Teacher's Corner

May 2013

What does reading look like under the Common Core Standards?

Much attention has been paid to the idea that the standards place more emphasis on reading informational texts.

Rourke Educational Media provides the content and informational texts that support educators with this shift. Our high quality texts support students with vocabulary development and reading comprehension strategies. The concepts throughout our books relate to one another building upon themselves through the grade levels.

Some of our series include:
-Let’s Explore Science
-My Science Library
-Eye to Eye with Endangered Habitats
-Eye to Eye with Animals

Visit www.rourkeeducationalmedia.com and check out all of our informational text series that support the Common Core State Standards and Next Generation Science Standards. Readers will develop a deeper understanding of the environment, diseases, genetics, the solar system, STEM topics, and much more!

April 2013

Rourke Educational Media will be exhibiting in San Antonio, Texas April 19-22 for the International Reading Association Conference. The theme this year is “Celebrating Teachers Making a Difference”. Stop by our booth to see how we inspire learning through literacy and provide the tools and resources for teachers to make a difference in the lives of their students.

Stop by our booth on Saturday and meet one of our authors, Anastasia Suen. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter for updates and conference promotions.

We look forward to seeing you there!
Visit www.rourkeeducationalmedia.com to learn more about Rourke.

March 2013

Rourke Educational Media Presents our NEW fun phonics based adventure stories for beginning readers…
Sound Adventures

A great new series for your early readers!

A good story keeps a young mind engaged! Rourke Educational Media has developed a fresh approach to traditional phonics readers, The Sound Adventures Series. These storybooks with a phonics twist are designed to delight and engage young children as they learn to read. Readers will enjoy getting to know the cast of campers and counselors all while focusing on a single phonics element, building vocabulary, and developing text comprehension. Join in the fun as the camp bus takes the characters on wild adventures from glaciers to volcanoes!

Rourke’s Sound Adventures Series includes 36 leveled picture book readers that help beginning readers develop text comprehension through targeted strategies. Each book includes:

• A focus on a single phonics element
• A picture glossary with a word study activity
• Helpful hints that encourage parental involvement and teacher support
• An enjoyable cast of campers and counselors from Camp Adventure

We think that your library or classroom will be further enriched with The Sound Adventures Series as part of your collection.

www.rourkeeducationalmedia.com/soundadventureseries
Available in hardcover, paperback, and ebook formats.

February 2013

Rourke Educational Media will be exhibiting at the National Association for Bilingual Education (NABE) Conference February 7-9 in Lake Buena Vista, Florida!

NABE’s mission is to advocate for our nation’s Bilingual and English Language Learners and families and to cultivate a multilingual society. If you are attending this conference, please stop by our booth to see how Rourke Educational Media supports Bilingual Education.

Make sure to visit our website at www.rourkeeducationalmedia.com
Like us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter

January 2013

Rourke Educational Media will be exhibiting at the 2013 Title 1 Conference in Nashville Tennessee January 21st-24th!

The 2013 National Title I Conference theme is Every Child – Now!

The conference emphasizes the critical nature of doing what’s right and what’s needed – today – to help every child succeed and achieve at high levels.
Stop by our booth to see what is new at Rourke!

Make sure to visit our NEW website at www.rourkeeducationalmedia.com
Like us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter

December 2012

BYOD!

BYOD stands for “Bring Your Own Device.” Many schools around the country are using this buzz word. BYOD allows students who have personal technology devices to bring them to school to use for educational purposes under the direction of a teacher or administrator. With digital learning, every student can access high quality and rigorous instruction.

Rourke has developed a program that takes e-content learning on ANY device to a NEW level! Our e-Read and Report program is an independent e-Reading program with comprehension and vocabulary assessment that students can access and use on ANY device.

This program aligns with Common Core Standards, supports text complexity for grades K-12, and is a great solution to some of the concerns of BYOD!

For more information on this program visit www.rourkeeducationalmedia.com or call our customer service representatives at 800-380-2289.

