Educator Resources
Just For Fun
11 Things I Will Never, Ever Admit to My Local Librarian
A library parent (who occasionally does things he’s not exactly proud of) shares the deep, dark secrets his family has kept from their local librarians.
Growing Reader
Mentor Texts To Teach Children Personal Narrative Writing
Studying fantastic mentor texts exposes students to examples that elevate their personal narrative writing. To expand your classroom’s collection of personal narrative mentor texts, consider these picture books.
Tween
Teen
Brightly’s Book Club for Kids: The Night Diary
Veera Hiranandani’s The Night Diary is an empathy-building, engaging historical novel that middle grade, young adult, and grown-up readers can all enjoy. Dive deeper into the story with these discussion questions and activities for kids.
Growing Reader
Tween
10 Imaginative Scenes for Teaching Children to Visualize as They Read
Whether students naturally imagine as they read or need to be taught to do so, they can all benefit from structured practice creating mental images with books like these.
Pre-K
Growing Reader
A Printable Educator’s Guide to R Is for Rocket: An ABC Book
Explore Common Core Language Arts Anchor Standards with these accessible and engaging R Is for Rocket lesson plans.
Growing Reader
Tween
Why Kids Say They Love Fairy Tales
Almost any young person can tell you the basic plot of Cinderella or Hansel & Gretel or Little Red Riding Hood. What is it about this genre of stories that make them so memorable and so loved by kids and adults?
Grown-Up Reads
Tips & Advice
How to Model Your Own Love of Reading in the Classroom (and Why It’s Important)
As teachers, we work to create an impactful learning community in our classrooms, a place where children not only see themselves as readers but also love to read.
Pre-K
Growing Reader
Tween
An Educator’s Guide to The Day the Crayons Quit and The Day the Crayons Came Home
With these easy-to-follow lesson plans inspired by The Day the Crayons Quit, your students will be generating persuasive arguments and text in no time.
Just For Fun
Thank You, Teachers Everywhere
Teachers do not solve all of their students’ problems. What they do is infinitely greater: They give children hope, a sense of self, and the all-important realization that their struggles, whatever form they take, will not diminish their potential.
Pre-K
Growing Reader
Compare and Contrast: How to Use Books to Teach Children Comparative Thinking
Starting at a young age, we can nurture children’s comparative thinking with books, ratcheting up the level of difficulty as they grow in age and developmental ability.
Pre-K
Growing Reader
Classroom Read-Alouds and Activities to Inspire Screen-Free Summer Adventures
Here are nine picture books to read aloud in the final weeks of school to spark ideas for simple, tech-free summer fun.
Growing Reader
Tween
Jeanne Birdsall on Penning The Penderwicks Through the Years
We chatted with author Jeanne Birdsall about the delightful (and bestselling!) book she would have first pitched as “the Little Women visit the Secret Garden.”