The Joy of Planning: Designing Minilesson Cycles in Grades 3-6

Between individual lessons and big units of study lies the joy of planning. Franki Sibberson takes you into her process of designing short sequences of lessons (known as cycles) around key areas of study including how characters develop in literature, nonfiction reading in the age of the Internet, and understanding increasingly sophisticated themes in novels and picture books. Franki shares guiding questions for planning, sample cycles, and the thinking behind the books she selects for minilessons. There is much delight in moving between what you know about your students and what you know about teaching, and designing lessons accordingly. That’s what the joy of planning is all about.