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The Siena School Blog

Discover, Learn, Celebrate, and Empower

Welcome to Siena's blog, your source for helpful, cutting-edge resources tailored to teachers, parents, and other advocates in the learning differences community. We are dedicated to providing a wealth of curated knowledge spanning various topics, ranging from dyslexia advocacy and awareness to classroom teaching strategies, heritage month profiles, and social and emotional health.

 

Posts Tagged "books"

AAPI Heritage Month 2025: Books and Podcasts of Interest

May 07, 2025
By Joe Fruscione, Communications, Content, & Advancement Coordinator

Siena is celebrating Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month 2025 by highlighting some recent books and podcasts of interest from diverse Asian, Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander voices.

In addition to the book and podcast recommendations below, readers can also check the Smithsonian Institution or Federal Asian Pacific American Council (FAPAC) for relevant resources, local events, and more.

Contemporary Books by AAPI Authors

Here are some additional recent fiction and nonfiction books by AAPI authors:

Looking for more book recommendations? Penguin Random House, The New York Public Library, and More Than Words have lists to choose from.

DC-area independent Loyalty Bookstores is a diverse, woman-owned business that often shares bookseller picks and hosts monthly author events (see here) consistent with their mission of highlighting all literary voices.

Readers interested in visual arts from AAPI creators can look up Dwight Hwang (who specializes in classic and contemporary gyotaku) or Jamie Noguchi (who has illustrated contemporary comics and other media). 

AAPI Podcasts of Interest

Here are some current podcasts from AAPI voices about various topics of interest:

Georgetown University and the University of Pennsylvania have podcast recommendations and other resources.

Siena Blog and Resources

See our blog for recent heritage month posts from Women’s History Month 2025, Black History Month 2025, and Hispanic Heritage Month 2024

The Siena School proudly serves students with dyslexia and other language-based learning differences in grades 3-12 on campuses in Silver Spring, Maryland (grades 3-4 and 5-12), and Oakton, Virginia (grades 3-12). 

Women’s History Month 2025: Books and Podcasts of Interest

February 27, 2025
By Joe Fruscione, Communications, Content, & Advancement Coordinator

The theme from the National Women’s History Alliance (NWHA) for Women’s History Month 2025 is Moving Forward Together! Women Educating & Inspiring Generations.

Siena is celebrating this month by highlighting recent books and podcasts of interest to continue educating and inspiring future generations through important cultural contributions.

Recent Books by Women Authors

Here are some additional recent fiction and nonfiction books by women:

 

Editors from Harper’s Bazaar and Woman’s World offer book recommendations in various genres from 2024. See also the Penguin Random House Speakers Bureau’s Women Educating & Inspiring Generations.

DC-area independent Loyalty Bookstores is a woman-owned business that often shares bookseller picks and hosts monthly author events consistent with their mission of highlighting diverse literary voices.

Podcasts By and About Women

Here are some current podcasts from women about various topics of interest:

See also 23 Best Podcasts For Women, By Women, The 13 Best Podcasts for Women in 2025, and Must Listen To Podcasts By Women for additional recommendations on expanding your podcast listening.

Siena Blog and Resources

Past blog posts for Women’s History Month can be found here, including profiles of writers Sally Gardner and Laurie Halse Anderson and WNBA stars A’Ja Wilson and Jewell Loyd.

Learn more about Siena’s commitments and ongoing initiatives for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging here.

The Siena School, a national leader in dyslexia education, serves bright, college-bound students with language-based learning differences on campuses in Silver Spring, MD (grades 3-4 and 5-12) and Oakton, VA (grades 3-12). 

Black History Month 2025

February 04, 2025
By Joe Fruscione, Communications, Content, & Advancement Coordinator

The Black History Month 2025 theme, African Americans and Labor, focuses on how different types of work are central to Black culture and history. For this important month, Siena is sharing some book and podcast recommendations to reinforce the important intellectual labor of these artistic and cultural contributions to the Black experience.

See the Association for the Study of African American Life and History for a wealth of information about Black History Month, including upcoming events and past and future themes.

Recent Books from Black Authors 

See also this list of Moving Nonfiction by Black Authors from Penguin Random House, including A Visible Man, Legacy, and Four Hundred Souls.

