All Things AoW

A potential Article of the Week sequence for the 26-27 school year

Good morning everyone,

I don’t want to rush away summer for anyone (myself included), but I know that many of you are returning to the classroom as early as this week. (Wishing you and your students a wonderful school year.) For that reason, I wanted to dedicate this update to all things AoW.

In short, I’m excited to share this updated AoW document. Be sure to bookmark it — I plan to update throughout the school year. And be sure to complete this form if you have any AoW recommendations, ideas, comments, etc. I imagine that many of you are familiar with the AoW (what it is, why it’s important, how to make room for it, etc.), but please reach out if you have any questions. The AoW, along with our Read and WRAP routine, is one of our essential classroom components.

Kelly Gallagher is the OG — the godfather of the AoW and my biggest professional influence and inspiration. However, I have a slightly different take on the AoW. Here’s my approach:

• Step 1: Select an article to read, discuss, and analyze with students – from Gallagher, NewsELA, CommonLit, The New York Times Upfront or Scholastic Scope magazine, etc. My advice is to select texts that connect to your current unit, novel, focus, etc. That way students can read 2-3 (if not more) texts around a similar topic/theme and make all sorts of wonderful connections. (This also makes it easier to develop authentic writing tasks, where students compare, contrast, synthesize, etc.). Another way to approach the AoW is to select a different debate topic each week (see below for 65 debate topics).

• Step 2: Format the article. For example, I try to add paragraph numbers, leave enough room in the margins for meaningful comments and annotations, and ensure that the article can fit on two pages (front and back).

• Step 3: Create 2-3 immediate discussion questions to generate thinking and conversation. (To save time, feel free to keep these consistent with every AoW.)

• Step 4: Develop a few text-dependent questions that are aligned to standards and/or curriculum (think about what is worth noticing, analyzing, teaching, reteaching, etc. in this specific text). *Note this optional, depending on how much time you want to dedicate.

• Step 5: Develop an extended response prompt, whether it’s one paragraph or one page. I typically have students complete an objective summary (paragraph one) and critical analysis/personal reflection (paragraph two). For example:

  • PARAGRAPH 1: OBJECTIVE SUMMARY

    • One strong, concise paragraph summarizing the central claim & key details of the article

    • The summary is typically written in chronological/sequential order (think beginning, middle, and end)

    • Do not offer your opinion in this paragraph (no “I”)

    • Include the name of the article (in quotes), source/publication (in italics) and author name

    • You can include direct textual evidence (a quote from the article) but the summary should be written almost entirely in your own words.

  • PARAGRAPH 2: PERSONAL RESPONSE/CRITICAL ANALYSIS

    • How did this piece impact you? Did it teach you something? Challenge you? Reassure you? Move you? What emotions did it stir, and why?

    • What happened as you read? What was going through your mind? What specific lines, quotes, words or details stood out? Why?

    • What questions did it raise for you? What does it make you want to know more about?

    • What did you think of the piece overall? What were its strengths and weaknesses?

    • What “moves” or techniques did the author use to engage the audience?

    • Do you agree or disagree with the author’s claim? Why?

    • In what ways can you relate to the article? How does the article connect to your own life?

    • What lines, words, details, images, quotes or paragraphs stood out in this piece?

    • Which quotes best support what you want to say about the piece?

• Step 6: Assign the AoW on Monday. Students will turn in the completed AoW (always completed by hand, never digitally) on Friday. In the beginning of the year, much of the work (although not all) will be done in class. As the year progresses, more of it becomes homework. On busier weeks (when students are working on a longer writing assignment, for example), students may simply read and annotate the AoW. On other weeks, students will also answer text-dependent questions and/or write an objective summary and critical analysis/reflection.

Again, be sure to save this updated AoW document and complete this form if you have any recs, ideas, questions, etc. Coupled with our Read and WRAP routine and we have a really solid foundation for a literacy course, which brings me to a reminder (especially for those who have been offline this summer):

• I’m excited to share another resource that I’ve been working on: A Year of Extended WRAP Prompts/Tasks. In this free resource (tips never expected, always appreciated), you will find one extensive WRAP prompt/task (often requiring a strong, handwritten paragraph – at a minimum) per week, from the first week of the school year through the last. Feel free to assign each of the 40 tasks in this order, tweaking, adding, omitting, etc. as needed. Or pick the prompts that work best for your classroom (whether students are reading whole-class or self-selected books) and assign them as needed throughout the year. As always, reach out with questions, suggestions, ideas, etc.

• And, as I discussed in a recent update, there are several ways that we can and should approach our read and WRAP routine. For example, if we only have 10-15 minutes (say 10-12 minutes of independent reading followed by a brief 3-5 minute WRAP time), here are 96 WRAP prompts/cards that encourage students to ANALYZE and DISCUSS any self-selected and/or whole-class book. The prompts in this set are intentionally short and sweet, allowing students to respond on a sticky note or index card or to simply turn and share with a classmate.

• Or perhaps we’re looking to nurture a real literacy community and help students talk with one another about their reading? Well, here are 96 WRAP prompts/cards that encourage students to REFLECT on their reading identity and to DISCUSS their reading lives in an authentic fashion. This set serves as excellent conversation starters for both students and educators alike -- in English classrooms, during student and/or faculty book clubs, to kick off department meetings, and around the kitchen table. Simply download the PDF, print in color, laminate, cut, and you’re good to go. Please let me know if you have any questions and/or suggestions. Happy reading!

• Finally, I’m in the process of revising one final WRAP “set” that is aligned to my grammar sequence. Prompts like this one: Write a compound sentence that describes the central conflict in your current read. Or this one: Write a sentence using a compound adjective (one-way street, well-known author, fast-paced novel, etc.) to describe the book, author, character, etc. Stay tuned :)

Happy reading,

Jarred

P.S. Please let me know if your school, district, or organization is planning a JUST READ IT (use the code RAVEN25 for 25% off + free shipping) book study, or if you would like for me to deliver a keynote address and/or lead a workshop or PD session in 2026 or 2027. Feel free to share this letter with your school and/or district leaders. You can also contact Authors Unbound (requests@authorsunbound.com) to arrange a speaking engagement and view my speaking profile here. You can also reach out directly via email (jarred.amato@gmail.com). I love connecting with fellow educators and supporting/strengthening your team’s literacy efforts, and it’d be an honor to collaborate.