Today might be one of a handful of times I will ever teaching Writing Workshop after lunch when my kids come back from dance. (I LOVE teaching writing in the morning. When I was in NYC, my principal gave me special permission to do this since we were supposed to teach it in the afternoon.)… Continue reading Flipping My Schedule Upside Down
Author: Stacey Shubitz
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.
Poetry Friday: JBKO
The Last Poetry Friday of the 2007-08 School Year Originally uploaded by teachergal Caroline Kennedy put together one of my favorite anthologies of poems, A Family of Poems: My Favorite Poetry for Children, a few years ago. One of them in Sea Joy, which seems exceedingly appropriate for me to share with my students on… Continue reading Poetry Friday: JBKO
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WN Entry: How does one make sense of this statement: “He was his parents’ only child.”
A couple of weeks ago Ruth and I were on the phone when her husband came into the room and told her there was a tornado that touched down about 20 miles away. "Do you need to go?" I asked her. "No, it's okay," she replied in a cool, Midwestern way. 872 miles away, I… Continue reading WN Entry: How does one make sense of this statement: “He was his parents’ only child.”
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A Labor of Love: Because My Students’ Lives and Experiences Matter
Here's what I'm working on now... Originally uploaded by teachergal Last year one of my fifth graders, Lauren, wrote a persuasive letter to a very large yearbook company's CEO asking him to give our class yearbooks. She successfully persuaded him to discount the price of a full-color yearbook for the entire class (the kids paid… Continue reading A Labor of Love: Because My Students’ Lives and Experiences Matter
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Join Us for Our Newest Challenge: Student Stories!
Today's the day that our new writing challenge, Student Stories, begins. For more information about the types of writing you might want to do for this Challenge, click here. Once you've written your "Student Stories" Post, link it here by clicking on the Mr. Image Image-Linky below: Looking forward to reading your inspirational stories.
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Student Story #1: I Need to Hold Your Hand
I've taught fourth or fifth grade in low-SES communities ever since I worked as a fifth grade teacher at P.S. 72 in Spanish Harlem when I was a graduate student completing my first master's degree at Hunter College. Hunter prepares teachers to work in "urban settings." Hence, when it came time to find a job,… Continue reading Student Story #1: I Need to Hold Your Hand
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Two Writing Teachers Turns One Today!
1st blog birthday card to ruth Originally uploaded by teachergal One year ago, today, Ruth and I started this blog. For two months we wrote content and tried to finesse it so that it was ready to go "out into the world." And here we are, one year and over 800 posts later! What a… Continue reading Two Writing Teachers Turns One Today!
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Story Telling in 104 Degree Heat
Yesterday we headed to Massachusetts for our final field trip of the year. We were supposed to visit the Sculpture Park at the DeCordova Museum in Lincoln. However, it was going to be hot. Really hot. Fry-an-egg-on-the-sidewalk and schvitz-like-crazy hot. But we went up there anyway, with lots of water, sunscreen, and hats and the… Continue reading Story Telling in 104 Degree Heat
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It’s Tuesday, so that means it’s time for the
Welcome to the second edition of the Slice of Life Story Challenge for the month of June. Please link your Slice of Life Story here by clicking on the link below.
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Favorite Genres
One of the questions on my Year-End Writing Evaluation was "What was your favorite genre/unit of study this year and why?" All of the kids only choose three genres from a list of eight. They chose (in order of popularity): Memoir Poetry Picture Books/Fiction The unpopular genres were personal narrative, friendly letters, personal essay, literary… Continue reading Favorite Genres
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Shifting Gears: From Drafting to Revision and Editing
Poetry is one of my favorite genres to teach. I simply love the way the genre empowers ALL kids to have success with their words. (Quite frankly, I wish I could teach it in November, right before personal essay, but for some reason it never happens that way! Making it the last genre of the… Continue reading Shifting Gears: From Drafting to Revision and Editing
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SOLSC: Multi-tasking
THE BASICS: Late Saturday afternoon. On the elliptical rider. Listening to "Bombay Dreams" on my MP3. Watching the replay of Hillary Rodham Clinton's 'Farewell' Speech. THE BACK-STORY: When I was in college I volunteered at the White House Office of Women's Initiatives and Outreach from Sept. 1995 – Nov. 1996. The office was started by… Continue reading SOLSC: Multi-tasking
