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Writing

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What makes this powerful? And this? And this? For that matter, what makes most persuasive writing powerful? Story does. No one is saying that narrative writing has jumped the shark. Not even this guy. More importantly, I don’t think we have the right to take narrative writing away from kids. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for expository writing and engaging kids in the development of argumentative pieces. I agree with David Coleman: we don’t…

This post is the fourth in a series about research and writing in Heather Bitka’s kindergarten classroom. To learn more about this project’s purpose and outcomes, you might want to read the first post. If you are interested in understanding how this project enabled the teachers and coaches involved to position themselves as learners, you can click through to the second post. This post demonstrates the beginning of instruction, where researchers applied strategies that helped…

“What have we been studying in kindergarten this spring?” Heather asked her students. “Things that hatch!” They sang. “And how have we been doing that?” Heather asked. A jumble of ideas poured out of them at once, and fingers were pointing to different corners of the room, where a bunch of creatures were in the process of hatching: “Today, we’re going to take the next step in our learning. We’re going to become researchers.…

Last week, Lou Cercone introduced me to his 9th grade English students at Lockport High School, and we spent two short days beginning to define what quality idea development looks like together. Writing instruction is a district-wide learning focus, and Lou was interested in observing a lesson that was reflective of what we’ve been learning for the last several years. He asked that I position myself as the leader of this coaching experience. This is…

Over the last three years, some of the high school fellows of the WNY Young Writers’ Studio have identified perseverance as a Disposition they are most eager to grow. Like many writers, they often begin the process bolstered by great ideas and a certain enthusiasm for their work. Eventually, this honeymoon period often draws to a close though. Sometimes, this happens when they finish their first drafts and find themselves daunted by the reality of…

Some of the conversations that I have with young writers are inspired by the work of Christopher Johns, whose framework for reflective practice enables them to identify their needs, advocate for themselves, and use what they’ve come to understand to be of service to others. Sounds heavy, but it really isn’t.  Consider this: Inspiring those you know to do the same can happen when you invite them to think about, discuss, and craft responses to…

“Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing and to interact and collaborate with others.”  CCR.W.6 Last week, I had the honor of visiting Molly Koelle’s classroom. Molly is a teacher at Roy B. Kelley Elementary School in Lockport, New York. I’ve been supporting teachers and administrators there for several years now, and when Molly invited me to drop in and observe her in action during her literacy block, I knew I would…

I got to spend this afternoon writing with fourth and fifth graders from the Martin J. Gottlieb Day School in Florida, thanks to Andrea Hernandez, Silvia Tolisano, and the wonder that is Skype. Here’s the teaser for the day’s session, which Andrea and Silvia shared with writers ahead of time. Our session was devoted to establishing a wide collection of potential ideas and purposes for new pieces. Here are the slides that supported some of…

April is National Poetry Month! Ready to write? The Academy of American poets shares 30 ideas for doing so here. Scholastic provides a bounty of inspiration and lesson planning support on their site. Up for a poem-a-day challenge? Check out Poetic Asides, find yourself inspired by Bud Hunt’s daily photo prompts, and drop by local poet Amy Ludwig VanDerwater’s blog to congratulate her on writing a poem a day…for an entire year. She weaves some…

Read this book. “Too often, people think the idea of letting students choose their own topic or text comes from the romantic notion that adults shouldn’t interfere with children’s development, that it should be allowed to unfold naturally. Letting kids “do what they want” sometimes strikes observers as quaintly soft and naive. This may be because some teachers express the principle of choice as a negative: ‘In writer’s workshop, you don’t assign the topic. Kids…