A new school year brings excitement, possibility, and a familiar challenge: we are often asked to add more before we have considered what we need to release.
Metaphorically speaking, our plates only have so much room. We cannot continue piling on new initiatives, expectations, and responsibilities without asking an important question:
What do I need to let go of to make room for what matters most?
Sometimes the things we hold onto are valuable. They may have brought us success in the past. They may even be part of our identity. But something can be meaningful and still no longer serve us.
Years ago, I heard a story that has stayed with me. It is a story about courage, change, and the freedom that comes from letting go.
A group of people were on a boat several miles from shore. A celebration was taking place, and everyone was enjoying themselves. One woman stood out because of the large, beautiful necklace she wore around her neck. It was obvious how much the necklace meant to her.
As the celebration continued, the water became rougher. Many people, including the woman with the necklace, were standing near the railing. Suddenly, a large wave struck the boat, and the woman fell overboard.
Several people rushed to help. A man grabbed a life preserver and leaned over the railing to throw it toward her. As she struggled in the water, he yelled:
“Take off the necklace! You will be able to float toward the boat, and I can save you!”
The woman disappeared beneath the water for a moment and then surfaced.
“I’ve had this necklace my entire life,” she shouted. “I can’t do it.”
And that is where the story ends.
The woman faced a choice: hold onto something familiar and precious, or let it go and give herself a chance to survive.
As educators and leaders, we face similar choices every year.
What are the necklaces we are wearing? What are the things we hold tightly that may be preventing us from moving forward?
Here are five questions worth considering:
1. Is it still serving students today, or did it simply work well in the past?
Education changes because students change. There are practices, materials, and traditions we may love because they were part of our success. But the question is not, “Did this work before?”
The better question is:
Does this help students learn today?
As a teacher, I had books and lessons I loved. Over time, I realized my attachment to those materials was stronger than my students’ connection to them. Letting go created opportunities for deeper engagement.
2. Are there instructional practices we continue because they are comfortable rather than effective?
Every profession has traditions. Some deserve to be protected. Others deserve to be examined.
Great educators are not afraid to ask:
Is this the best way, or simply the way we have always done it?
Growth requires reflection and the courage to change.
3. Are we spending time on things that consume energy but create little impact?
One of the greatest challenges educators face is time.
I once knew a teacher who regularly arrived exhausted because he spent hours every night grading student journals. When I asked about the purpose, he struggled to explain how the feedback was improving student learning.
Sometimes we hold onto practices because they feel responsible, even when they no longer produce meaningful results.
4. What do we need to release to embrace new opportunities?
Technology, including artificial intelligence, is transforming education. The goal is not to replace teachers; the goal is to empower teachers.
But innovation requires space.
What practices, assumptions, or fears do we need to release so we can explore new possibilities?
5. Is our mindset helping us lead, or holding us back?
Leadership begins with self-awareness.
Our attitude influences our classrooms, our schools, and the people around us. Optimism does not mean ignoring challenges. It means believing that improvement is possible.
Every school year offers a fresh opportunity to choose growth.
So as you begin this year, consider this:
What necklace are you carrying that you are finally ready to remove?
Letting go is not about abandoning what matters. It is about creating space for what matters most.
Be courageous. Take risks. Challenge assumptions. Continue learning.
Our students deserve educators and leaders who are willing to grow.
For more thoughts on leadership, culture, and instructional excellence, see my book, The Ten-Minute Principal, published by Corwin.
Cally (a pseudonym), a fifth-grade teacher, sits opposite me at my kitchen table. As she talks, tears slowly trickle down her cheeks. She hardly seems to notice them as she continues sharing her feelings:
“I faithfully read the script every day as I’m required to do,” she says, “but I can’t shake the thought that some of my students aren’t growing as readers. They practice with short texts, but they’re not developing the skill and stamina to read long novels and informational books.”
“Are you discussing these issues with other ELA teachers?” I ask.
“We lost our common planning period – so we stopped meeting. I miss the joy I had when I was able to make decisions that supported all students.” She hesitates, then adds. “I’ll finish the year, but that’s the end of teaching for me.”
Her sadness and frustration are palpable.
Cally is not alone.
What Could Cally Do?
