Topic: Daily Lit Bit

We don’t want children to go to school to “do school,” but to go to school to live a literate life with others.

Guided reading is the ONLY instructional context in which you would use leveled texts.

We don't want students thinking, this is my level. No kid is a level G, or a level M. Levels are for books, not students.

When children look at the books in the classroom library, they must be able to see themselves.

A level is for books, not for children.

Levels are not for families, children, or report cards.

Having a library is a treasure, and having a librarian is a gift.

Student choice builds agency.

The books in a classroom library are not there for the purpose of “practicing reading,” but rather to create lifelong readers who have the power of choice.

We would never take a book out of child's hand. If a child wants to read a book, let them read a book. But we can help them choose books they will enjoy by conferring with them and looking at what they write about books.

All children deserve access to an authentic, rich, and diverse text base—including a robust classroom library where levels have no place.

Learners should be in charge of their own learning.

Fountas & Pinnell Classroom™ is not about scripting for teachers. Instead, it offers models for teacher language and moves.

Authentic literacy means kids engage in literacy in school like they do in life.

Children’s talk about reading reveals and expands their thinking.

Book clubs provide an authentic opportunity for children to apply many of the literacy behaviors and understandings that they have learned through other instructional contexts: thinking within, beyond, and about a text; listening and understanding; interacting socially; engaging in extended discussions; and more.

Your classroom’s physical space and the placement, accessibility, and use of materials show what you value as a teacher. Design a classroom that reflects your values and also makes children feel it is their place of learning.

Minilessons are most powerful when taught in response to an authentic need that you observe in most readers in your classroom.