Gary R. Gray Jr. is a Black Canadian poet and educator who writes for young children (and sometimes adults). Born and raised in Preston, Nova Scotia, Canada, Gray’s love for literature stems from told and untold stories within his community. Gray found inspiration in spoken word to begin writing in high school during a writing workshop by poet and professor Shauntay Grant. He did not read his first full novel until the age of 21. Gray is the author of I’m From, illustrated by Oge Mora (2023).
What if assessment didn’t pause learning, but grew directly from it? In this episode of Corridor Conversations, host Gary R. Gray, Jr. talks with educator and author Angela Stockman about documentation as a powerful approach to literacy assessment...
In this episode of Corridor Conversations, host Gary Gray Jr. talks with Emily Kruschke and Abby Parsons, two passionate educators from Virginia, to explore what inclusion looks like in a preschool setting. They share their journey from separate...
Your browser does not support the audio element. In this episode of Corridor Conversations, three bilingual educators—Luz Álvarez-Sims, Natalia Chapa Mills, and Sofia Gonzalez—share their inspiring journeys into teaching and lessons they learned...
In this episode, host Gary R. Gray Jr. speaks with Katie Wood Ray and Stella Villalba, coauthors of the recently published Wondrous Words: Reimagining Writers and Writing in the Elementary Classroom. They explore what it means to read like a writer...
In this episode of Corridor Conversations, Gary R. Gray Jr. speaks with Philadelphia educators Amy Strada and Kevin Felter about their co-taught kindergarten unit on community. Resources and artifacts that highlight some of the themes and activities...
Elementary teacher and PhD student Marisa Saelzler shares how arts, nature, and technology spark student-led, joyful learning in this episode of Corridor Conversations. Your browser does not support the audio element. Want to read instead of listen...
This episode of Corridor Conversations is split between two sessions. In the first, host Gary R. Gray Jr. talks with three fifth-grade students, Sadie Beaulieu, Fallon Demers, and Liliana Tripp, about how connections were made and community was...
Your browser does not support the audio element. In this episode of Corridor Conversations, host Gary R. Gray Jr. talks with Katie Papesh and Ashlan Bishop about centering joy for poetic discovery and personal growth. Want to read instead of listen...
Your browser does not support the audio element. Kari Johnston and Carmela Valdez discuss their innovative cross-grade collaboration project that brought together fifth graders and preK students at Perez Elementary in Austin, Texas. These...