I pulled this off of weather.com around 4:20 p.m. today. As you can see, many parts of the country are experiencing the-your-students-outdoors kind of weather.
It’s been a long, hard winter for those of us who live in the Northeast. I’ve been walking outside when I got home in the late afternoon. As I scrolled through some Slice of Life Story Submissions, I noticed a lot of other people have been getting outside to enjoy the unseasonable weather. While it’s been drizzling on and off today in Pennsylvania, the sun is going to come out for the next few days and it’s going to be glorious! Now that it’s springtime, and the weather is getting warmer, I think it’s the perfect time to make it outdoors with your students. In fact, if I were still had a class of my own, then I would be trying to take Writing Workshop outdoors tomorrow rather than holding it inside.
Setting guidelines about where everyone sits and what independent writing time will look like and sound like outdoors must be discussed before you leave the classroom. Additionally, it’s important to make sure everyone has their personal supplies so that no one has to go back indoors by themselves. However, once you iron all of that out, gather some clipboards, pack-up your kids, make sure everyone dons a light jacket, and head outdoors. Writing Workshop outside can be fun and productive. Give it a whirl tomorrow (weather-permitting, of course)!
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Stacey Shubitz is a K-6 literacy consultant and former elementary teacher. She is the author of CRAFT MOVES and other professional books on writing workshop. Her forthcoming book, MAKE THE SCHOOL SYSTEM WORK FOR YOUR CHILD WITH DISABILITIES (Guilford Press, 2026), empowers parents to navigate the special education system.
View all posts by Stacey Shubitz
Our school has a courtyard and the students truly love going outside for writing, as well as for read alouds. They can write for longer spans of time when they are outside. Nature becomes an inspiration.
I loved taking my students outside whenever I could for reading workshop or writing workshop. A different feel falls over the students when they are taken out of their “normal” classroom environment and some great writing pieces are produced because of it!
Our school has a courtyard and the students truly love going outside for writing, as well as for read alouds. They can write for longer spans of time when they are outside. Nature becomes an inspiration.
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I loved taking my students outside whenever I could for reading workshop or writing workshop. A different feel falls over the students when they are taken out of their “normal” classroom environment and some great writing pieces are produced because of it!
LikeLike