Welcome to Little Reading Coach!
My name is Christine and I am a Reading Specialist, virtual teacher/tutor, and mom. My daughter, Molly, was born September 27th 2016 and since then my life has changed quite a bit. I became a new mommy, received my New Jersey certification as a Reading Specialist, and resigned from my job as a middle school language arts teacher.
I graduated from Centenary University in 2010 with a B.A. in English and my teaching certification as Teacher of English (K-12). Over the next seven years I worked as a middle school language arts teacher in a public and charter school, and tutored students of all ages and abilities. During this time I also completed my Masters in Curriculum and Instruction/Reading from University of Phoenix.
Reading has always been part of my life. When I was in kindergarten I struggled with reading. I remember being in the low reading group and never being able to keep up with my classmates. One night my parents sat me down in the kitchen and told me that I would not be going to first grade because I would be repeating kindergarten.
So the following September I went back to the same classroom with my teacher, Miss Gail, who then suggested that my parents get Hooked on Phonics. I would play my cassette tape (I feel so old saying that) and read along with my stories about a cat and a bat. Somewhere along the way, the light bulb went off and it all seemed to make sense. I ran into my classroom one morning and I spelled cat and bat for Miss Gail and felt so proud of myself. I can honestly say that day changed my life because from that moment on I have been addicted to reading.
Sadly, during my time as a teacher I have seen so many students struggle with reading. I have worked with kids who are reading on a second grade level in sixth grade because schools no longer hold them back. The world of a student revolves around technology and sometimes reading and reading skills get lost.
Which is what has brought me here. I want to help as many kids, families, and teachers as I can.
I currently teach English and reading courses with EdOptions Academy by Edmentum, and as an online reading, writing and home-based learning tutor for students in grades 6-12. For more information about my tutoring services click here.
Little Reading Coach 
I’m so glad I found your blog! I’m an aspiring educator and I’ve considered applying to a reading specialist program in the future. I work in adult education and the literacy stats are astounding. I’m glad to see people dedicated to working with families!
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I’m sooo glad to say I was your student and that I graduated High School last week and still (at least partially) credit my love of reading to your class.
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Hi!
Do you have any suggestions for helping to foster more student buy-in in editing and revision? I teach in a 2nd- through 4th-grade classroom, but this problem exists through our K-8th grade school. Students write one draft, then expect the teachers to edit and suggest revisions. Students seem to think their work is done after the first draft. Thanks for any help you can offer!
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Hi Amy!
Thank you so much for reaching out to me about this. In my experience, the more I remind students that writing is a process, the more likely they are to go back and revise. Just like with a sport, to get better requires practice. With middle school students, we also take time to discuss how much we use writing in our everyday lives (emails, text messages, Instagram captions, etc.) and how important it is to write effectively to get our ideas across clearly.
Personally, I’ve used a couple of different strategies to help students with this part of the writing process. Students may avoid this step because they don’t know how to approach the task. Even reviewing and practicing editing marks can help students feel confident. Teacher modeling works wonders with a situation like this as well, and it’s a great mini lesson. Also, providing students with editing/revising checklists, and requiring peer and self-editing can also make a difference. I have also seen some teachers include a few points on the rubric to address peer/self-editing to hold students accountable.
Let me know if you have any more questions 🙂
Happy reading!
Christine
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Thank you so much for your help, Christine! You’re the only one out of 7 bloggers who replied to me! Your comments are all very helpful, and I especially appreciate your point that students might avoid the task, because they don’t know how to do it. Good point! So often, I teach something then assume if there are no questions, everyone has gotten it! Thanks again!
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I’m so glad I was able to help! I’m always here to answer questions 😊.
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