What Poetry has Taught Me
I’ve learned to love poetry. (Cover your ears, Amy, Mary Lee and Betsy.) There was a time in my life when I thought poetry was pointless. *hangs head*covers face*apologetic eyes* … Read more What Poetry has Taught Me →
Teaching Points Lead to Authentic and Specific Writing Instruction
Before every single minilesson I teach in writing workshop, I write a statement. It always begins the same way, and I never (not-ever) forget to write it. It begins like this: Writers… This statement is a non-negotiable for me because it forces me to boil down the teaching point to something specific and authentic. If I can’t complete the statement, then I shouldn’t be teaching the lesson. Here are a few of my recent teaching points. Writers decide how to enter a new writing project either through collecting, drafting, or… Read more Teaching Points Lead to Authentic and Specific Writing Instruction →
Follow Your Own Writing Process (Grades 3 & Up)
To print a copy of this chart, follow this link to the PDF in Google Drive. It prints nicely as a 36″ x 48″ chart. Then add your students’ names… Read more Follow Your Own Writing Process (Grades 3 & Up) →
Nudging Growth through Celebration
These are the things I’m celebrating when I assess Sam’s writing. One By rereading his first few words, he realized he started with a dependent clause. Then he added a… Read more Nudging Growth through Celebration →
Yo-Ho-Ho {Pirate Inspired Writing Instruction}
September 19 is International Talk Like a Pirate Day (link takes you to Wikipedia; here is the official site). Next to Christmas, this may just be my favorite! A little known secret is that… Read more Yo-Ho-Ho {Pirate Inspired Writing Instruction} →