Falling In Love with Close Reading

Blog-a-thon: Let’s Closely Read the Practice of #CloseReading

Chris Lehman25 Comments

In honor of our upcoming book, Falling in Love with Close Reading: Lessons for Analyzing Texts–And Life, Kate Roberts (@teachkate) and I invite you to join us for a 7-week blogger community conversation about close reading practices and our classrooms.

Close Reading Blog-a-thon

For the next 7 weeks (Sept 2- Oct 18), every Monday on my blog and every Thursday on Kate’s we will post on topics related to close reading, including:

  • What Close Reading Is Not (Or At Least Shouldn’t Be)
  • The Five Corners of the Text: Personal Experience and Text-Based Close Reading
  • Why Would Anyone Ever Want to Close Read Nonfiction?
  • Writing About Close Reading
  • Close Talking is as Important as Close Reading
  • Close Reading Our Lives: Making Practices Relevant and Real
  • and more!

Join In

We have lots to share, however there is so much to say, think, do, debate, problem solve, question, that we would like to invite you to JOIN our Blog-a-thon with your own posts.

Here’s how it works:

  • Any time over the next 7-weeks write a post (or multiple posts) on the topic of close reading (could be in response to someone else’s post, raise a debate, answer a question, share your own experiences).
  • Each time you post add this button to your page and be sure it links back here (the Contributors’ Page).

close reading button

  • Then comment on any post on my blog or Kate’s with a link to your own post so anyone can click back to it.
  • We will also grab selected posts (URL links) from the comments to add to the Blog Contributors page**
  • If you tweet your post include the hashtag #CloseReading

Violà! One stop shopping for great thinking on close reading!

We are excited to learn along with you!

Chris and Kate

**Disclaimer: All opinions, discussions, debates, posts, videos, and photos will be considered for the “contributor” page pending they are free from offensive language, libel, slander, whose main purpose is to sell a product, is a broken link, or otherwise deemed inappropriate by us or raised as such by members of the community. All decisions for posting these links on the “Contributors” page are made by us and are final, however we accept no responsibility for content or reliability of links that leave our respective blogs. The original poster is owner of their post and solely controls content , including any such content that may infringe upon copyright law.

25 thoughts on “Blog-a-thon: Let’s Closely Read the Practice of #CloseReading”

  5. Here is an explanation of my sophomore’s latest close reading experience using art (Turner’s “The Fighting Temeraire” and Constable’s “The Hay Wain”) as a way to better understand the cultural changes of the Industrial Revolution. Oh, and did I mention all this was to support our reading of Dicken’s ” Oliver Twist”? A picture says a thousand words!
    http://usedbooksinclass.com/2013/10/03/close-reading-constables-the-hay-wain-and-turners-the-fighting-temeraire/

    Reply

  14. This post illustrates how students use evidence in order to support their interpretation of a short story. The author is H.H. Munro and the story is “The Interlopers”. The resulting discussion from my sophomores illustrates how their use of evidence challenges the author’s ambiguity, especially when students “hope” for a different conclusion.
    http://usedbooksinclass.com/2013/09/09/close-reading-with-saki-and-the-sophomores/
    Thanks for holding this #blog-a-thon on close reading. Interesting posts that are “real-classroom” helpful!

    Reply

  16. Really like the ideas that Christopher and Kate shared in the podcast with Franki Sibberson. I agree that our K-2 instruction naturally focuses on close reading. Love the idea to start with songs and ads to hook kids in! Can’t wait for the new book and the rest of the blog posts!

    Reply

  17. I agree that close reading is not text dependent questions. We have to stay true to our beliefs that the goal of reading instruction is not to answer someone else’s quiz questions, but rather to develop readers who stop and think deeply about their own reading. It is, however, difficult for teachers to balance what they know is right for kids and the tasks of the test.
    I am also relieved that literacy leaders such as Chris, Kylene Beers, Doug Fisher, etc. understand that schema/connections/transaction is what readers do and is not equivalent to getting off topic.

    Thanks for this forum. Can’t wait to read the new book.

    Reply

Leave a reply to So Much Depends on the Bean Salad: Writing About the Details of a Text | indent Cancel reply