Nancy Akhavan

Combine research-backed literacy instruction with classroom routines that help students find reading success As schools embrace the science of reading, implementing evidence-based literacy practices is a must! Yet it can be challenging for busy teachers to know exactly how to put research-based approaches and strategies to work in the classroom. In The Lit Six: What Every Teacher Needs to Build an Evidence-Based Literacy Block, author Nancy Akhavan provides a framework that equips educators with the tools and strategies to build an effective, research-backed literacy block that engages students and fosters skilled readers and writers. The book shows teachers how to integrate six essential daily elements for their literacy block: (1) read alouds; (2) shared reading; (3) small group instruction; (4) writing; (5) language (including vocabulary and morphology); and (6) phonemic awareness, phonics, and word work. Designed to address the practical challenges teachers face in aligning teaching practices with the latest science of reading research, this book provides actionable solutions to common questions like "What should I teach first?"and "How do I effectively organize my literacy block?" The Lit Six blends evidence-based daily reading instruction with student-centered approaches to help every learner thrive. Written in Nancy Akhavan's signature straightforward and teacher-friendly style, this book offers A Comprehensive Model: Discover how to integrate six essential components of a successful literacy block into your lessons. Practical Tools for Teachers: Access scaffolds, decision trees, graphic organizers, and detailed guides to jump-start implementation. Flexibility in Application: Learn how to apply research-driven practices that create the foundation for great literacy teaching and can be used alongside mandated curriculums to help you meet the needs of all learners in your classroom. Data-Driven Tips: Discover how to use classroom data to refine instruction and maximize student progress. Rooted in decades of classroom experience and informed by the latest literacy research, this book is your guide to seamlessly blending the art and science of teaching. With The Lit Six, educators can design dynamic literacy blocks that not not align with the research but also respond to the unique needs of their students and foster literacy for all.

Ready-to-go English Language Development tasks that focus on students "doing the doing" of talking, reading, listening, and responding. In recent years, the percentage of English Language Learners (ELLs) has increased in almost every state, so most teachers are faced with the challenge of teaching literacy to students acquiring English alongside English-speaking students. However, in many integrated learning situations, English Language Development (ELD) instruction is strikingly different than the teaching we provide students whose first language is English. The Big Book of Tasks for English Language Development helps teachers meet that challenge head-on! Bestselling author and esteemed education consultant Nancy Akhavan shows that teaching multilingual learners requires changing our instruction to focus on practices that have high impact for students as they acquire language. Yet it’s not about doing more— it’s about doing smarter. It’s about having high expectations for all students and providing scaffolds to support students at all levels of English language proficiency as they learn and grow more confident. All the ready-to-go activities in the book Center on active tasks where students do the thinking, talking, reading, and writing, with appropriate supportActivate the domains of language — listening, speaking, reading, and writing — and recognize that these do not develop at the same rateHonor the continuum of language development and build on what students can doProvide teaching tools such as learning targets, suggestions for when to use a task, basic instructions and "teacher talk" for launching a task, and "Watch Fors and Work-Arounds" Focus on the linguistic assets multilingual learners bring to the classroom and provide opportunities to help them collaborate with peers With Akhavan’s signature straight-forward, teacher-friendly style, this book offers an uplifting reminder that with the right teaching strategies, educators can support multilingual learners to achieve their full potential and thrive in their learning journeys.

Watch multilingual students excel with high-engagement reading lessons Students acquiring English tend to bust every stereotype. The truth is, these learners come to school with linguistic assets, not deficits. They will excel with lively, just-right challenge lessons, and they thrive with opportunities to collaborate with peers. In this authoritative resource, bestselling author Nancy Akhavan shows teachers how to support students at the small-group table in acquiring English as well as developing as readers—simultaneously. Ready-to-go tools include: Essential background on the five stages of language acquisitionHow-tos for differentiating instruction based on students’ levels of language proficiency as well as their reading proficiencyLesson sequences integrating oral language, phonics, spelling, vocabulary, word work, comprehension, and writing about readingRoutines that augment talk about texts so multilingual learners can verbalize their knowledge and articulate thinkingA companion website and multimodal scaffolds to support students across reading, writing, speaking, and listening When we gather at the reading table, we have just twenty minutes—we need to make it count. Now we can.

This is Balanced Literacy: Grades K-6 Students learn to read and write best when their teachers balance literacy instruction. But how do you strike the right balance of skills and knowledge, reading and writing, small and whole group instruction, and direct and dialogic instruction, so that all students can learn to their maximum potential? The answer lies in the intentional design of learning activities, purposeful selection of instructional materials, evidence-based teaching methods, and in strategic groupings of students based on assessment data. Together, these create the perfect balance of high impact learning experiences that engage and excite learners. In this hands-on essential guide, best-selling authors Douglas Fisher, Nancy Frey, and Nancy Akhavan help you define that balance for your students, lighting the path to implementing balanced literacy in your classroom. Their plan empowers you to integrate evidence-based approaches that include: • Instructional materials comprised of both informational and narrative texts. • The best uses of instructional delivery modes, including direct and dialogic instruction. • Grouping patterns that work best to accomplish learning aims for different learners at different stages. • Instruction in foundational skills and meaning making, including oral language, phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, comprehension, and writing. • Technology used as a tool for increasing learning of a specific literary process. All the tips and tools you need to realize the goal of balanced literacy learning are included, with classroom videos that show strategies in action. Tap your intuition, collaborate with your peers, and put the research-based strategies embedded in this roadmap to work in your classroom to implement or deepen a strong, successful balanced literacy program. Grow as a reading and writing teacher while leading your students to grow as readers and writers.

Students must "do the doing" if they are to succeed. This groundbreaking book offers a literacy instruction plan designed to yield independent effort and engagement. The tasks in this book ensure gradual release, helping students forge their own path in becoming better readers and writers.

This book has to power to change the way teachers approach teaching content from textbooks. It shows them how to use textbooks in an engaging and meaningful way so that students no longer feel daunted by the sheer volume of information. Graphics and examples are inluded to help busy teachers implement suggestions quickly and engage their students. The book will help educators focus sharply on their students' comprehension and ensure students rise to the level expected.

In Teaching Reading in a Title I School, Nancy Akhavan shows primary teachers why workshops are good for students, even those who struggle, and especially those who are English language learners. Drawing on her experiences as a principal, a reading staff developer, and a teacher, she shows us how teachers use reading and writing workshops successfully. In Nancy's workshop, students record their thoughts after they read. The process of thinking and writing about their thinking "deepens their comprehension of the book and gives them practice with reading and writing strategies." Reading and writing are the work children need to do each day, and this is what happens in the well-designed and well-implemented workshops that Nancy creates. Using carefully crafted planning tools, lessons, student samples, and graphic organizers, Nancy shows you what constitutes an effective workshop to make the workshop fit seamlessly into your day. She includes effective intervention tools and activities for struggling readers, as well as tips for working with English learners. With its companion, Teaching Writing in a Title I School, individual teachers, teachers studying together in professional learning communities, and preservice teachers will find the tools they need to build literacy instruction that guides all their students to high achievement.