Why are some sentences stronger than others? What makes a sentence powerful? What are the subtle but important differences that a single word can make? Maybe you'll inspire some word-based debates as you nudge along fluency and language skills.
Category: grammar
Many Reasons to Love the Oxford Comma
I love the Oxford comma. But not for the reasons you might think.
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Chatting About Conventions with Jeff Anderson & Whitney La Rocca
Let’s talk grammar! Listen-in to a conversation Stacey recently had with Jeff Anderson and Whitney La Rocca about language conventions.
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Why Teach Syntax?
Grammar is a set of craft moves, not a set of rules.
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Grammar and Conventions: Meet Writers Where They Are
Have you ever wondered what to do if some of your students don't understand a grade-level grammatical skill? This post will help you determine how to move those children towards the end-of-year expectations for your grade level.
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Using Personal Editing Checklists At-Home
Many caregivers believe that grammar, usage, mechanics, and spelling is what matters most when reading their child's writing. Children’s writing should be readable, not perfect. What matters most RIGHT NOW is that kids are engaging in the act of putting words on the page or on a screen. Therefore, we can teach young writers how to use a personal editing checklist to help them make their writing more readable anytime they finish crafting a piece of writing.
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Something Do-Able to Try: The Editing Minute
Most of us probably do it without even thinking much about it, but our young writers might not have developed this important habit.
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Using Inquiry to Lift Language Conventions
As middle school teachers, we know grammar and language conventions have likely been taught to our writers in previous years. But why don't they stick? Here are a few ideas around teaching grammar and language conventions using an inquiry approach...
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Patterns of Power: Review + Giveaway
At a time when thoughts turn to sandy beaches and alarm clock-less days, it takes a very special professional book to make me wish (at least a little) that it was September and I could start implementing all these fabulous, fun and important lessons now! Patterns of Power: Inviting Young Writers into the Conventions of Language is a book that will make you happy to have the opportunity to be a teacher, working with young writers to help them explore, wonder, and apply the conventions they learn. It's a book that I believe will transform how teachers and students look at conventions
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Rethinking the “I-Rule”
Many of us were taught that first person pronouns had no place in academic writing. But is that rule still being followed by professional writers?
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Warming up with grammar games
Before my daughter plays a soccer game or scrimmages, her team goes through several warm-up exercises. Watching the go through the motions, I’m impressed that they all seem to enjoy the warm-ups, and they also can explain the purpose of them.
It has helped me to think of these grammar games as the girls think of their soccer warm-ups. They’re quick, they’re fun, and they’re relevant to writing.
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Conventions & Presentation: Solving Predictable Problems
Proper use of conventions and the aesthetics of writing pose unique challenges in an elementary writing workshop. Here are solutions to eight predictable problems you may be facing with your students.
