Tools - Samplers

**from Larry Swartz' Word by Word**

Engage your primary students in the fun of word play, and teach at the same time! This bundle of 20 word games — one for every school day in a month — gives students the challenge of solving problems in a game-like way, and the routine of collecting and inspecting words.

Click on the title below to download this sampler of puzzles.

A Month of Primary Word Puzzles

**Now featuring "Literacy Leadership Matters"!**

We are pleased to offer sample chapters from our newest and bestselling titles on teaching reading—a peek inside THREE key resources, completely FREE!

This is How We Teach Reading…And It's Working!

Week-by-week, step-by-step skill progressions, along with the background and information you need for teaching phonics in K–3 classrooms. This blueprint to effective reading instruction includes tools for classroom use: high-impact activities, word lists, phoneme-grapheme grids, word ladders, and more.

Sometimes Reading is Hard

Teaching strategies such as mentor texts, guided reading, poetry, and reading conferences are used to encourage students to be proficient and tenacious even when reading is hard. Teachers learn how to weave both the science and skills of reading and the factors of motivation into their daily instructional practice.

Literacy Leadership Matters

This practical book offers the literacy fundamentals school leaders need to understand and support teachers and students. It empowers principals to inspire and lead schools where reading, writing, and literacy flourish.

Just click on the title below to view and download the sampler.

Reading Sampler

We are pleased to offer sample chapters from our newest and bestselling titles on teaching writing—a peek inside THREE key resources, completely FREE!

Powerful Writing StructuresDiscover thinking strategies and structures that improve personal narrative writing, nonfiction, and story writing. Lessons revolve around anchor books, and include sample student work from real classrooms, book lists, and assessment tips.

Cultivating WritersCultivating Writers introduces educators to six essential beliefs that will nurture and grow complete writers who have the will to write. Teachers will discover how to foster authentic engagement in a vibrant writing community.

Write to ReadExplore the ABCs of writing with 60 practical, hands-on lessons that guide students to write in a variety of forms. Organized alphabetically, the lessons give students opportunities to read books that can inspire their writing and to write for a variety of purposes.

Just click on the title below to view and download the sampler.

Writing Sampler

We are pleased to offer sample chapters from our newest and bestselling titles on teaching math & numeracy—a peek inside TWO key resources, completely FREE!

Making Math StickThis remarkable book shows teachers how to stop working harder and start working smarter. It describes a shift from “teach-test-move-on” to “teach-connect-apply” to optimize studentlearning. This valuable resource provides teachers with an understanding of simple, manageable, and sustainable strategies to change their approach immediately.

Mathematizing Student ThinkingSolving real-world problems promotes flexibility and encourages students to adjust and grow their thinking. It inspires them to consider alternatives and apply math in authentic contexts. You will find practical ways to engage students in critical thinking, develop their independence, and make connections with the world.

Just click on the title below to view and download the sampler.

Math Sampler

We are pleased to offer sample chapters from our newest and bestselling titles on mental health and well-being—a peek inside FIVE key resources, completely FREE!

Fostering MindfulnessAn essential guide to bringing mindfulness practices into the classroom with simple, creative, ready-to-use lessons, activities, templates, and much more. Students will cultivate the skills they need for self-regulation, stress management, and learning.

The Autism LensThe Autism Lens helps teachers connect to students with autism and support them along their own unique trajectory. It offers the information and classroom strategies teachers need to build relationships, support learning, and understand the perspectives of students with autism.

Managing Student BehaviorThis practical resource provides an in-depth understanding of student behavior, along with many effective, evidence-based strategies that support positive change. Although there is no one-size-fits-all answer, when these strategies are applied consistently they will have a profound effect on classroom behavior that will last.

What's the Difference?What’s the Difference? focuses on integrating teaching autistic students into the teaching practice of the whole class. Based on classroom experience, it provides teachers with informed background and classroom strategies to meet the unique needs of all students.

Mentoring Each OtherThis hands-on book illustrates how a mentor can support and guide preservice, new, and experienced colleagues in a way that is meaningful, open, engaging, and values-driven. It describes how a mentoring program benefits all those involved and helps create a successful learning community.

Just click on the title below to view and download the sampler.

Mental Health Sampler

**Now featuring "Stop the Hate for Goodness Sake"!**

We are pleased to offer sample chapters from four of our newest and bestselling titles on equity and inclusion—a peek inside FOUR key resources, completely FREE!