November 2012

Rourke Educational Media will be exhibiting at the NAEYC Conference and Expo in Atlanta, Georgia November 7-10! The focus this year will be on Developmentally Appropriate Practice in the 21st century.

NAEYC conferences bring together early childhood educators representing many roles to discuss the latest ideas and learn from one another. The NAEYC Annual Conference & Expo is the largest early childhood education conference in the world, where tens of thousands of educators choose from hundreds of presentations and exhibits.

Come check out what is new at Rourke!

Make sure to visit our NEW website at www.rourkeeducationalmedia.com. Like us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter and our Blog!

October 2012

Come visit us at the Florida Reading Association Conference October 18-21 in Orlando and celebrate FRA’s 50th Annual Conference! This year will be packed with “hot topics” such as Common Core, Rigor, Text Complexity, and Informational Text. Rourke Educational Media will be exhibiting at this conference and introducing some of our exciting new products such as eRead and Report, Go Readers, and our NEW titles!
Come check out what’s new at Rourke!

Make sure to visit our NEW website at www.rourkeeducationalmedia.com. Like us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter and our Blog!

September 2012

Are you implementing technology as a learning tool in your classroom? What type of devices are you using? Rourke Educational Media’s eBooks can be read on ANY device in and out of the classroom. We recently launched our eRead and Report program which is a reading comprehension and vocabulary assessment program. It utilizes our highly engaging eBooks and allows students to read and take a quiz on ANY device.

Teachers need a way to utilize and implement digital resources as effectively as possible. Our eRead and Report program as well as our eBooks can be used for multiple purposes: whole group, small group, and individual student instruction. They can also be used for teaching specific content areas and concepts. For additional information on our eBooks or any of our programs, go to our NEW website at www.rourkeeducationalmedia.com.

Rourke Educational Media works with technology and teachers. Check out this interesting article on the results from a new poll regarding parents and teachers who support more use of technology to improve student’s education at: http://www.eschoolnews.com/2012/09/11/poll-teachers-parents-want-more-technology/

August 2012

It is not too early to plan to attend the 2012 NAEYC Annual Conference and Expo! This year looks like it will be packed with great sessions. The focus this year is developmentally appropriate practice in the 21st Century. Rourke Educational Media will be exhibiting at this conference and will be introducing some exciting new products. Register to attend now and don’t miss out on this opportunity to check out what’s new at Rourke!!!

Make sure to follow us on Twitter, Like us on Facebook and check out our Blog!

June 2012

Come join Rourke’s very own, Sam Williams, at NAEYC’s 21st National Institute for Early Childhood Professional Development. The Institute will be held in Indianapolis, IN from June 10 – 13, 2012. This exciting conference will focus on Leadership throughout the early childhood profession. Sam will be presenting on Sunday, June 10th. His presentation will focus on men in the early childhood profession. Discussing how to entice more men to enter this profession, how to keep men in this profession, and differences in learning styles by gender.

April 2012

Come join Rourke Publishing at the Texas Library Association (TLA) Annual Conference 2012. The conference will be held at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston, Texas from April 17, 20, 2012.

The R4L theme for the TLA Conference represents the commitment of Texas Libraries to be Responsive to community needs, Relevant to patron and stakeholder interests, Revolutionary in methods and technology, and Right Now in delivering timely services while promoting Reading For Life.

Rourke Publishing will be exhibiting and showing off our amazing collection of engaging new books. Come check us out!

March 2012

Rourke will be at the Public Library Association Conference in Philadelphia from March 13 – 17. Come check out what is new at the Rourke booth and see some amazing speakers at this powerful conference: Robert Kennedy Jr, Betty White and authors – David Baldacci, Joyce Carol Oates, Jerry Pinkney, Carl Hiaasen and many others. This is a great opportunity to connect with colleagues from around the world and check out the exciting new books that Rourke has to offer!

February 2012

Rourke Around the United States!

