Part of Slice of Life by Two Writing Teachers.

My desk before Reader’s Workshop yesterday
Responsive Teacher
Messy Teacher
Hardworking Teacher
Tired Teacher
Assessments, data, mini-lessons, conferences, strategy groups, read aloud,
planning, teaching, demonstration pages, Anchor charts,
Engagement Inventories, grading…*
Tired Teacher
Hardworking Teacher
Messy Teacher
Responsive Teacher

*Wait. Is this a song?**

Mini Lessons, then confer, group your kids, hope goals Transfer
Anchor charts, assessment data, demonstration pages
Read to self, read aloud, ELA will make us proud
Essential questions, inquiry, hope your work engages

Understandings, knows and do’s, google docs – no time to snooze
Study data, write it down, buy some stock in post-its
Reader’s Notebooks, more directions, closely read the text collections
Follow kids and write them back, love those kids the mostest

We didn’t start — we’re trying!
Students, geared for learning
as the year starts turning
We didn’t start — we’re trying
Workshop’s just beginning
Soon we will be winning!

Find a book, check it out, ask a question if in doubt
Whole group meetings, someday lists, readers make plans
Talk to kids, give high fives, workshop norms and reading lives
Much to do to get a classroom full of reading fans!

We didn’t start — we’re trying!
Students, geared for learning
as the year starts turning
We didn’t start — we’re trying
Workshop’s just beginning
Soon we will be winning!

**My apologies to Billy Joel and my thanks to Mr. Thought who is somehow an expert on the meter and rhyme of We Didn’t Start the Fire, as in: “I used to sing this all the time in 1990. I had the whole thing memorized.”