After this candid conversation with me, Cally recognized that there were things she could do, and all of them involved collaboration, working with others to support her students’ growth in reading.
First, she could collaborate with parents and ask them to support independent reading at home. Cally drafted a letter to parents and caretakers, explaining how independent reading of self-selected books boosts students’ reading achievements and vocabulary.
She explained that their children would bring home self-selected books, and she encouraged parents to help establish a consistent reading routine at home. Consistency was important: thirty to forty minutes of independent reading on school nights develops stamina – that is, their child’s ability to concentrate – and exposes them to more than four million words a year (Samuels & Wu, 2004).
To embark on the journey to reclaim teacher agency – the professional autonomy that allows Cally and her colleagues to make informed decisions about curriculum and students’ learning needs – she agreed to invite her team to meet before or after school to discuss finding time to collaborate.
Together, they would explore ways to impact students’ learning, ensuring that all students were steadily moving forward in different subjects, and equally important, they would provide the support that could maintain and strengthen their own social/emotional well-being as teachers.
Collaborate with Short Check-Ins
Though finding time to collaborate during the school day can be challenging, consider developing 15–20 minute weekly check-ins and return to the collaborative habit you developed when your schedule still had one to two common planning periods.
Meet as a team in person before or after school or even virtually at an agreed-upon day and time. The point is consistency, so that small amounts of weekly time enable you to share personal frustrations and successes and gain emotional support from colleagues as well as to discuss students’ academic progress and behavior issues.
The collaborative suggestions that follow can rebuild your agency as you make instructional decisions that support students’ growth and you participate in professional study groups that offer choice of topic and enlarge your knowledge of how children learn.
Collaborate to Impact Students’ Learning
Whether you teach a scripted program or a teacher-developed curriculum, collaborating with colleagues to identify ways to improve and support students’ learning can assist you as you make informed decisions about students’ personal and academic growth.
Team up to develop and discuss weekly lesson plans and share adjustments you made to support students requiring extra time and a different approach to a lesson.
Explore engaging ways to build students’ background knowledge and to develop scaffolds and interventions that move them into their independent learning zone (Vygotsky, 1978).
Look for an effective video, a series of photographs, or a virtual visit to a museum display that relates to a unit of study.
Discuss the benefits of negotiating with students to make decisions: Invite them to help you establish deadline dates for writing and projects, create choices for writing topics and research projects, and develop behavior expectations for collaborative work.
You can also use your collaboration time to deepen your understanding of Collective Teacher Efficacy (CTE), the belief that you can increase your positive impact on student learning when you work together. For more on CTE and the research behind it, review my MiddleWeb article “How Collective Teacher Efficacy Impacts Literacy.”
Collaborate Through Professional Study
Over time, ongoing professional study builds your knowledge of how children learn and can directly improve instruction as you test and refine strategies based on your studies and students’ responses.
Using Google Docs, grade-level teams or departments can tailor professional study to each individual’s needs by offering choices. First, team members brainstorm topics that address students’ needs and then form partnerships or small groups around specific topics. For example, a seventh- grade team had three professional study groups during the first semester of school: cross-curricular planning and teaching, note-taking and study skills, and questioning techniques.
You and team members take turns finding articles and/or excerpts from professional books on topics you’re studying and post these in your Google Docs collection. Pairs or groups read their article, underline key points, raise questions, and jot comments.
Decide, with your group, whether to meet virtually or before or after school. Then reflect on how the information might support your students’ learning. Before the meeting closes, you and other members can volunteer to integrate something you learned into your lessons. Take from two to three weeks to try a teaching technique or strategy in your class, taking notes on the process and students’ reactions. On an agreed upon time, meet with all groups in person or virtually to discuss lessons, share notes, detail students’ reactions, and discuss student writing samples.
If your school has one faculty meeting a month reserved for professional study, you can read and annotate articles or excerpts from professional books at the meeting, discuss them, and volunteer to apply what you’ve learned in your classrooms. At the next monthly meeting, you and your colleagues can discuss your experiences and share students’ reactions and work.
You can gather additional feedback on lessons based on professional study when you ask students to complete evaluations through a whole-class debriefing in which students discuss two questions: What worked? What can be improved?
