How are you doing with Notice & Note?  I hope you’re still trying it out with your students in some form, be it independent reading or with novels.  Perhaps you are trying it out with your own reading of fiction, and that’s a good idea, too.  We hope you haven’t given up on the signposts, that you are thinking about how to best incorporate the strategy into your instruction.  I continue to be amazed at how powerful the signposts are, yet they are simple to learn.  Students are guided to think about their reading and hold that thinking.  The result is connecting with the text and remembering what they have read.  Connecting with the text through Notice and Note signposts will definitely have students ready to tackle those high school texts they will encounter soon.

Today’s posts include some of the latest materials and information I have found.  You’ll see some thinking, some nice materials and (hopefully) more food for thought on how you can use the signposts in your own professional world.

Al A Carte (January 17, 2014)

 Close Reading on Pinterest – I love the Pinterest community.  Here’s one board on which you will find a number of nice ideas for Notice and Note and close reading.

New N & N Materials in Docushare – Check out some of the new Notice and Note materials in Docushare.  I particularly like the “Notice & Note Trifold” where students can record examples of all 6 signposts.  There’s a foldable called “Stop Sign N&N Graphic Organizer,” that may be useful if you’re wanting to have students collect one example of each signpost from a text.  Nice alternate bookmark, too, called “Notice & Note Bookmark with Signpost Graphics”.

Notice & Note on Prezi – There are a number of N&N Signpost presentations that are free for your use if you go to Prezi, a virtual whiteboard where you can make creative visuals to go with any presentations.  This particular one would be a great one for reviewing the signposts with students.

Creative Use of Post-Its with N&N – The teacher’s blog is nice, but scroll down a bit and see how he uses post-its with his signpost posters.  Creative way to involve students in using the signposts–good idea for a “brain break.”

 Falling in Love with Close Reading – Valentine’s Day is a ways off, but here’s an interesting title on my reading list.  The description sounds a bit like the best of both worlds, close reading and love of reading.  You’ll have to read it and let me know.

New Materials from Beers and Probst – Check out this new resource from the authors, a set of materials that you can use to help structure students’ thinking about signposts.  My copy is on order; I would be happy to show it to you when it arrives.

“Rest Stops” at the Signposts – This blogger talks about three different ways she has made noticing and noting of signposts an interactive activity with students.  She calls them “rest stops” (clever, huh?).