Image taken from: http://users.moscow.com/rickf/images/writingprocess.gif Yesterday, I began a series of posts on the writing process and the Traits of good writing. I’ll spending the remainder of the week exploring each phase of the process and the Traits that are embedded within it. Today’s topic? Prewriting. Prewriting is all about idea-gathering, and as we idea-gather, we’re often inspired to do some great pre-writing. This phase of the writer’s process is about considering what you want to…
I know how I would answer this question, and I’m sure that the definition would shift a bit depending on who you asked, what they preferred to read, and how many essays they were responsible for providing feedback on over the weekend *smile*. When I think of what good writing is, I think of this book, this post, and these videos. I think of the work that Noah does. I think of her. And her.…
Even though there is still snow on the ground, I’m really excited to be getting calls from teachers and parents and kids who are interested in participating in the WNY Young Writers’ Studio this summer. Registration is ALWAYS open, and new members can join our community at any time. Fellows spend a week together in the summer exploring what it means to be a writer, the process itself and how the work we do might influence change. We continue to meet…
The fellows of my learning community have been revisiting our commitment to disseminating the expertise that we share and cultivate within our group. This week, conversations have begun around the purpose of publication, the process itself, and whether or not the work that is shared within blog posts and in other online venues can be as credible as the stuff of peer-reviewed publications. In most cases, I’ll admit, I don’t think it can be. That…
I work with many teachers whose students do not have access to computers outside of the classroom. I work with some whose students do not have access to computers inside of the classroom. And I know that at least ONE school in the area just received it’s first shipment of desktop computers LAST YEAR. Teachers in this school were still writing report cards by hand. Not happily, I might add, but that’s their reality. We…
Teachers ask for alternatives to traditional book reporting because they know that if there is anything worse than writing and reading a four paragraph text summary to a classroom full of your peers, it would be assuming the position of audience member AND evaluator. I know that there are more than a few WNY teachers in Florida this week, lounging by pools with stacks of papers next to them, waiting to be graded. That’s one…
Six-Word Memoir book preview from SMITHmag on Vimeo. My six words? Could work well for book-reporting!
Shakespeare On Facebook Published at Scribd A few years ago, Sue Rooney, a teacher at Cleveland Hill High School shared her Facebook literature project with me. The resulting products were very similar to the example above, and I was really impressed by the fact that she was willing to offer up the use of this tool as an alternative to a pen and paper project, even though Facebook was (of course) blocked in her building.…
We’re enjoying winter break in Western New York this week, and I’m glad to have some extra time to myself to catch up on all sorts of fun things like laundry, tax preparation, and car maintenance. Did I mention the dentist? I have to schedule that appointment too. At times, I’m a huge procrastinator, and there is no better way to stall than logging on to Twitter and asking for some help from my friends…
In my corner of the world, I don’t bump up against too many teachers who are resistant to tech integration, particularly as it concerns the work of literature circles. I know kids who circle up around blogs rather than books, and I know teachers who build literature circle roles around the tech skills they want their students to practice. Everyone is getting started in some way, shape, or form it seems. I admire the willingness that many teachers…