Teaching Unscripted

Discover how reading whole books and authentic texts strengthens comprehension, knowledge building, and student engagement in K–5 classrooms.

What is explicit instruction? How can reading and writing strategies help with this approach?

Strategies for addressing challenging behaviors in the classroom. How can you increase cooperation from a student who is often challenging? How should you address disrespect? What doesn’t work?

Learn how vocabulary instruction supports reading comprehension, knowledge building, and academic success within a comprehensive approach to literacy.

Six practices for teaching poetry: begin with play, have students contribute to poetry discussions in a variety of ways, have students write poems, teach the language of poetry, ask students to immerse themselves in poetry study, and require students to publicly share poems.

When early reading skills are taught in isolation, progress can stall. Learn why skill integration matters for early literacy and how research-aligned instruction supports real reading growth in K–2 classrooms.

Struggling as a model for students shows it's okay not to have the 'right' answer. How to model uncertainty and lean into AI for substitute plans.

The question is not “to do AI or not to do AI”; the question is how and why and when are we choosing to use AI as teachers, or helping our students know how and why and when to use it. Read on for the conversation between Anita Charles and a student.

Teachers often feel beholden to the delivery methods and structures placed in front of them. Finding alternative, creative, and engaging ways to meet standards requires personal risk and vulnerability, but is worth the payoff.

On tests, students may encounter unfamiliar academic vocabulary in questions, face text structures they haven't learned to navigate, or need to cite evidence in ways they haven't been explicitly taught. But these are teachable skills!

5 moves teachers can make before, during, and after reading. The focus should be preparing students to read with purpose, and make meaning through discussion and reflective questions.

When we become fixated on “catching” kids cheating with AI, things go downhill fast. Instead, design meaningful work, co-create clear guidance, encourage honesty, and model understanding not fear.

When summer math programs are focused, supportive, and thoughtfully designed, they become powerful opportunities for growth.

Even if you think you're not a math person, you're doing it every day. Quit running yourself down. We do not need to pass these insecurities on to the next generation. Why not teach students that they, like you, are indeed mathematicians already?

School personnel who are developing cell phone bans should be asking questions about the processes being implemented. What is the purpose of cell phone bans in schools? How do they lend themselves to situation modification?

As educators, we can teach self-awareness, but to help students truly understand these skills, we must first practice self-awareness ourselves. Students who are self-aware can identify their personal strengths and opportunities to learn and grow.

When fluency is integrated with phonics, vocabulary, comprehension, and writing, students learn to read efficiently and thoughtfully across contexts.

With thoughtful planning, writing workshops can thrive in any classroom, even when time is tight.