An alternative is to develop two or three questions that invite students to state facts and then move beyond the facts to deeper thinking that uses that information. For example, the teacher of a sixth-grade class studying rivers asked: How do rivers become contaminated? Why is it crucial that people and scientists decontaminate them? An eighth-grade teacher posed these questions about climate change: What evidence is there of climate change? How can countries reverse climate change?Why is this important?
Use either of these techniques whenever you feel it’s important to gather students’ feedback on specific lessons. By collecting students’ reactions to lessons, you can apply their responses to adjust the specific lesson and to other lessons you plan to present.
Final Reflections
Teacher collaboration is a powerful lever for reclaiming instructional decision making and ensuring that all students make progress whether you’re teaching a scripted program or a teacher-developed curriculum. Moreover, you can use what you’ve experienced and learned about working together to develop student collaborations for researching a topic, completing projects, organizing book clubs and discussions of texts, or studying for a test.
References
Robb, L. (2026). Teaching in uncertain times: Strategies for reclaiming agency and impact on students’ learning. Routledge.
Samuels, S. J., & Wu, Y.-C. (2004). How the amount of time spent on independent reading affects reading achievement: A response to the National Reading Panel. International Reading Association 49th Annual Convention, NV.
Vygotsky, L. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes. Harvard University Press.
Author, teacher, coach, and speaker Laura J. Robb has devoted 40+ years to teaching in grades 4-8. She presently coaches teachers in reading/writing workshops and serves as a visiting teacher in middle grades classrooms. Laura has written over thirty books; her work continues to influence teachers and student learning. She received NCTE’s Richard W. Halle Award as an Outstanding Middle Level Educator in 2016. Read all her MiddleWeb articles here.
In our previous blog articles for the Robb Review and elsewhere, we have written about the importance and advantages of poetry for children and how poetry should play a major role in any reading and language arts curriculum. In this current article, we would like to shift the focus from poetry to poets. In the United States, we are blessed with a wide variety of children’s poets, and just in the same way that students learn about the many authors of trade books for children, we feel that students (and teachers) should also learn about the fine poets whose trade is to write for kids.
Most of us have a favorite children’s poet or perhaps even a group of favorite poets. Often these include such great ones as Shel Silverstein, Jack Prelutsky, and A.A. Milne. As great as these poets are, the universe of wonderful poets for children is very large — and we would add worth exploring ourselves and with our students. Poets lead interesting lives that help inform their writing. As students learn of the lives of the poets they read about and hear, they may be able to make connections that will inspire them to write their own poetry.
Angela Knight is an elementary school librarian in Springfield, Missouri. Dr. Knight reads a poem aloud to the students in her school every week during the school year as her way to help foster an appreciation for poetry and encourage teachers to include poems in their daily classroom activities. We think her practice is brilliant in its simplicity and should be passed along to librarians, teachers, and all other adults who read to children.
We’ve all watched long wriggly lines of young fans queue up to meet authors of their favorite chapter books or novels and become tongue-tied with adoration when they hold up their books for an autograph. Do kids line up like that, behave like that, in front of a poet? Perhaps some do, but in general, not so much. Yet in classrooms, when poems are read by teachers and students recite their own favorites, they learn to love poetry. Research thoroughly underscores the benefits of hearing and reading poetry in all grades, especially primary grades. An ongoing challenge is to encourage more teachers to read more poems in more classrooms.
The goal isn’t to make poets famous. It’s to make children (and the adults in their lives) more aware of poets as people. Why? Because the better we know someone, the more interesting they become. How do we do that? There are hundreds of books of good poetry for children available in schools and libraries. Many of them provide a thumbnail description of the poet. Nothing more. What is lacking is a way for students to get to know, more personally, the people who write their poems. Who are they? What were they like when they were kids? Why do they like to make up poems? How did they get started? Why is poetry so important to them? Where do they live? Do they like dogs?
