Switch to Common Core and Literacy

After attending the conference Digging Deeper into the Common Core English Language Arts, many important thoughts about the importance of Literacy came to light.  In Chapter Two: What We Teach, Schmoker details Literacy as the "Spine" to learning.  Literacy is in all things.  If we don't teach our students to read or write well they will forever be behind.  The level of rigor in Literacy needs to increase in our schools and in all grade levels, K-12.  Spending time understanding the changes that are coming when we make the switch to Common Core Standards, it is very clear that we need to make improvements in the realm of Literacy. Schmoker has many suggestions for these improvements: textbooks, more reading, more writing, asking questions, delving deeper into texts.  By starting to incorporate these ideas into our classrooms now we will not only be more prepared for the upcoming new standards, but give our students the opportunity to be successful in class and ultimately the world.