Archives: 2011 March 20

@newsfromtengrrl for 2011-03-20

Mar 20

Overview of Text Extraction Algorithms | ReadWriteHack » http://hoki.es/fFVK69 #
Wristwatches, Reimagined (as a mobile hotspot?) – Will Young Shoppers Care? – NYTimes.com http://hoki.es/egYrH7 #
On Twitter, ‘What a Party!’ Brings an Envious ‘Enough, Already!’ – NYTimes.com http://hoki.es/dFMrUm #
Use ScraperWiki to Help Turn Web Pages Into Usable Data | Lifehacker » http://hoki.es/fDBut2 #
How to be a member of the grammar police and not get shot – The Boston Globe http://hoki.es/hKqFWf #
Teacher hits it big with e-book – TheSunNews.com http://hoki.es/f5iU85 #
My Teacher, My Facebook Friend: Should Students and Teachers Mix Online? | TakePart – Inspiration to Action http://hoki.es/hidiwd #
Are college students 'academically adrift?' | The Asbury Park Press | APP.com http://hoki.es/fM8dmJ #
U. of Pennsylvania Students Build Course-Management Software – Wired Campus – The Chronicle of Higher Education http://hoki.es/eNcy7e #
Teaching to the Text Message – NYTimes.com http://hoki.es/f979JN #
The Rise of Twitter Poetry – NYTimes.com http://hoki.es/e274re #

March 20–26 on ReadWriteThink

Mar 20

By Traci Gardnerclassroom activity, lesson plan, ReadWriteThink Caldecott, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, chickens, earthquake, haiku, Kate DiCamillo, nuclear energy, poetry, Robert Frost, Tennessee Williams, tsunami Comments Off

Spring is finally here. National Poetry Month is just weeks away. No matter what grade level you teach, ReadWriteThink has lesson plans and related resources to support you.

New Resources

Answer students’ questions and discuss current events with Thinkfinity.org’s classroom resources on earthquakes & tsunamis and nuclear energy.
Spring into Writing! Create a haiku about the season with the grades 3–5 lesson Seasonal Haiku: Writing Poems to Celebrate Any Season.
Need some egg-citement in your life? Then, listen in to hear about some books featuring adventurous chickens on Episode 32 of Chatting About Books: Chicken Adventures.

From the Calendar

March 21: It’s World Poetry Day! Explore a poem by Billy Collins, create themed poetry collections, annotate favorite poems, or try your hand at acrostics, diamante, letter, or shape poems. (For grades K–12)
March 22: Randolph Caldecott was born on March 22, 1846. Create a classroom literary award modeled after the Caldecott Medal (For grades K–12)
March 24: Cat on a Hot Tin Roof premiered in New York in 1955. Introduce students to the characteristics of drama with Reader’s Theater. (For grades 5–12)
March 25: Celebrate Kate DiCamillo’s birthday today. After examining the characters in one of DiCamillo’s stories, students write original short stories featuring animals as central characters. (For grades 3–6)
March 26: Poet Robert Frost was born in 1874. Celebrate Frost’s birthday and his poetry by exploring his innovation in the sonnet form. (For grades 3–12)
Look ahead to next week for resources on National Poetry Month and the birthdays of César Chávez, Anna Sewell, and Hans Christian Andersen.

Connecting with Other Teachers

Want to ask questions, exchange ideas, & share resources for teaching reading & language arts? Join our Reading & Language Arts group forum.
What books do you recommend to get kids laughing and learning? Share your favorites in Humor and Giggles in the Classroom.
Join the discussion on Bullying and Civic Education in the Thinkfinity Community.
Thinkfinity is planning to invite educational figures to discussion events. Who would you like to connect with in the Thinkfinity Community?

If you have feedback or questions about ReadWriteThink, all you have to do is contact us. Have a great week!

March Madness! Bits Flashback for March 20

Mar 20

By Traci GardnerBedford Bits, composition diversity, march madness, music, poetry, writing centers Comments Off

It’s the time of year for basketball and brackets, underdogs and dream teams, last-second miracles and heartbreaking losses.

In the classroom, why not try a March Madness Poetry Tournament? It’s an activity you can easily customize for your class. Don’t have time for all 64 participants? Just move down a level or two to the Sweet Sixteen or Elite Eight. Not teaching poetry? Focus your tournament on whatever you’re reading, viewing, or talking about in class (or out). How about a Final Four showdown among four authors you’ve studied?

Even if you aren’t following basketball, we have some slam-dunk strategies for you, all posted on Bedford Bits in the last week:

Holly Pappas considers the challenge of student diversity in the composition classroom in One Size Does Not Fit All.
High School Bits blogger MG Gannon focuses on occasion, argument, and research using Internet news sources with Rhetorical Context: Rhetoric in the Wake of the Arizona Shootings (Part 2). Read Part 1 of the series for an activity that analyzes political speeches.
Andrea Lunsford explores The Importance of the Writing Center and their impact upon students’ abilities to think and write critically.
Dan Martin shares his experiences with Writing About Writing pedagogy in WAW: Increasing Credibility and Course Personalization.
Barclay Barrios talks about electronic tools and feedback on student work in Commenting with Word: The Basics.
Traci Gardner has a solution that takes the torture out of poetry analysis in Using Pop Culture to Hook Students on Poetry.
High School Bits blogger Jodi Rice suggests some strategies teachers can use them with Cool Google Tools.
Susan Naomi Bernstein explains how the familiar music people love can help learners to connect to unfamiliar material in Listening to Learn.

A Few Extra Reminders!

Start planning now to participate in Collaborvention 2011: A Computers & Writing Unconference. (It’s all online, so it fits your travel budget!)
If you’re heading to CCCC, make sure you check out C’s the Day! CCCC – the Game? Level up through a series of quests, earn special prizes and titles, and more. Follow the game on Twitter: @csthedaygame
Be sure to check out Bedford/St. Martins’ brand-new website. It has a cleaner look and feel, new navigation elements, and helpful resources that make your search for course materials quick and easy.
Bedford/St. Martins’ online reference Writer’s Help has a Facebook page! Become a fan!

[Photo: March Madness by toddwickersty, on Flickr]