Join us at the 32nd TCEA (Texas Computer Education Association) Annual Convention & Exposition with a week full of astounding professional development, hands-on and peer-to-peer learning opportunities, exploration of new trends through interactive learning environments, in-depth presentations from educational technology experts, and inspiring keynotes. TCEA’s five-day convention is one of the largest educational technology conventions in the nation and the largest in Texas.This years conference will be held in Austin, Texas from February 6th through the 10th.

Rourke will also be at the NABE (National Association for Bilingual Education) Conference in Dallas, Texas from February 15th through the 17th. Come join us in celebration of NABE’s over 40 years of education excellence in reforming, renewing, and achieving equity through bilingual education and biliteracy for all.

January 2012

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Come celebrate the new year with Rourke Classroom at the National Title 1 Conference.
The National Title 1 Conference will be held in Seattle, Washington from January 21 – 24. Rourke Classroom can be found in the exhibit hall at Booth #714. Stop by and check out everything Rourke has to offer: Reading Web, Interactive eBooks, new fiction and nonfiction book collections. When you stop by don’t forget to enter to win a new Kindle Fire.
See you in Seattle!!!

November 2011

My Science Library Collection

Rourke is happy to announce that My Science Library collections are now available in English and Spanish. These engaging science books have lots of added features. Each book contains:

Teaching Focus
Tips for Reading With Children
Guided Reading Level
100th Word for Running Records
After Reading Extension Activities
Sight Word Activities

Teacher Notes

Rourke Teacher Notes are now available for all Reading Web titles. Check out this useful tool on www.rourkeclassroom.com.

Teacher Notes include:
Guided Reading Level
Standards
Lesson Focus for Guided Reading
In-depth Lesson
Reproducible Activity

Teacher Guides

New and updated Teacher Guides are now available in the Teacher’s Corner of www.Rourkeclassroom.com. These resources are full of information about the programs, lesson suggestions, program implementation, activity reproducibles, and assessments.

Come check out Teacher Guides for the following Rourke programs:

Reading Web
Reading Bins
Writing Bins
Happy Reading Happy Learning

September 2011

Meeting the needs of early phoneme awareness learning with:

Happy Reading/Happy Learning – ¡Leer y Aprender con Alegria!

• Sing along books with bright photos to engage young children
• Integrated literacy, math, and science supplemental curriculum
• The program builds essential foundational skills young children need for school success!
• 30 Sing Along Lapbooks
• Plus 30 Student books
• in 6-packs (180 books)
• 10 Literacy Books
• Supports the development of critical literacy skills such as:
• listening comprehension
• oral language skills
• letter and sound knowledge
• rapid meaning
• phonemic awareness
• vocabulary development
• print concepts
• 10 Math Books
• 10 Science Books

For more information please visit www.rourkeclassroom.com under the Early Childhood tab or click on the Contact tab to request more information.

July 2011

Happy Reading Happy Learning’s 10 interactive e-books also provides a model of fluent reading at an appropriate rate. It allows ELL, struggling and reluctant readers to build fluency while reading self-selected books that interest them while building Tier II & Tier III vocabulary words. For more information visit www.rourkeclassroom.com and click on any of the tabs on the left where Happy Reading Happy Learning and e-books are mentioned or call 1-800-394-7055.

June 2011

Understanding What You Read

The following link will provide you with what most researchers and practitioners agree to refer to as a core set of seven strategies to proficient readers need to process in order to become proficient readers:

http://www.choiceliteracy.com/public/144print.cfm

May 2011

Phonics during Small Group Reading Instruction (Guided Reading/Flexible Groups)

Word Sorting – Engages students in the active process of searching, comparing, contrasting, and analyzing words. It helps students to organize what they know about words and to form generalizations they can then apply to new words they encounter in their reading. (Gillet & Kita, 1978)

When working with students in small groups follow make sure that:

Before Reading – Introduce words that are not decodable.

During Reading – Listen to individual students read and guide them by encouraging them to use strategies learned to read unfamiliar words.

After Reading – Based on observation, review skills/strategies not yet mastered by the majority of the students in the guided reading/flexible group.

