is a member and past president of the Reading Hall of Fame.
 
Kenneth Kunz, PhD, is Supervisor of Curriculum and Instruction at the Wall Township (New Jersey) Public Schools and also serves as President of the New Jersey Literacy Association. He began his career as a third-grade teacher in the New Jersey Public Schools. Dr. Kunz has received recognition as an outstanding teacher through the New Jersey Governor’s Teacher Recognition Program and was awarded the Edward Fry Fellowship in Literacy at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey.  
 
Maureen Hall, EdS, is a part-time lecturer at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, and is a literacy coach in several districts across New Jersey through the Rutgers Center for Literacy Development.  

1. Getting Started with the Exemplary Literacy Day
2. Setting Up the Literacy Environment
3. Assessment Guiding Instruction
4. Introducing the Vocabulary Meeting
5. Word-Study Session: Strategies for Figuring Out Words, Phonological Awareness, Phonics, and More
6. Literacy Work Stations
7. Guided Reading: Grouping for Differentiation of Instruction
8. Reading Comprehension Workshop
9. Writing Workshop
10. Interdisciplinary Literacy Instruction
Concluding Thoughts
Appendix A. Exemplary Literacy Day Planning Example (Olga Pryymak and Shira Wasserman)
Appendix B: Fry (1980) Sight Words Grouped by Relative Difficulty
References