We discussed this challenge with forty well-known poets, all veterans of school visits and literature festivals. We agreed that each one would select or write a poem for our project. We would publish their picture on the first page and a kid-friendly bio on the second. We said, “Introduce yourself the way you do when you are in a school, standing before an audience of students and telling them about yourself.” The third page would feature their poem and a fourth would present a word ladder activity composed for each poem in the book. We asked each poet to suggest other books of poetry, their own or someone else’s, that they recommend for young people. The result was a reference reading list of more than 120 titles to go in the back of the book. The result, 40 Poems for 40 Weeks: Integrating Meaningful Poetry and Word Ladders in Grades 3-5 Literacy, was published by Routledge/Francis-Taylor in 2025.
We believe that moving poetry deeper into the mainstream of reading choices for young people, in the classroom and beyond, will develop a deeper appreciation for poets and the work they do. It will also have a positive impact on developing more fluent and proficient readers. We have found that poetry is an ideal text for developing fluency, the critical bridge from phonics to comprehension, as students must rehearse a poem (i.e., repeated readings) before performing it for an audience of classmates and others. Elementary educators often struggle to find the right materials to fit their instructional goals and schedules. 40 Poems for 40 Weeks, Integrating Meaningful Poetry and Word Ladders in Grades 3-5 Literacy provides a poem and poet for each week of the school year and can be selected in any order. We hope our effort to increase the popularity of poetry and the visibility of poets will inspire others to find ways to approach the goal. Instilling an appetite to read and developing proficiency in doing it remain our top priority as educators, parents, and the general population.
Poetry is rightfully reclaiming its place in the school reading and English language arts curricula. However, poetry does not exist without poets. Learning about the lives of poets who inspire with their poetry may inspire our students to give poetry a try in their own lives.
An excellent supplemental resource is a site called Poetry from Daily Life Free Video Library (https://www.youtube.com/@PoetryfromDailyLife-e2j). Sixty poets, teachers, journalists, editors, and professors have recorded their reasons why they believe that poetry is a vital part of our lives. Among the selections are numerous well-known, respected poets who write for children, including Jane Yolen, Joyce Sidman, Charles Ghigna, Janet Wong, Joseph Bruchac, and David L. Harrison, all of whom read a poem and talk about where they find ideas and how they write their poems. Educators who discuss how to make the most of poetry in the classroom include Laura Robb, Tim Rasinski, and Mary Jo Fresch.
The Importance of Reading Aloud to Children Reading aloud to children plays a vital role in their development for several reasons. First, it immerses children in the rhythms of written language, helping them become familiar with the patterns and sounds that characterize stories and informational texts. The exposure to varied linguistic patterns helps develop an appreciation for the music and potential in written expression. This exposure is foundational for their literacy growth, facilitates a deeper appreciation for language, and helps them become attuned to the nuances of how language can be crafted. Additionally, reading aloud contributes to the enhancement of listening skills. As children follow along with a story, they learn to focus, comprehend, and process spoken words, all of which are necessary for effective communication and learning. Another important benefit is that reading aloud introduces children to a wide range of authors, illustrators, titles, topics, and genres. This variety not only enriches their literary experiences but also encourages curiosity and exploration within the world of books. Furthermore, reading aloud provides children with exposure to multiple points of view on a topic. By listening to stories from various perspectives, children gain a broader understanding of the world and the diverse ways in which people think and feel. Engaging children in read-aloud experiences enables children to think about critical issues that they might not encounter otherwise. Through stories and discussions, children are prompted to consider ideas and dilemmas that foster critical thinking and empathy. Finally, reading aloud provides access to language and ideas, allowing children to encounter new vocabulary, concepts, and ways of expressing themselves. Offering students a shared literary experience and exposure to a diverse body of literature generates a common point of reference, fosters a sense of community, and establishes a basis for thoughtful dialogue about texts. This access is crucial for their cognitive and social development, laying the foundation for success in both academic and everyday settings. The power of rereading is another important aspect modeled during read-aloud experiences. Teachers demonstrate how revisiting a text with a specific focus can reveal new insights and enhance appreciation for the author’s craft. This repeated exposure emphasizes the importance of looking closely, examining ideas, considering perspectives, and questioning what is read.