Below are some teaching resources you can use to ensure students are successfully with phonics instruction at their level and move them beyond.

Types of Word Sorts (Words Their Way – Third Edition)
Sound Sorts – Helps students pay attention to speech sound by having sort by rhyme,
by the number of syllables, and even by syllable stress when they are comparing, etc.
You may use pictures and/or printed words depending on the level of the student(s).
Pattern Sorts – Using printed words students can sort by the visual pattern formed by
groups of letters or letter sequences.
Letter Name-Alphabetic Spellers Stage – Students sort words by identifying word
families and/or Rime (e.g., hat, rat, pat; ran, fan, tan)
Word Pattern Stage – Students at this stage sort words by vowel patterns (e.g.,
wait, train, mail, pain, versus plate, take, blame)
Syllable and Affixes Spellers – Pattern of consonants and vowels at the syllable
Juncture (e.g., button, pillow, ribbon versus window, public, basket)
Spellers learning Derivational Relations – Sort word pairs by patterns of
constancy and change across derivationally related words (e.g., divine-divinity,
mental-mentality)
Meaning Sorts – Students learn that meaning also influences spelling of words. They
can complete a meaning sort activity using either pictures, words, or phrases that are
grouped by their similarity in meaning or use.
Concept Sorts – Sorting words by concepts or meaning helps link vocabulary
instruction to what students already know and expand their conceptual
understanding of essential reading vocabulary.
Meaning Sorts Related to Spelling – Help students see that meaning influences
the spelling of words when they first come across sound-alike word pairs like
“by” and “buy”, or “to” and “too”. Homographs is another example for sorting
words for meaning related to spelling. According to their level of knowledge
students may also sort words by similarities in roots and stem such as the spect
in spectator, spectacle, inspect, and spectacular versus the port in transport,
import, portable, and port-o-john.

April 2011
Oral Language and English Language Learners

As Hatch (1978) famously put it, “One learns how
to do conversation, one learns how to interact verbally, and out of the interaction syntactic structures are developed” (p. 404).

Oral Language Development provides all learners, especially English Language Learners an opportunity to hear the proper pronunciation, tone and grammatical usage of the English Language. It also offers them the essential literacy skills needed to perform in all subject areas.

Here are a few strategies to increase Oral Language Development for English Language Learners (ELL) in your classroom.

 Explicit Instruction – Use the Reading Web to explicitly teach science terms with an interactive white board.
 Teacher/Student Think Aloud – Use the pictures cards from the Language Proficiency Kits to model how to make connections from prior knowledge to new knowledge.
 Choral Reading – Students can sing along with the Happy Reading Happy Learning songs chorally while practicing intonation, pronunciation, word recognition, etc.

March 2011

Comprehension cannot occur without knowledge of the words in a text. It is essential that vocabulary instruction occur in the classroom to ensure that students improve comprehension. We increase our vocabulary by listening, reading, and direct vocabulary instruction. There are 3 tiers of words that should be taught in all classrooms:

Tier 1: basic words
Example: food, work, city

Tier 2: high frequency but challenging
Example: industrial, saturation, photosynthesis

Tier 3: used infrequently
Example: isotope, armonica

Rourke provides FREE downloadable Teacher’s Notes for many of our books on our website.

Please note: Some files are large and may take a while to download.

• Happy Reading, Happy Learning Teacher’s Guide
• Rourke Reading Web Teacher’s Resource
• Florida Reading Web Reading Progress Assessment
• Reading Web – Reading Progress Assessment

May 2013

Wrap up the end of the school year with some great books!

The school year is coming to an end and things are winding down, but you don’t want the learning to stop. Have a read aloud marathon. Spend more time sharing great books with your students.

Visit www.rourkeeducationalmedia.com and check out our highly engaging fiction and nonfiction books for students of any age. Continue to build vocabulary and comprehension reading strategies with our teacher and parent friendly guides provided on the inside front and back covers of our books. Turn your student’s end-of-the-year energy into instructional success!

