News and Events

Podcasts and audiobooks have become wildly popular over the past few years. According to an article in Forbes Magazine ( March 2018 ), "Audiobooks are up about 20% year over year across the publishing industry for the first eight months of 2017, according to the Association of American Publishers'...

When working with pre-service teachers in New York, less than two weeks into their student teaching placement, we asked them to clear off their desks except for a piece of paper and pen. We then asked them to write a class list. The next step was to look over the list and think about whether any...

Regardless of a writer’s age or grade, staring at a blank piece of paper or blank document on a computer screen can feel overwhelming. The easiest way to start? Encourage students to write their name on the paper or type it on the screen—and voila ! The page is no longer blank. We’ve used this...

Professors Kati and Mike Macaluso have published a new book for practicing secondary English teachers entitled Teaching the Canon in 21st Century Classrooms . The book addresses the fact that more and more English teachers are obligated to teach canonical texts, or in other words, “standard” texts...

Let's begin with a scenario. Imagine you are a member of a large group that recently took a group photograph. Someone has just handed you the photograph. What do you look for? Are you wondering what the background foliage looks like? Are you looking at the clouds in the sky? Perhaps, but you are...

The reading research is unequivocal. The more a child reads the better he or she will be at reading. It is as simple as that. Children who read more enjoy reading; they read to challenge themselves, to satisfy their curiosities, and to experience unknown lands. Reading is an adventure and pure joy...

Dr. Besty Okello appeared as a guest blogger this past week on The Children Arts Guild website. Please enjoy her lovely reflection on the connection between her experience with Kenyan artists and the art of teaching. I first went to Kisumu, Kenya as an undergraduate anthropology major at the...

Welcome to the blog for the Notre Dame Center for Literacy Education (CLE). We hope that you will learn a great deal about powerful literacy practices from educators at the CLE and in K-12 classrooms across the country. We encourage you to visit the blog often and share about the innovative and...