Stamina

endurance, staying power, tirelessness, fortitude, strength, energy, toughness, determination, tenacity, perseverance, grit.

Stamina is a vocabulary word the elementary students are using when they are reading.  The dictionary defines stamina as the ability to sustain prolonged physical or mental effort.  The K-5 teachers are dedicating a portion of each day encouraging independent reading time which requires the students to build .....stamina.

Students need daily practice to build reading muscles.  Just as athletes need to build their muscles for running or swimming, students need to build their learning muscles.  Reading stamina does not come natural to most children.  Teachers model procedures and routines to establish an environment that encourages on-task reading behaviors.  This takes teacher reading and planning time and daily student practice time.  It also takes oodles and oodles of quality books for the student's reading time.

 The Sisters,  Steven Layne,  Kelly Gallagher and Donalyn Miller are a few of the published authors you can find our teachers reading in their free time which means late at night or on weekends!  :)  Teachers must be life-long learners to enhance their own teaching strategies.  Together we are improving and sharing new ideas to build student’s reading stamina and to help students become life-long readers and learners.  

Its a privilege to be part of a teaching community willing to work hard and learn together!

Happy Learning-Ronna