April 2013

Join Rourke as we celebrate Math Awareness Month! Math Awareness Month is celebrated each year in April. Its goal is to increase public awareness and understanding of mathematics. This year’s theme is Mathematics of Sustainability.

Students often wonder about math and why we need it. The world is facing a range of serious challenges on issues such as the environment, energy, and climate change. Mathematics has an important role to play in understanding and addressing these sustainability issues. Tap into your students curiosity while building important math and science content knowledge with Rourke’s highly engaging books!

Check out Rourke’s Green Earth Science Discovery Library, My Science Library, and Let’s Explore Science series for titles on Climate, Energy, Ecosystems, Our Footprint on Earth, Eco-friendly practices and much more! Visit www.rourkeeducationalmedia.com for more information on these titles.

Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter for the most recent news and happenings with Rourke Educational Media.

March 2013

Join Rourke as we celebrate World Read Aloud Day on March 6th to raise awareness of global literacy issues.

World Read Aloud Day is about taking action to show the world that the right to read and write belongs to all people. World Read Aloud Day motivates children, teens, and adults worldwide to celebrate the power of words, especially those words that are shared from one person to another, and creates a community of readers advocating for every child’s right to a safe education and access to books and technology.

Visit www.rourkeeducationalmedia.com on Wednesday, March 6 for a free ebook download.
Like our Rourke Educational Media Facebook page, and you qualify for a free ebook of the popular HUMPTY DUMPTY by Meg Greve.

February 2013

Technology Integration…Engaging Classrooms…Best Practices

Rourke Educational strives to make the most out of e-Book technology through our eBooks, eRead and Report, and Interactive eBooks!

REM will be attending the 2013 TCEA Conference in Austin, Texas February 4-8th! This annual event unites educators to gather and share the latest trends and best practices for creating engaging classrooms that excite today’s active and inspired learners.

If your attending, please stop by our booth to see the latest tools and techniques in technology.

Check out our website at www.rourkeeducationalmedia.com for information on how we can help you integrate technology into the classroom.

January 2013

Happy New Year from Rourke Educational Media

Ring in the New Year with our NEW Sound Adventures series

This series is a fresh approach to traditional phonics readers. Based around Camp Adventure, young readers will enjoy getting to know the cast of campers and counselors and join in with them as the camp bus takes them on wild adventures from glaciers to volcanoes.

The After Reading activities and illustrated glossary included in each book build vocabulary and encourage young readers to apply what they are learning about letters and sounds.

Young readers will be engaged with delightful stories while they are learning about the sounds of the English language.

For more information on our NEW Sound Adventures series, visit our website at www.rourkeeducaitonalmedia.com or call our customer service representatives at 800-380-2289.

December 2012

Happy Reading and Happy
Holidays from all of us at Rourke!

Get in a festive mood with our fine selection of seasonal stories. Whether you are looking for a book about Christmas, family traditions, winter, or the upcoming 100th day of school, Rourke’s engaging stories are a great way to spend the holidays!

Check out Rourke’s catalog or visit our website for these great titles that will fit into your classroom themes:

Seasons
Holidays
Christmas
Hanukkah
One Land, Many Cultures
Polar Words
In the Doghouse
What Do Critters Do in the Winter?
Glaciers
Hot or Cold?
Disaster on the 100th Day
Make it 100!

Visit our website at www.rourkeeducationalmedia.com or call our customer service representatives at 800-380-2289 to learn about our frequent buyer holiday promotion.

For monthly reading ideas and activities, visit our website at www.rourkeeducational.com, click on the instructional technology portal, and look under the What’s Happening tab.

National Bullying Prevention Month!

Did you know that October is National Bullying Prevention Month?

According to the National Association of School Psychologists, bullying is the most common form of violence in our society. Bullying can be greatly reduced in severity by appropriate supervision and intervention. The social climate in a school or classroom needs to be one where there is warmth and acceptance of all students.

Below are a few ways to deal with bullies in the classroom:

- Observe students as they interact with each other during free time.
- Teach students what bullying is and the damage it can cause.
- Hold bullies accountable for their actions with fair consequences.

