While the Common Core and other new college- and career-ready standards have reinvigorated English Language Arts and reading instruction, the purpose of reading broadly and deeply remains the same. The authors of “Diving In,” which leads this issue’s focus on literacy and reading, describe the purpose of reading as “deeply understanding a text and then doing something with it.” This issue of the magazine focuses on the principal’s role in leading a schoolwide effort to help students achieve deeper levels of understanding, preparing them for lifelong success. As always, a wide array of Web resources is available for readers to supplement these articles on principal leadership.

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LITERACY AND READING

Diving In
Douglas Fisher and Nancy Frey
Help students get to the bottom of close reading and complex texts.

When Old Becomes New
Aradhana Mudambi
Bringing vocabulary instruction back into our schools.

Digital Native Does Not Equal Digital Literacy
Ann M. Martin and Kathleen R. Roberts
By working together, principals, librarians, and teachers can transform learning environments to ensure that students achieve digital literacy.

New Arts + Literacy Standards = Opportunity
NAESP’s Gail Connelly discusses the intersection of arts-integration, college- and career-ready standards, and pre-K-3 with NAESP President Mark White and NAEA President Dennis Inhulsen.

FEATURES

Best Practices in Action
H.J. Cummins
Nine principals share their successful strategies for school leadership.

Strategies for Aligning Pre-K-3
Susan McLester
Education researchers, policymakers, and thought leaders provide insight into the principal’s role in aligning early childhood education.

IN EVERY ISSUE

From the Editor
A Culture of Reading
—Kaylen Tucker

Snapshots
Research, PLC Checkup, Member Spotlight

Practitioner’s Corner
Student Success Through Academic Coaching
—Brenda D. Byrd

Speaking Up
The Case for BYOD and Tech-Smart Schools
—Rosie O’Brien Vojtek

Parents & Schools
A Mutually Effective Relationship With Your PTO
—Jennifer Schwanke

Principal’s Bookshelf

Hire Better Teachers Now: Using the Science of Selection to Find the Best Teachers for Your School
By Dale S. Rose, Andrew English, and Treena Gillespie
—Reviewed by Adam D. Drummond

Flipping Leadership Doesn’t Mean Reinventing the Wheel
By Peter M. DeWitt
—Reviewed by Erin Simpson

Best Practice
A New Strategy to Identify Teacher Leaders
—Rachel Jones

The Reflective Principal
The Teaching Principal
—Debra Ann Berndt and Shireen Ann Fasciglione

Ten to Teen
Homework: Friend of Foe?
—Richard Wiesenthal

It’s the Law
The Family and Medical Leave Act
—Perry A. Zirkel

Postscript
The Tale of the Struggling Reader
—Gail Connelly