Sometimes it seems like 10 years passes in the blink of an eye! In belated celebration of the first publication of Raising the Standards Through Chapter Books, I am excited to announce the upcoming release of the newly revised 2nd edition! Take a sneak peek inside as I share the first 26 pages with you!
Order your book today, and join us on a Tuesdays for Q&A. It will be a chance to dialogue with me and other teachers about the book and share your tips and tricks! I hope you will join me! Pick your date and sign up on my calendar.
The new book has a fresh new cover with the bright green instead of blue color. An updated image emphasizes the volume of reading students will achieve. Wider margins give teachers room to write notes on the page! It will be easy to tell which version of the book you have, old or new!
The release of the 2nd edition has been years in the making; I first sat down to update the book at the height of the pandemic. But, as teachers turned to remote teaching, my time and energy was redirected toward creating virtual curriculum tools and home reading tools for parents. Now that students are back in school (Halleluiah!) I returned once again to the task of updating the book to match new standards, new buzzwords, and the most current research in the teaching of reading.
For those of you who already have your first copy of the book highlighted, dogeared, and practically memorized, you will find the same chapter outline. The stories from my classroom remain, keeping the voice of a classroom teacher. Where the book improves is on directing teachers more explicitly in how to use the CIA (Collect-Interpret-Apply) approach with students and teach using the three-part design of the Read Side by Side Reading Program. The heaviest revisions are found in chapters 1 and 7, where the structures of read-aloud, book clubs, and extended reading are explained in detail.
Holding the first published copy of Raising the Standards back in November 2011.
I am honored to have Dr. Peter Dewitz provide a foreword in the new edition, sharing how this approach to teaching reading aligns to the science of reading and does a better job at increasing motivation and achievement than others. I am honored by his contribution to the book and his willingness to connect his brilliant work with mine.
Peter takes a break from his evaluation study work to take me on a walking tour of the Harvard University Campus in 2017.
When I left the classroom just 10+ years ago, I had what some would call a crazy dream; I wanted to write a book and a complimentary curriculum. I was 35 years old with two young girls at home (Hannah—5 and Sadie—3). I knew nothing about the publishing world or how to run a small business. Instead, I had 11-years of teaching in Title 1 schools and a vision for how to inspire a love of reading in students while increasing their skill. I took a leap of faith, and many of you took that leap right along with me. I thank you!
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My husband and daughters helped pack up and ship books to teachers when I first started the business in our home.
Now, schools across the country will use this new edition to get trained in the CIA approach and the corresponding curriculum for grades 3-6. A video book study is available, and I encourage you to join up with teachers to learn the approach together, in community with one another.
Teachers pose for a picture with Sarah and Bethany after getting trained in the CIA Approach.
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Read Side by Side Publications, LLC.