Black Podcast Recommendations 

Need to add some podcasts to your playlist? Have a look at these selections for some podcasts about various contemporary and historical topics:

See also Daily Border Crossings, hosted by Siena’s Director of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Community Engagement Samantha Fletcher.

Additional Resources for Families 

Past blog posts for Black History Month can be found here, including a feature on Siena’s community playlist from 2024. This crowdsourced music (available on Spotify) grew out of a student-generated playlist from their weekly multicultural affinity group, with some additional recommendations from Siena faculty and staff.  

See also some other Heritage Month spotlights about Hispanic Heritage Month 2024, Women’s History Month 2024, and Native American Heritage Month 2023. Learn more about Siena’s commitments and ongoing initiatives for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging here.

The Siena School, a national leader in dyslexia education, proudly serves bright, college-bound students with language-based learning differences on campuses in Silver Spring, MD (grades 3-4 and 5-12) and Oakton, VA (grades 3-12). 

National Hispanic Heritage Month 2024

September 06, 2024
By Joe Fruscione, Communications, Content, and Advancement Coordinator

The theme for National Hispanic Heritage Month 2024 is Pioneers of Change: Shaping the Future Together.

Siena is highlighting some artistic and cultural contributions to commemorate during this important month celebrating Hispanic history and culture. See below for books, podcasts, and other resources of interest to introduce you to some pioneers of change in the Hispanic community.

Reading Pioneers of Change 

Here are some recent fiction and nonfiction books by Hispanic/Latino authors to explore:

See also Hispanic Executive’s 10 New Releases from Latino Authors and Penguin Random House’s Books to Read for Latine & Hispanic Heritage Month.

 

Listening to Pioneers of Change

Here are some podcast recommendation lists for various Hispanic, Latino, and other related topics to explore:

National Hispanic Heritage Month Resources

Siena Resources

The Siena School blog has other Heritage Month spotlights related to innovative dyslexia education, including Native American book recommendations, Mexican writer and activist Victor Villaseñor, Chicano artist Ignacio Gomez, African American writers and dyslexia advocates LeDerick Horne and Marcia Brissett-Bailey, and others.

Learn more about Siena’s commitments and ongoing initiatives for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging.

The Siena School proudly serves students with dyslexia and other language-based learning differences in grades 3-12 on campuses in Silver Spring, Maryland, and Oakton, Virginia. 

Celebrating Native American Arts, Culture, and History

October 31, 2023
By Joe Fruscione, Communications, Content, and Advancement Coordinator

For Native American Heritage Month 2023, Siena is highlighting some artistic and cultural contributions to commemorate during this important month. See below for books, podcasts, and other resources of interest to guide you.

Native American and Indigenous Book Recommendations 

Here are some recent fiction and nonfiction books by Native American and Indigenous authors to explore: 

Get more Native American and Indigenous book recommendations from Book Riot, USA Today, Good Housekeeping, and Penguin Random House.

Native American and Indigenous Podcast Recommendations 

Here are some podcasts about various Native American and Indigenous topics to explore: 

Get more Native American and Indigenous podcast recommendations here: 

Resources for Native American Heritage Month

November is filled with events celebrating Native American history, culture, and heritage. Here are some resources to start with:

Siena Resources

The Siena School blog has other heritage month spotlights related to innovative dyslexia education, including Chicano muralist Ignacio Gomez, Mexican writer and activist Victor Villaseñor, WNBA stars A’Ja Wilson and Jewell Loyd, NFL star Rashan Gary, poet Amanda Gorman, and others. Learn more about Siena’s commitments and ongoing initiatives for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging.

Siena’s mission-focused innovative dyslexia education is designed for students in grades 3-12 with language-based learning differences on campuses in Silver Spring, Maryland, and Oakton, Virginia.

Winter Break Reading at Siena

December 14, 2022
By Joe Fruscione, Communications, Content, and Advancement Coordinator

Looking for book recommendations to support dyslexic readers heading into winter break? Let Siena’s elementary and middle school teams help.

With winter break approaching, it’s important for students—especially ones with language-based learning differences—to read for at least 20 minutes a day to keep their literacy, decoding, and related skills honed. Regular daily reading will help keep students engaged through winter break with a variety of enjoyable, teacher-recommended books, series, graphic novels, short story collections and more.

