Literature Groups All Year Long

Watch as students and teachers deepen their understanding of literature study groups over the course of a school year. This engaging video takes you into Carolyn Bridges' fourth-grade classroom as she works with literacy specialist Jennifer Allen to launch and sustain student-led literature discussions. Filmed over an eight month period, the program shows how student skills and abilities take time to develop.

The program also shows how teachers and literacy coaches can collaborate over time. Throughout the year, Carolyn and Jennifer reflect on student performance, and work together to refine and tweak their classroom instruction to better meet the needs of the students.

Providing models for peer observation as well, the video offers reflections by individual teachers and groups of teachers as well as the debrief sessions with Jennifer and Carolyn. The workshop guide includes suggestions for using the video in a variety of professional development settings, and extensions to classrooms.