Selecting Books for Repeated Reading When all members of a classroom share deep and intimate knowledge of a small collection of books, a new level of communication about reading and writing is possible. I recommend beginning with five fiction and five nonfiction titles to revisit throughout the year. When making your selections, consider the following: Does the book have enough depth and substance to merit multiple readings? Do the language and art provide different perspectives for repeated exploration? Are literary elements or text features strong enough to support focused study? Is the information accurate and engaging? Does the writer use craft techniques to help readers construct meaning? Are text features used to clarify, elaborate, or extend information? Can this book serve as a lens for approaching other books? Will this book help build insights that can translate into writing opportunities? *Note, this collection of books for repeated readings is one small part of the read-aloud experiences across the year. There will be many texts that are read in addition to this collection.
Elements of Effective Read-Aloud Experiences Think of the read-aloud experience as a performance art. Read the text aloud a few times before reading it to your students. As you read, think about how your voice will convey the feeling, the intentions, the emotions, and the energy in the writing. Here are four elements to consider as you prepare. Tone I think of tone as the attitude expressed in a piece of writing. It may be chatty and informal, sincere, snarky, caustic, arrogant, formal and distant, cheerful, solemn, pushing, pleading, preachy, or academic. The writer’s attitude or feelings toward the subject directly influence the tone, and the tone may also be shaped by the writer’s intentions to evoke certain responses from the reader. It is important for the reader’s voice to reflect the tone present in the text to convey its full meaning. Mood I think of mood as the emotional climate or temperament, the feeling it leaves with the reader. A piece may be sad, depressed, hopeful, wishful, excited, eager, or nostalgic. Setting, voice, and the character’s personality are all elements that contribute to establishing the mood. Ideally, as the reading concludes, the mood should linger, leaving a lasting impression, much like a fragrance. Intensity
I think of intensity as the energy within the text. It may be powerful and bold, or tender and quiet. The energy might build and wane, begin with a punch and maintain that level, or start full and gradually diminish. In some cases, it is gentle from beginning to end. When reading aloud, intensity is revealed through shifts in volume and the strength of the reader’s voice, which help bring the text to life. Pacing I think of pacing as the heartbeat, the pulse and rhythm of the text, shaping its flow. At times, the pacing may race, while at other moments, it slows to a standstill. Dramatic pauses and a rush in the reader’s voice can create tension, while slow, deliberate speech can draw the listener in. Emphasizing words or moving quickly through passages can mirror the action and emotion found in the piece. Just as a musician interprets what is on the page, a reader interprets the intentions of the writer through tone, intensity, pacing, and mood. Reading aloud with skill means playing that music with your voice. Beyond accurate reading, it requires interpreting the writer’s intentions and conveying them through expressive delivery. Making Time for Read-Aloud Experiences Many of us find it challenging to set aside time for read-aloud experiences. Here are six possible times across the day when a read-aloud may fit nicely. Each possible time is paired with an intention that can make the read-aloud experiences a viable part of your instructional day.
Building Community (Starting your day). Begin the day by reading aloud to help foster a sense of community among students. This shared experience sets a positive tone and encourages connection. Stories shared here can be touchstones across the year.
Exposure to language (First transition). During the first transition of the day, share texts that allow students to hear the rhythm and melody of language, immersing them in its musical qualities. For this read-aloud experience you’ll want to focus on lyrical texts that will expose students to a more expansive vocabulary.
Featuring poetry (Preparing for lunch). As students prepare for lunch, continue the focus on language through poetry, sustaining engagement and offering a soothing transition. Consider featuring one poem per week.
Supporting writing opportunities (After lunch). When your class returns from lunch, a read-aloud experience can support writing work, providing inspiration and models for effective writing. Select texts that model the work you and your writers are doing.
Building bridges across the curriculum (At the opening of a content area class). Integrate read-aloud experiences into subject area lessons to connect literature with curriculum topics, building subject specific vocabulary, pairing language and image to facilitate concept formation, making learning more cohesive and meaningful.
Closing the day with a chapter book (Last event of the day): End the day by reading from a chapter book or extended text, offering a satisfying conclusion and encouraging a love of reading that extends beyond the classroom. If you are reading a chapter book, consider ending at a high point, a moment of tension or suspense, rather than at the end of a chapter. Leave them with something to think about as they travel home. Reading aloud to our students is essential instruction. Let’s elevate it to a place of prominence in our day.