Elementary School Book Recommendations

Here are some of our elementary classes’ top book recommendations this year so far, as suggested by elementary teachers:

Elementary student Ania recommends Flunked: “I thought it was really interesting, and I liked that I never knew what was going to happen next.” Ania’s classmate Grayer really enjoyed Nick and Tesla’s High-Voltage Danger Lab: “It was a good book. It was fun to read about the brother and sister making things with their uncle in his lab.”

Middle School Book Recommendations

Teachers from Siena’s middle school English and Reading teams recommend these books for readers in 6th to 8th grades: 

Resources for Book Recommendations

Young readers who prefer audiobooks can look for these and other books in the offerings from Learning Ally, Audible, and the Young Adult Library Services Association, among other resources.

Education consultant Ann Dolin wrote about engaging reluctant readers over summer break, including a handful of recommendations for different ages and suggestions for reading as a family. Although winter break is shorter than summer, parents could adapt some of Dolin’s ideas for their students—such as starting a book series to pique their interest in the next few weeks.

Whether it’s over winter or summer break, giving students some control over the process of selecting books when they’re not in school can motivate them to read for at least 20 minutes a day.

Here are some additional resources to help students with summer reading:

See Siena’s blog for winter break podcast recommendations, summer reading recommendations, and posts about authentic assessments at Siena and about a handful of Siena alumni who’ve returned as staff members.  

The Siena School, a national leader in dyslexia education, serves bright, college-bound students with language-based learning differences on campuses in Silver Spring, MD (grades 3-12) and Oakton, VA (grades 3-11). 

Summer Reading at Siena

July 26, 2022
By Joe Fruscione, Communications, Content, and Advancement Coordinator

Benefits of Summer Reading

Summer reading is important for students’ academic and social-emotional development, but how can they find age-appropriate books that are also interesting and relatable to their experiences?

As this 2021 post from Scholastic points out, “Summer reading is critical, not only for helping kids maintain learning while school is out, but also for fostering social–emotional development, discovering the joy of stories, and elevating the importance of lifelong learning.” 

Summer reading—even 15-20 minutes a day—helps students with dyslexia and other language-based learning differences: it will keep their reading, retention, and decoding skills sharp in preparation for the coming school year. Regular reading also helps students’ social–emotional skills by sharpening their awareness of the world, as well as increasing their empathy and ability to understand various points of view.

Getting students to read over the summer can be a challenge. But knowing what their peers have read and enjoyed can help, especially when students have diverse stories, characters, identities, and genres to choose from. 

Summer Reading Recommendations for Teens and Tweens

At the end of the school year, Siena teachers shared summer reading packets, which included recommendations and class readings for students across all grade levels. Teachers typically assemble their own reading lists to share with students, and they always choose a variety of books that reflect Siena’s diverse community and curriculum. Here are some of the books Siena’s students have been reading this summer:

To further help students and parents, Siena Humanities chair and middle school English teacher Beth Fabijanic shared that the Young Adult Library Services Association (a division of ALA) offers ample recommendations for teen/tween readers, including: 

Students who prefer to listen to books—or who perhaps want to read along while listening—should also explore the audiobook selections on Amazing Audiobooks for Young Adults, Learning Ally, Audible, and Audiobook Sync (which updates free audiobooks for teens every week).

Resources for Summer Reading

“Children often react very differently when a parent or teacher tells them to do something compared to when they make a decision on their own,” this Dyslexia Resource post from 2020 observes. “When age-appropriate, encourage growing readers to develop their independence by allowing them to create their own summer reading schedule. While beginner readers should read around 20 minutes each day, leave the rest up to your student.”

Choosing their own daily reading time can give students a sense of control over the process, while the routine of summer reading can prepare them for the more structured days of the school year.

Here are some additional resources to help students with summer reading:

Siena’s blog has more helpful resources for summer, including how students can improve their technology skills over the summer and how summer academics and camps can be beneficial. 

Recent Posts

5/15/25 - By Haley Scranton, LCPC, Counselor at The Siena School
5/7/25 - By Joe Fruscione, Communications, Content, & Advancement Coordinator
2/27/25 - By Joe Fruscione, Communications, Content, & Advancement Coordinator
2/20/25 - By Joe Fruscione, Communications, Content, & Advancement Coordinator
2/4/25 - By Joe Fruscione, Communications, Content, & Advancement Coordinator
1/24/25 - By Joe Fruscione, Communications, Content, and Advancement Coordinator

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