Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION
- Our Beliefs About Teaching and Learning
- Charting Our Course: The Questions That Guide Our Process
- Advertisers Know What They Are Doing
- It’s All in Your Head: Charts May Not Be Rocket Science, But They Are Brain Science
- Visual Literacy: A Picture Really Is Worth a Thousand Words But Is Faster to Read
- Above All, Charts Engage and Lead Students Toward Independence
- A Field Guide to the Charts in This Book
- Directions for the Reader
SECTION 1: What Do I Put On My Charts?
Write Headings That Address Common Problems
- What Are You Teaching?
- Now How Will You Write it?
Use Written Language That Reflects Students’ Reading Levels
Choose Vocabulary That Mirrors Students’ Oral Language
- Differentiating Language for Kindergartners and First Graders
CHARTS IN ACTION: Making Thoughtful Language Choices on Charts
Use Icons, Drawings, and Color as Shorthand for Text
- What Visuals Do I Use?
- But How Do I Draw That?!
- What About Color?
- Using Student Work and Photographs of Students
CHARTS IN ACTION: Visuals on Charts Help Students Recall and Relive the Teaching Focus
SECTION 2: How Can I Help My Students Use the Charts Independently?
Making Charts with Students, or with Students in Mind
- When Should I Make Charts with Students?
- But Won’t That Take Forever? Ideas for Efficient Chart Making
- But What If I Am a Perfectionist? Making the Best Chart in the Least Amount of Time
CHARTS IN ACTION: Co-Creating Charts with Students
Making Charts Accessible and Adaptable
- Classrooms with Multiple Spaces for Charts
- Classrooms with One Bulletin Board
- Classrooms with Restricted Wall Use
- Make It Stick: Providing Up-Close Access to Charts
Making Charts Memorable: Using Music, Chanting, and Rhyme
- Charts, Chants, and Cheers
- Musical Moments Can Make Anything Memorable
- Using Charts for Shared Reading
- Using Charts to Make Reading-Writing Connections
CHARTS IN ACTION: Making a Chart Memorable for Students
SECTION 3: HOW DO I ASSESS THE SUCCESS OF MY CHARTS
How Did I Do? Children Can and Should Self-Assess
- Thinking Through Questioning: The Greatest Gift a Teacher Can Give
Looking and Listening for Signs of Our Own Teaching
Sharing Charts and Chart Assessments with Evaluators
- Assessing Our Charts: Just What Should We Look For?
CHARTS IN ACTION: Using Charts to Self-Assess
Revise or Retire Charts When the Time Is Right
- Revising: What Is Old Becomes New Again
- Retiring: When to Retire a Chart
CHARTS IN ACTION: Bringing a Chart Back to Life by Revising
APPENDIX
A. Field Guide to Types of Charts
B. What Should I Write on My Chart?
C. Areas of Teaching and Sample Goals
D. Self-Assessment Sheet
E. Chart Behaviors Observation Sheet
F. Commonly Used Chart Visuals
G. Suggested Resources and Supply List