As I settled in my chair with a highlighter, pen, and sticky notes, I cracked open Crafting Writers K - 6 by Elizabeth Hale. I started reading and was soon totally immersed in the book and the work Elizabeth was describing. In her introduction she writes, As students need less instruction on how to write… Continue reading Professional Book: Crafting Writers K – 6 by Elizabeth Hale
Category: craft
Specific Examples of the Power of Three
Last week I wrote about the power of three in writing. I felt my post lacked specific examples of what this looks like in published writing. So, I looked back at Carmen Agra Deedy's newest book, 14 Cows for America (written in collaboration with Wilson Kimeli Naiyomah), which has examples where she writes in threes.… Continue reading Specific Examples of the Power of Three
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Learning More About Conventions Through the Close-Study of a Text
I've been thinking a lot about conventions and their importance. Without proper conventions, how can a piece of writing hold its own? All of our young writers need to realize that published writers use conventions when they're drafting, not just as an editing tool. There's a new book coming out on Tuesday, 3/10 entitled Alex… Continue reading Learning More About Conventions Through the Close-Study of a Text
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Noticing Exclamation Points and Periods in a Published Text
I've been preparing for a p.d. session on conventions that I'm leading with one of my colleagues next Friday. Hence, I'm trying to look at picture books with an eye for grammar and mechanics. Over the weekend I picked up a new, adorable book called Artichoke Boy, written by Scott Mickelson, and looked at it… Continue reading Noticing Exclamation Points and Periods in a Published Text
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Punctuation Is NOT An Editing Tool: It’s a Crafting Tool!
I started reading Dan Feigelson's Book Practical Punctuation: Lessons on Rule Making and Rule Breaking in Elementary Writing yesterday. It's the first time I've sat down and read a book on grammar and actually stayed awake. Seriously! Every other book I've read on teaching kids how to punctuate, use conventions properly, etc. has made my… Continue reading Punctuation Is NOT An Editing Tool: It’s a Crafting Tool!
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Draft of a New Craft Table About Ahlberg’s The Pencil: A Work-in-Progress
I've been working on a new craft table about Ahlberg's Book The Pencil for the past couple of days. I hope to use this craft table in writing conferences with my students when we get to our fiction picture book unit in March. So far, this is what I've come up with: The final version,… Continue reading Draft of a New Craft Table About Ahlberg’s The Pencil: A Work-in-Progress
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Unpacking Picture Books
In the past few months, I've analyzed a couple of picture books, Those Shoes and Sweet Smell of Roses , to determine the craft moves I can teach my students. As a result of analyzing these books, I've developed teaching points off of the craft moves. Ruth and I picked up a bunch of picture… Continue reading Unpacking Picture Books
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Stories in Hand
Ruth just convinced me to sign up for a free online course called "Stories in Hand," which you can read more about by clicking here. The course is a hybrid: art and writing. If you're passionate about capturing the small moments of your life, similar to what we do every Tuesday with the Slice of… Continue reading Stories in Hand
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Writer’s Craft à la Jane Yolen
Jane Yolen published Take Joy: A Writer's Guide to Loving the Craft in 2006. However, the book just made its way into my classroom a few days ago. I perused it to see what I could use from it with my kids before I put it into the reference section of my classroom's Writing Center.… Continue reading Writer’s Craft à la Jane Yolen
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Meta-Language for Talking About Texts
I was just reviewing my notes from the course I took with Lucy at the TCRWP Summer Writing Institute last month. I came across a page of notes I took where Lucy summarized the best way she knows of to talk about texts with kids. I reviewed it and tried to make it my own.… Continue reading Meta-Language for Talking About Texts
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The Makings of a TRUE Mentor Text
I realize I'm a bit late to the "Those Shoes Party," which is a touching text written by Maribeth Boelts and illustrated by Noah Z. Jones. Those Shoes was published in 2007 and is the story of a little boy who desperately wants the shoes that nearly everyone else in school has. The catch? His… Continue reading The Makings of a TRUE Mentor Text
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Teaching Craft to Kids
I was perusing the Heinemann and Stenhouse Websites today looking for new books about the teaching of writing. I came across a text by Elizabeth Hale entitled Crafting Writers K-6. Like other new Stenhouse titles, they preview the entire text online. After I perused the Table of Contents, I decided to download chapter three, which… Continue reading Teaching Craft to Kids
