Are you familiar with Candace Fleming and G. Brian Karas' bookMuncha! Muncha! Muncha!? This fun, upbeat book has been a favorite of mine (and my kids) for many years. Not only is it a pleasure to read, but it is filled with potential minilessons. Here is the synopsis on the book from Candace's website: Tippy,… Continue reading Mentor Text Thursday: Muncha! Muncha! Muncha!
Category: mentor texts
Mentor Text: Subway Ride
A couple months ago I received an advance copy of Subway Ride, written by Heather Lynn Miller, in the mail from Charlesbridge Publishers. It's a new title from the Massachusetts-based publisher this year. As I flipped through the book, I was impressed with the colorful illustrates, by Sue Rama, which accurately depict subway stations around… Continue reading Mentor Text: Subway Ride
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Mentoring: Peace, Locomotion
My colleague and next-door-classroom-neighbor Leanna and I were eating and grading writer's notebooks together at lunchtime today. I got to the second notebook in my stack and said, "She's gotta be kidding me!" "What?" Leana asked. "She wrote me," I stopped feeling something between annoyance and anger, "letters." I have this thing about writer's notebooks… Continue reading Mentoring: Peace, Locomotion
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A New Mentor Text: Developing A Character
It’s hard to develop characters – well. It’s even harder to develop a character that’s young, irritating, and lovable all at once, isn’t it? I’ve often noticed this when my students try to personify their younger brothers and sisters in their writing. They want them to seem annoying, but often end up making them look… Continue reading A New Mentor Text: Developing A Character
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More About Mentor Texts
I've blogged about mentor texts a great deal since we started Two Writing Teachers in 2007. I learned a lot about the way students use mentor texts after spending a year researching this when I was in grad school at Teachers College. As a result, I recently had an article, entitled "Using Mentor Texts to… Continue reading More About Mentor Texts
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Back to Basics: Mentor Texts (Part of TWT’s Big Picture Series)
In Mentor Texts: Teaching Writing Through Children’s Literature, K – 6, Lynne R. Dorfman and Rose Cappelli write, “Mentor texts help writers notice things about an author’s work that is not like anything they might have done before, and empower them to try something new” (2007, 3). Many of my fourth and fifth grade students… Continue reading Back to Basics: Mentor Texts (Part of TWT’s Big Picture Series)
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Reading-Writing Connections: Focus on Conventions
Here's a link to the final document that focuses on how to lift the level of your students' conventions by using The Pencil by Allan Ahlberg. (If you haven't seen the draft I posted last week, then click here.)
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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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Coming Soon… A New Craft Table
I've been pouring over Allan Ahlberg's The Pencil, which came out last year, but came on to my radar a few weeks ago. I've been trying to figure out how to use it as a mentor text with my students, which is why I haven't written about it yet. However, after a lot of deliberation,… Continue reading Coming Soon… A New Craft Table
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Always: A Mentor Text for Writing Questions and Repetition
Always Written by Ann Stott Illustrated by Matt Phelan Published by Candlewick Press in August 2008 Review copy provided by the publisher Always is a touching tale about a young boy who questions whether his mother's love (for him) is unconditional. He asks his mother a series of questions that include whether she loves him… Continue reading Always: A Mentor Text for Writing Questions and Repetition
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Writing in Second Person… A Mentor Text by Hopkinson
I was delighted to happen upon Deborah Hopkinson, who was signing books in the NCTE Exhibit Hall, on Saturday afternoon. I've used books of hers, such as Saving Strawberry Farm and Shutting Out the Sky in Interactive Read Aloud with my students. So, when I saw was signing her 2006 book, Sky Boys: How They… Continue reading Writing in Second Person… A Mentor Text by Hopkinson
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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
