ICYMI: Keep Learning Going Throughout the Summer Recap

Last week, the co-authors and I from Two Writing Teachers shared ideas on a popular, but rarely discussed topic. How do we stretch the learning beyond our classroom once the year is over? I think teachers are always looking for ways to encourage and inspire young writers to take writing into their own hands and carry it through with independence and excitement. However, the distractions and changes in routine during the summer months can challenge students to continue the classroom momentum when they are ready to pump the brakes. I found so many helpful ideas and tips throughout the week from my co-authors. I am hoping you did as well. In case you missed a post here is a recap!

On Monday, I shared ideas on building excitement as we get closer to the summer months and encouraging students to begin planning their summer writing space with goals in mind.

Beth encouraged us on Tuesday to look for reading and writing connections. She shared some very approachable tips.

If you are looking for ways to support children who struggle with writing, on Wednesday Stacey shared six small suggestions to help learners that don’t require children to physically sit and write daily.

Deb encouraged us to think about ways to support our writers with exercises, seating, and engaging activities encouraging fine motor development in Thursday’s post.

On Friday, Kathleen shared a challenge for students to use as a motivator to make writing a priority through the summer. Look for her bingo boards and writing ninja challenge instructions in her post.

Lisa created a list with many treasured titles that inspire writing. Go see her post from Saturday and add your favorites to her collaborative document.

Finally, on Sunday, Melanie rounded out the series with a post to help you continue the conversation with parents and a list of several ideas parents can try with their children to support and encourage them all summer long.

But that’s not all…

In a collaborative effort to give you more support in this hefty endeavor, we crafted a parent letter for you to adapt to your own classrooms. To view the letter, click here. To adapt and make changes using the letter as a base, open the document, click the file tab and scroll down to select “make a copy.” From there you will have created a copy of the letter that you can then edit and change as you wish. The letter has a QR code as well that takes families to the digital copy of our letter, allowing them to access the links. If you make changes to the letter and wish to have parents view your version via a QR code, you can paste the link from your Google Document using this website and create your own!

We will then host our Twitter Chat this evening, May 8th at 8:30 p.m. EDT/5:30 p.m. PDT, #TWTBlog. We hope you will join us and share your own thoughts and ideas as we keep the learning going! Here is a preview of the questions!

GIVEAWAY INFORMATION WINNER ANNOUNCEMENT

Thank you to all who commented throughout the series. After using a random number generator from the collection of comments the winner is Debbie Robl!