Check out our Little World Social Skills series! These titles are paired with a fiction title from our Little Birdie Leveled Readers to help reinforce social skills and character education. This collection is filled with kid friendly, real world examples that provide the necessary tools to build and maintain positive relationships in school, at home, and in the community.

September 2012

A Successful Start

Start the school year off right by encouraging students to manage their emotions and make meaningful friendships. Although we can’t predict the social situations children will encounter, there is still so much we can do to set them up for success. Rourke Educational Media’s Social Skills and More program is the perfect way to teach student’s better communication techniques, problem solving, decision making, self-management, and strategies for improving peer relations.
Here are a few of the titles from our Social Skills and More collection:

Bullying
Manners
Honesty
Problem Solving
Integrity
Optimism

Our program is packed with meaningful resources to support the students in your classroom. It even comes with parent videos of skills and strategies to use at home. For a program overview of Social Skills and More contact us at 1-800-380-2289.

August 2012

Happy Friendship Day

Friendship Day – August 5, 2012

Friendship Day celebrations take place on the first Sunday of August every year. The tradition of dedicating a day in honor of friends began in US in 1935. Gradually the festival gained popularity and today Friendship Day is celebrated in large number of countries. On this day people spend time with their friends and express love for them. Exchange of Friendship Day Gifts like flowers, cards and wrist bands is a popular tradition of this occasion.

July 2012

Happy Independence Day

July 4th! Independence Day is the national holiday of the United States of America commemorating the signing of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. July 4th was declared a federal holiday in the United States in 1941. Festivities can be found all over the country celebrating Independence Day including fireworks, parades and concerts and many gatherings with family and friends to include barbecues. July is also National Barbecue Month.

June 2012

National Flag Week is June 10 – 16!

On June 14th, 1777, Congress adopted the Stars and Stripes as the flag of the United States. In 1916 President Wilson issued a proclamation calling for a nation wide observance of Flag Day. Then in 1949, President Truman signed an Act of Congress designating the 14th day of June every year as National Flag Day. The entire week is now celebrated in the United States as National Flag Week. Check out Rourke’s books on the American Flag:

My Flag
The American Flag
We Love Our Flag

April is National Garden Month!

Every April communities, organizations, and schools celebrate gardening during National Garden Month. Gardeners know, and research confirms, that nurturing plants is good for us: attitudes toward health and nutrition improve and kids perform better at school. Join the celebration and help make the world a greener, healthier, more livable place!

Check out Rourke Publishing’s amazing collection of books about plants and gardening. Here are just a few of the titles that Rourke has to offer:

Dig, Plant, Feast!
How Do Plants Grow?
Plants Make Their Own Food
Plant Adaptation
Plant Life Cycles
Trees: Earth’s Lungs
Our Organic Garden

There are many more books about plants, trees and going green at www.rourkepublishing.com.

March 2012

March is National Nutrition Month!

National Nutrition Month is a nutrition education and information campaign created annually in March by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. The campaign focuses on the importance of making informed food choices and developing sound eating and physical activity habits.

Check out Rourke’s catalog for some great titles that fit right into this theme:

My Green Lunch
Our Muscles
I Taste, Sing and Read
Eat Green

Looking to put some energy in your science curriculum. Check out Rourke’s collection of science books. The My Science Library collections are leveled K-1, 1-2, and 2-3. With a total of 36 titles in all strands of the NSTA’s National Science Standards. These titles also support Common Core State Standards in Literacy in Science. These books are vibrant and engaging and provide a plethora of activities to engage the science mind. Each book contains tips for reading with children, comprehension and extension activities, high frequency word lists, and a set of differentiated instruction lessons. Come check them out at www.rourkeclassroom.com.

January 2012
Want the latest news on what’s happening in Rourke Publishing’s world? Come check us out on Facebook at “Rourke Publishing,” and follow us on Twitter. Rourke is also in the blogosphere at:
http://blog.rourkepublishing.com – read exciting posts by Rourke’s incredible team of authors, illustrators, graphic designers, and editorial team!

