Tomorrow marks the last of our research days in writing workshop. When we return to school next week, my sixth graders will begin the process of sifting through their research and drafting their feature articles. As I helped my students gather their notes together and put them away in their writing folders, I could not… Continue reading Giving Students Choice in Note Taking
Author: Tara Smith
I teach Writing Workshop, Language Arts and Social Studies to sixth graders at a middle school in suburban New Jersey. This blog is my attempt to capture all the "stuff" that goes into my teaching life - the planning, the dreaming, the reading, the preparing, the hoping and (above all) the kids.
Please note that the content of this blog is my own. It does not reflect the opinions of my employer.
Write, Share, Give: SOL Time
Dear SOLSC writing community, We, at TWT, have been gearing up for our annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge, for some time now. March is drawing closer with every passing day. Taking part in the March challenge is both a treat (you get to write everyday - with instant, positive feedback!), and a challenge… Continue reading Write, Share, Give: SOL Time
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Writing about reading: offering students choice in reading responses
When I first began teaching, Nancie Atwell’s In The Middle was my go to PD book for all things to do with reading and writing workshop. I modeled so many of my teaching practices on what I learned through that book and through a few workshops with Nancie. More than anything else, I wanted to… Continue reading Writing about reading: offering students choice in reading responses
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Following through with “I do. We do. You do.” in writing workshop.
Yesterday, Stacey wrote a thoughtful post about how we lead our students to ownership of their learning habits, and she concluded with these wise words: “Doing something for someone else doesn’t help them grow. The magic happens when we gradually release responsibility for something over time so others can flourish as a result of our… Continue reading Following through with “I do. We do. You do.” in writing workshop.
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Making space for writing (lots of it) in Social Studies
I love teaching writing and reading workshop, but there’s a special place in my heart for the third subject I teach: social studies. Part of the reason for this is just a love of history, and part of the reason is because it allows me to reach into my reading/writing bag of tricks in order… Continue reading Making space for writing (lots of it) in Social Studies
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TARA’S ONE LITTLE WORD FOR 2014
One. Little. Word. I have been in search of my one little word for some time now, without much success. The more I thought about it, the more anxious and uncertain I became...especially because I had already committed to writing a post about it along with the Two Writing Teachers team. What was I to… Continue reading TARA’S ONE LITTLE WORD FOR 2014
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WRITE, SHARE, GIVE: SOLS TIME
For last year's words belong to last year's language And next year's words await another voice. And to make an end is to make a beginning. ~T.S. Eliot, "Little Gidding" How appropriate that the year ends on a Slice of Life Tuesday! Here's to ending a wonderful year of meeting on Tuesdays to share our… Continue reading WRITE, SHARE, GIVE: SOLS TIME
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WRITE, SHARE, GIVE: SOLS TIME
“The role of a writer is not to say what we can all say, but what we are unable to say.” ― Anaïs Nin It is time to write your Slice, share your link, and give some comments to (at least three) other slicers. Our writing community is built on the support and encouragement we offer each other every Tuesday. Here's… Continue reading WRITE, SHARE, GIVE: SOLS TIME
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Creating writing museums
Last July, Bonnie Kaplan invited me to join the Hudson Valley Writing Project's Summer Institute for a day. I had been hearing so much about the work these teachers had been doing, that I didn't hesitate even for a moment to say, "Yes!"...even though I knew it would mean getting up extra early in order… Continue reading Creating writing museums
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WRITE, SHARE, GIVE: SOLS TIME
“A story is a letter that the author writes to himself, to tell himself things that he would be unable to discover otherwise.” ― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, The Shadow of the Wind It is time to write your Slice, share your link, and give some comments to (at least three) other slicers. Our writing community is built on the support and encouragement… Continue reading WRITE, SHARE, GIVE: SOLS TIME
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In my writing workshop: a student takes ownership
Tucked away among the many books I bought at NCTE is this treasure: a collection of Donald Graves’ essays on writing workshop. An added bonus is a DVD that captures footage of Don and his team of teacher/researchers in action during the Atkinson study. I’m making slow but sure progress through the book, mostly because… Continue reading In my writing workshop: a student takes ownership
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Write, share, give: SOLS time
“A writer is a person who cares what words mean, what they say, how they say it. Writers know words are their way towards truth and freedom, and so they use them with care, with thought, with fear, with delight. By using words well they strengthen their souls. Story-tellers and poets spend their lives learning… Continue reading Write, share, give: SOLS time
