Reader: Test-taking is part of teaching upper elementary. There's no getting around it. However, there are different ways to approach those big EOY tests. You know, the ones that tell you everything you need to know about how well you taught and everything your students have learned. /sarcasmfont Maybe it's just me, Reader, but in the long run I don't give two figs about if students can fill in A, B, C, or D correctly. What I DO want is for students to read a text selection and apply skills...

I know how it is, Reader. Students push back when we ask them to write a sentence, let alone an entire narrative essay. To be honest, things weren't that much different when I started teaching upper elementary grades around 15 years ago. Teaching writing has always been a tough sell. The instant-gratification-attention-span-of-a-gnat society we currently live in certainly doesn't make the task any easier. Teaching narrative writing can be particularly frustrating in this day and age. Why?...

Greetings, Reader! Here's some more info about the FREE Cheerful ELA Education Conference I shared with you on Thursday. We have 15 talented and experienced upper elementary ELA teachers, sharing up-to-date, relevant ideas you can quickly implement to engage your students in reading, writing, grammar, spelling, phonics, speaking, and listening. The conference is free to join and you’ll have access to all 15 presentations for 4 days. There will be fun giveaways and live take- action sessions...