I’ve been offline a great deal over the last few weeks, wrapping up my school year and gearing up for the start of our new season at the WNY Young Writers’ Studio. We have some exciting things in the works, and I’m looking forward to meeting and working with a bunch of new writers and teachers this year! This Saturday, teachers and writers and parents and administrators from across our region will be gathering at…
Just a reminder….because June 5th is rapidly approaching! The WNY Young Writers’ Studio Celebration of Writing is a free event that is open to the public. Join us on June 5th as our fellows lead informal sessions on writing strategies, ideas, and technology tools. A few highlights from the draft of the day’s events: Teachers from Alden, Lockport, and Depew will be leading sessions on the use of writer’s notebooks in the classrooms, service-learning and…
The WNY Young Writers’ Studio is a community of writers and teachers of writing. We meet throughout the year to explore what good writing is and how to support one another as we work toward creating it. Fellows of our program come from different schools, universities, and organizations, and we meet throughout the year. Many of us have been a part of the community since it began in 2008. Teachers who join us may earn…
Internet filtering is a reality wherever I work. I’m sure it will remain so for some time to come, and in most cases, for good reason. I’m fortunate to work in places where many of the tools that I prefer to use are open, including Google tools and YouTube and even Facebook. When things are blocked, all of the administrators that I work with are happy to open sites up in order to facilitate great…
On Saturday, I had the privilege of watching the middle and high school interns from the WNY Young Writers’ Studio guide small groups of writers through the next phase of our collaborative digital storytelling project. The last time we met, writers finished story boarding. On Saturday, they came prepared with props and ideas and spent a portion of the morning capturing digital stills. We plan to “wrap this up” at our Celebration of Writing on…
The WNY Young Writers’ Studio celebrates its third anniversary this summer! Thinking about joining us but haven’t just yet? Well this year, we’re opening up greater opportunities for you to do so. Studio is not a camp. It isn’t a workshop or an institute either. It is a learning community comprised of teachers and students who have been writing and learning together over time. Many of our fellows have been a part of our program…
The teachers that I work with often tell me that conferencing with writers overwhelms them because they aren’t certain what to look for in student writing or what to say when they find it. This is why the coach in me appreciates books like this one and this one. Calkins and Culham never suggest that conferences are scripted events, and they certainly don’t suggest that teachers limit their work with writers to the prompts and…
Students 2.0 is a new network for young people that will be facilitated in large measure by young people, with a bit of support from some older people who try to remain young at heart ; ). From the ning: Students 2.0 is a network for learners to connect independently with other students and with mentors in order to shape educational paths and experiences which may be outside of traditional institutions. We encourage you to…
In recent weeks, I’ve been spending nearly as much time writing with kids as I have been working with teachers, and let me tell you–this is good for the soul. Particularly when I’m given the space and time to really get to know who these kids are and the gifts they bring. I’ve been teaching in some capacity for 18 years now. I can’t see myself ever giving this up, and some how, I’ve managed…
Young writers and educators are invited to join the fellows of the WNY Young Writers’ Studio at our first annual Celebration of Writing, which will be held on June 5th from 9:30am until noon at Pinnacle Charter School in Buffalo, New York. This year’s theme is A Celebration of Writers and Teachers in Progress. What makes this event special? All of the kids who are helping to facilitate it and the possibilities that our format…