Author Archives: Jeremiah Short

#PhenomenalFriday: “Rigor Is Your Friend” Over the past few years, I’ve experimented and worked to perfect structuring my Reading and Word Power according to Bloom’s Taxonomy. This year, Writing has been incorporated into that process, to go along with an organic, cross-disciplined focus(all the ELAR subjects embedded within each discipline). Monday, I started to seeContinue reading “#PhenomenalFriday: “Rigor Is Your Friend””

#PhenomenalFriday: After-Planning Is Key For the past two years, I’ve gone to Barnes and Noble to review my upcoming instructional week. It enables me to time out lessons, catch things that I missed and find ways to enhance my instruction. Friday, it bore fruit. How? To start the instructional day, I analyzed a “Pronouns” grammarContinue reading “#PhenomenalFriday: After-Planning Is Key”

#PhenomenalFriday: “Be A Daily Gator” Following the first week of school, I knew my scholars had to develop their self-efficacy. So, after I played Eric Thomas’ video: Lion or Gazelle, I introduced the weekly theme: “Be A Lion, Not A Gazelle.  The lion gets up because it wants to…the gazelle gets up because they haveContinue reading “#PhenomenalFriday: “Be A Daily Gator””

#PhenomenalFriday: “Know Your Why” Coming into a new school year and environment, I wanted to set a tone. To do that, I wanted the kids to understand that they have to “Know Your Why.” Before they found out what their why was, I introduced the 10 Phenomenal Rules. 1. Honor Your Parents 2. Always SayContinue reading “#PhenomenalFriday: “Know Your Why””

Phenomenal Instruction: Text Analysis What is Text Analysis? An instructional routine that incorporates the “Big 5” of literacy instruction: Phonological Awareness, Phonics, Fluency, Vocabulary, Comprehension. In addition to those skills, it embeds Writing, as well. It reinforces and enhances previously taught Reading and Writing skills. If done over the course of two to three weeks,Continue reading “Phenomenal Instruction: Text Analysis”

What is Close Reading? Close Reading is a technique that can be used for small or whole group instruction. To conduct the routine, you take a passage and have kids read it multiple times for multiple purposes. The first read is for literal or basic comprehension. The second read is for a deeper dive intoContinue reading “Phenomenal Instruction: Close Reading”

Phenomenal Instruction: Targeted Guided Reading Resource: Raz Kids or Self-Selected Picture Book Primary Use: Below-Level Readers Introduction: Guided Reading is a key part of any literacy block. It doesn’t matter if you follow the “Science of Reading” or “The Reader’s Workshop” model–especially at the Primary Level, which is K-2 for the novices. As I gainedContinue reading “Phenomenal Instruction: Targeted Guided Reading”

We are a military family and at the time were living in another country and PCSing back to the US. My daughter who was in 1st grade at the time and only attended school for about 3 months before we came back to the US. Our move happened right when COVID shut everything down thenContinue reading “Testimonial: Davarus Shields, Parent”

I am a kindergarten teacher working in a title one at risk elementary and middle school. Last year, we adopted a new reading program that works well. However, with the student population that I had I was having a hard time getting them to focus and master phonics, reading comprehension and fluency. At my witsContinue reading “Testimonial: Kerstin Owen, Kindergarten Teacher”