Writing workshop is not about playing someone else’s setlist. Workshop is a flexible set of practices that are meant to be improvised. The structure of workshop is one more way teachers can customize learning for those currently in the room.
Category: balanced literacy
Throwback Week: How To Read A Unit of Study
Learn some tricks for reading the Units of Study, whether you're new to the units or have been using them for many years.
How To Read A Unit of Study
As the school year comes to a close, many of the schools I work with are launching into a week or so of in-service, summer institutes, and other professional development. It's "curriculum season" in many places around the country. For many writing teachers, that means diving into the Units of Study for Opinion, Information, and Narrative Writing by Lucy… Continue reading How To Read A Unit of Study
An Interview with Educator and Author Chris Lehman
Recently, I caught up with my friend and colleague Chris Lehman. For a little end-of-the-year inspiration, please enjoy our interview: Beth: Your books make it clear that you have a passion for reading and writing. Have you always loved to read and write? Chris: Well, that’s complicated. Ha. I have always loved writing. I had… Continue reading An Interview with Educator and Author Chris Lehman
Guided Writing Lesson
Guided Writing Lesson Front Page Originally uploaded by teachergal I attended the Literacy for All K-6 Northeast Literacy Conference here in Providence today. Specifically, I attended "Guided Writing in Small Group Settings," which was led by Kerry Crosby, Heather Morris, and Helen Sisk. It was an informative workshop. Here are some of the highlights: Guided… Continue reading Guided Writing Lesson
Syllables, Diagramming Sentences, and Other Thoughts
I recall clapping out the syllables to words when I was very young. Did it help me as a writer? Probably? I mean, I know where to hyphenate a word when I'm actually writing with a pen (and not using a computer, which automatically breaks the word from line-to-line for me). Therefore, when I started… Continue reading Syllables, Diagramming Sentences, and Other Thoughts
A Must-Read for All WW Teachers
An article published this past summer in Education Next came across my desk today. "The Lucy Calkins project: parsing a self-proclaimed literacy guru" disturbed me for two reasons: 1. Lucy was my professor for four courses when I was a graduate student at Teachers College. She taught me how to be a better teacher of… Continue reading A Must-Read for All WW Teachers