Katie Mix

September 30, 2014

ENGL 414 Dr. Burke
Resources for Childrens Lit.

Top Websites for Reading and Teaching Childrens Literature:

1) National Education Association (NEA)
Nea.org and staff are responsible for the content of the website
http://www.nea.org/grants/teachers-top-100-books-for-children.html
This website seems very useful for any type of educator or parent. The specific page I
went to listed the voted Teachers Top 100 Books for Children. Not only does it have
useful information about childrens books, but it also has helpful guides for lesson plans,
tips, tools, strategies, and advice. This website is helpful for all types of teachers as it
connects teachers throughout the country by providing various helpful techniques and
sharing advice of others in the field.

2) Teach a Child to Read

Peggy Wilber, M.Ed.
http://www.succeedtoread.com/
I found this website to be useful because it is a simple, straightforward site that almost
anyone could use. Its easy to navigate and can help virtually anyone to become a better
reader. It has links to other sites including help with basic skills to more advanced
language skills. The site gives tips for teaching everything from learning the alphabet to
phonics to rhyming and much more. It also has useful statistics about reading in the
United States and various literacy facts I found to be interesting. I think this site is geared
more towards parents helping struggling children to read at home, but could definitely be
used for teachers in the classroom.

3) International Reading Association

IRA and its Board of Directors
http://www.reading.org/Resources/Booklists.aspx
Similar to the first website, this one has a lot of great information in regards to guided
reading and helping struggling children with literacy. This website has many helpful
resources and articles pertaining to language skills in the classroom, especially reading. I
thought this was a great site because it had useful information for teaching reading to
children, all the way up to improving reading skills for adults. It also shares top choices
for books for all ages.

4) PBS Kids: Teacher Resources

Department of Education, CPB, PBS Kids, Ready to Learn Partnership
http://pbskids.org/island/teachers/
This was definitely one of my favorite sites because I remembering using it in elementary
school myself! Its such a fun website with practical, hands-on activities to help students
academically, especially with reading skills. A lot of the links and activities are from TV
shows on PBS kids, which might be more appealing for children. They can relate these
fun, educational reading techniques to television shows they like. Therefore, if the
children are more engaged, this would improve overall learning. And we all want to make
learning fun!

5) Reading Rockets: Launching Young Readers

WETA Public Broadcasting
http://www.readingrockets.org/
This website is all about helping struggling readers improve their literacy skills. It has so
many resources and links to other websites for teaching childrens literature. It has a
variety of topics like how-to videos, blogs, fun activities, and reading topics A-Z. I think
parents, teachers, and kids alike would like this website because it seems very engaging
for adults and children.
Helpful Books for Teaching Childrens Literature:

1) Overcoming Textbook Fatigue: 21st Century Tools to Revitalize Teaching and

Learning by: ReLeah Cossett Lent
Publisher: Laura Lawson, ACSD
Date Published: November 16, 2012
Pages: 201
This book is about engaging all students in the learning process rather than simply
just following what the textbook says. It explains modern strategies to get students
involved in learning. These tools include a lot of what students will have to use later
in life in higher education and in their careers. I think this book would be great as it
has effective teaching strategies that would help children and teachers alike. The
strategies can be applied to a wide range of students and can definitely help them
have more fun through the learning process.
2) The Differentiated Classroom: Responding to the Needs of all Learners by: Carol
Ann Tomlinson
Publisher: Genny Ostertag, ASCD
Date Published: May 20, 2014
Pages: 197
I find this book very valuable for any teacher. It has a lot of differentiated strategies,
great for teaching reading skills. Because all children learn differently, various
approaches need to be taken throughout the learning process. This book shows you
how to do that. It explains multiple ways to get students involved and improve testing
scores. Nowadays, students are so diverse, so its important to cater to all the learning
styles so that we reach out to ALL of our students. Describing how to differentiate the
classroom and provide various ways of teaching literacy is crucial as a future
educator myself. So, this book definitely has great insight for helping all students
learn to their full potential.
3) Teaching Children to Read: The Teacher Makes the Difference by: D. Ray Reutzel
and Robert B. Cooter Jr.
Publisher: Pearson Education, Inc.

Date published: 2012

I found this book to be a wonderful tool for beginning teachers. It has everything
from classroom management to classroom assessments to Response to Intervention
(RTI) and of course teaching literacy. It has a lot of literacy techniques and guides to
help aid in the reading process. It has evidence to back up the research shown of how
to improve childrens reading skills. It also has fun reading activities children will
enjoy. Its very well organized and easy to read. The strategies for improving and
helping children read are both educational and enjoyable.

Characeristics of a Reliable Website:

1) Is the author of the website credible?

Almost anyone can publish a website putting virtually any information they wish
on it. Therefore its important to find out if and how well the author(s) is credible.
One may simply look for the authors credentials to see if they are well informed
on the topic or what kind of education they may have received. Also, finding out
more information about the author on other websites may be helpful. Look to see
if the author provides any contact information to determine further qualifications
the author may have.

2) Examine the URL.

Although it may not seem all that important, it is crucial to examine a websites
URL carefully to determine what type of site it is. A site ending in .edu is from an
educational institution and usually a credible source (not always though,
remember to check credentials.) Websites ending in .org are other great sites (for
the most part.) This means they are from a non-profit organization explaining
information on a particular topic. Websites with .gov have official government
information and normally are reliable sources to choose from. Certain websites to
look out for are those ending in .com. Some .com sites are reliable, but must be
carefully examined as they are usually trying to endorse a product.

3) Check accuracy.
A few questions to determine reliability of a website concerning accuracy are as
followed:
Can I verify the information provided?
Does the site contain grammatical errors?
Does the site quote other sources and if so are their links to those other sources?
Is the topic and background information clearly stated?
Does the site contain any defective links or information?

4) Another great question to ask to ensure reliability of a website is: What is the
main purpose of this site? Is it to sell something or to convey legitimate
information? Is the site persuasive? Is the author biased in the article? Is there a
lot of advertising on the website? Answering yes to any of these questions may
mean your website is not reliable.

5) Also, ask yourself: Who is the intended audience here? Is the website for scholars
or the public? What age group is it aimed towards? Is it geared towards people of
a certain profession? Asking these questions may help determine reliability as
well. All of the above tips may help to decide whether or not a website can be
trusted. There are many things to consider when looking for sources, just
remember to carefully examine the websites visited and question closely.

Resources Used for Characteristics of a Reliable Website:

http://library.unca.edu/lr/evalweb.html

http://www.edb.utexas.edu/petrosino/Legacy_Cycle/mf_jm/Challenge%201/webs
ite%20reliable.pdf