November 2011

Join the call to support libraries. A new online petition is seeking support asking that all school libraries are properly staffed, open, and available for children every school day. This petition will make it directly to President Obama’s desk if 25,000 signatures are received by November 27, 2011. So please take a moment to sign the online petition to help support our school libraries.

Click the link below to sign the online petition!

Petition: Ensure all school libraries are properly staffed, open, and available for children every day

Picture Book Month

November is the International Picture Book Month. Celebrate the amazing work in picture books in their printed format. Check out www.picturebookmonth.com for information on picture book activities, lessons, events and many other resources.

Release October 2011

Come see Dr. Jean and Dr. Holly in action at the NAEYC Annual Conference. They will be presenting on 11-2-11 from 1pm to 4pm "Rhymes, Songs, and Stories – Tooty Ta to Read, and on 11-3 from 8 to 9:30am “Fitter, Fatter, What’s The Matter?” Also see Rourke’s own Sam Williams present on 11-3-11 from 1pm to 2pm “The Male Teacher Debate:Why it is critical to have male teachers in Early Childhood Education!”

Also come meet Dr. Jean and Dr. Holly at the Rourke Classroom Booth on 11-3-11 from 10am to Noon. Have your books and CD’s signed and register for a drawing for a free collection of Early Childhood eBooks.

Release September 2011

Come visit the Rourke Classroom Booth at the NAEYC Annual Conference, November 2 – 5, 2011. Visit with Dr. Jean and enter a daily drawing for a free collection of Early Childhood eBooks.

Release June 2011

Comprehension activities available online. Check out www.free-reading.net, for some engaging and useful comprehension activities for all grade levels.

The FreeReading Comprehension activities are organized into three categories: Introduce, Reintroduce and Build Mastery. The following is a description of the types of activities you will find within each category:

Introduce – students are introduced to comprehension skills through a read aloud.
Reintroduce – students will complete a graphic organizer to practice the application of a comprehension skill.
Build Mastery – students will expand their knowledge of a comprehension skill by engaging in a variety of activities.

Release May 2011

Phonics.com

Looking for some insight into phonics instruction. Visit www.phonics.com for helpful information about phonics instruction. This site provides the following information:

• Definitions and explanations of phonics terms

• Parent resources

• Phonics and bilingual instruction activities

• Spelling and writing

• Activities for struggling readers

• Free e-books

Release April 2011

TeacherTube

Looking for inspiration on a lesson, need help with classroom management, looking for a place to see excellent teaching in action…Check out www.teachertube.com. TeacherTube’s goal is to provide an online community for sharing instructional teaching videos. Maybe you have a video to share!

Release March 2011

Donors Choose

Online charity offers financial support to classrooms around the country. DonorsChoose.org allows teachers to post a project request on its website. Donors are able to view the projects and donate to the project of their choosing. DonorsChoose.org has already assisted over 1500 teachers with classroom projects. Check out www.donorschoose.org today!

Release September 2010

Counties in Florida choose the Rourke Reading Web.

Last month, two Florida counties chose the Rourke Reading Web to provide immediate reading assistance to their ELL programs.

Starting this month, the counties will begin using a literacy software program to provide help for English Language Learners. Rourke’s Reading Web program provides students with research based reading practice activities. Using nonfiction texts, students progress through leveled text passages while their progress is monitored by the instructor.

“We are thrilled to be working with these counties in Florida.” Says Jim Colandrea, President of Rourke Classroom Resources. “Our goal is to see improvements in all areas where students may struggle with reading comprehension.”

Other Florida counties are currently reviewing this program.

For more information contact Luana Mitten at luana@rourkepublishing.com.

Release October 2010

New York schools buy Rourke Reading Web.

Several New York schools recently purchased the Rourke Reading Web to improve student’s reading, comprehension, and vocabulary. Looking at new technologies for their students. Several New York schools have chosen the Rourke Reading Web program to assist students reading at or below level.