Teaching Tough TopicsEach chapter in this timely book deals with an important tough topic designed to help students consider their own identities and the identities of others. Model lessons are outlined using picture books, novels, poetry, and nonfiction as sources for responding through talk, writing, and the arts to address diversity and enrich empathy and tolerance.

Teaching Fairly in an Unfair WorldThis timely revision of a ground-breaking resource is an essential tool for exploring social justice issues with students in our evolving classrooms. Practical activities, useful resources, and classroom techniques for helping students make sense of the world around them, complemented by a glossary of over 50 strategies and reproducible pages.

Stop the Hate for Goodness SakeOver 40 practical lessons that guide teachers to confront racism and discrimination, and that lead young people to consider ethical and moral behavior. A thoughtful examination of today’s world that will help teachers encourage reflection, foster inclusion, and inspire students to take action. This in-depth guide will show teachers how to start and manage important conversations that will lead to change.

Finding a Place for Every StudentFinding a Place for Every Student delves deeply into teaching all types of exceptionalities in the mainstream classroom. With a new focus on social belonging, this comprehensive resource includes autism, fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, mental health issues, learning disabilities, behavior challenges, trauma, intellectual disabilities, visual and hearing impairments, giftedness, and low-incidence disabilities.

Just click on the title below to view and download the sampler.

Equity & Inclusion Sampler

Go for a Spring Math Walk with your students, and get excited about the math that we find all around us! Helping children see the strong connections between math and nature will encourage them to see mathematics as authentic and engaging; exploring authentic math will build confidence and interest. A math walk is the perfect way to start conversations around math, spark mathematical ideas, and extend children's thoughts and ideas around math concepts. This guide to some of the math that you may find on a Spring walk is the entry point you need to get your students talking about math.

Click here to download the free guide, adapted from the book, Spring Math Walk by Deanna Pecaski McLennan. You can order the original full picture book from amazon.ca. You'll also find books on Autumn, Hallowe'en, Winter, and Summer. For more on engaging our youngest students in the mathematical world, check out Deanna's educational resource, Joyful Math.

Take an Autumn Math Walk with your students, and get excited about the math that we find all around us! Helping children see the strong connections between math and nature will encourage them to see mathematics as authentic and engaging; exploring authentic math will build confidence and interest. A math walk is the perfect way to start conversations around math, spark mathematical ideas, and extend children's thoughts and ideas around math concepts. This guide to the math that you may find on an Autumn math walk is the entry point you need to get your students talking about math.

Click here to download the free guide, adapted from the book, Autumn Math Walk by Deanna Pecaski McLennan. You can order the original full picture book from amazon.ca. You'll also find books on Winter, Spring, and Summer. For more on engaging our youngest students in the mathematical world, check out Deanna's educational resource, Joyful Math.

The How & Wow of Teaching explores a wide variety of daily tasks; fun-filled activities and games; and tricks, techniques, and ideas for refreshed and enthusiastic teaching in all subject areas. Enrich your teaching with the WOW factor, and bring excitement and wonder back into the classroom.

This sampler of guides and checklists for all areas of planning, teaching, and learning is the perfect entry point to the book's hands-on strategies, games, lessons, and activities that will stimulate the WOW factor.

Click here to download the sampler, and get started today!

Making Sense of Number shows you how to notice, interpret, confirm, and respond to student thinking. It offers an effective approach to finding out what your students already know so that you can structure learning experiences that help them make sense of number.

To help you and your students on the journey to expanded thinking and deeper learning, download this sampler of learning frameworks and start changing the face of math and numeracy in your classroom today!

Click here to download the sampler.

Fostering Mindfulness is the guide to self-regulation, stress management, learning, and wellness that you've always needed! Simple activities and practices throughout the book are designed to strengthen areas of the brain that allow students to better manage their attention, emotions, and behavior in the classroom and beyond.

To help you see how mindfulness can change life in the classroom for you and your students, download this sampler of activities from the book, and begin your journey.

Click here to download the sampler, and get started today!

Inspiring Meaningful Learning, the essential new guide from Brenda Stein Dzaldov, offers six key steps to planning lessons that grab the attention of students and engage them in impactful learning. We are offering you the amazing opportunity to try Brenda's lesson design with this sampler of reproducible pages right from the book that will take you through the six steps and let you see these ideas in action!

Click here to download the sampler, and get started today!