How are you planning to celebrate the authors in your classroom? The longer I'm a part of writing workshops, not to mention the more I write, the more I believe in the importance of celebration. Celebration fuels writers. When I first started, I used to think perfection was needed to celebrate. Since becoming a recovering… Continue reading Let’s Celebrate!
Category: publishing
Book in Progress
A few people have left us comments asking about the writing process for our forthcoming book, Day By Day: Refining Writing Workshop Through 180 Days of Reflective Practice, since we announced that we were writing one last summer. These folks have queried us about everything from how we went about writing the proposal for our… Continue reading Book in Progress
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Celebrate!
Today I attended a second grade Popcorn Poetry Party. All the second graders gathered in the shade outside with parents and fans (i.e., teachers) surrounding them. They took turns "popping up" to the mic to share their poetry. As a light breeze swept over us I was reminded of the importance of celebrating student writing.… Continue reading Celebrate!
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Going Public with Student Writing
Most young writers long for an audience who will read and respond to their writing in a thoughtful way. One of the most important gifts you can give your students is the desire to publish their writing in the world at-large. There are a multitude of young author's contests and magazines that accept student writing… Continue reading Going Public with Student Writing
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It’s Finally Published!
I submitted the essay I wrote , alongside my fourth graders who were writing research-based, "This I Believe" Essays, to ThisIBelieve.org almost six months ago. About three months after it wasn't published, I began to give up hope that it ever would be. Yesterday, out of the blue, I received an e-mail from ThisIBelieve.org stating… Continue reading It’s Finally Published!
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Publishing Books with Students
This past Monday I heard Kwame Alexander, who is a poet (He trained with Nikki Giovanni at Virgina Tech!), author, and founder of Book-in-a-Day, speak at the KSRA Conference in Hershey, PA. My handwritten notes from his talk about engaging students with poetry are at the bottom of this post. Alexander founded Book-in-a-Day, Inc., or… Continue reading Publishing Books with Students
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Many Options for Celebrating Student Work
Katherine Bomer once said, "Writing celebration is the most important part of the writing process." With that being said, there should be ample time set aside to celebrate the hard work of writers who are in every Writing Workshop. I've been asked, on a number of occasions, how "Publishing Parties" would go in my classroom. … Continue reading Many Options for Celebrating Student Work
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Believing In Them…
I've been going back-and-forth over e-mail with one of my former fourth graders for the past week. She started sixth grade last week -- middle school. I can hardly believe she has a locker & a free period! After all, it feels like just yesterday that she was sitting in the front row of the… Continue reading Believing In Them…
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Back to School Week: Bursting With Excitement About Writing
Last week Literacy Spark posed this question: I’m always interested in how I can reach the kids at the two ends of the writing spectrum. i.e. addressing kids who struggle with writing, or the freedom of the writer’s workshop format, as well as those kids who are so far above grade level expectations that I… Continue reading Back to School Week: Bursting With Excitement About Writing
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Another Tuesday. Another Call for Slice of Life Stories.
Link your Slice of Life Story to the comments section of this post. Happy Writing! Last night, when Ruth and I were on the telephone, I informed her about an experience I had about a week-and-a-half ago at the TCRWP Writing Institute. I took a course with Mary Ehrenworth that dealt with breathing beauty and… Continue reading Another Tuesday. Another Call for Slice of Life Stories.
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Grace
"How you climb up the mountain is just as important as how... More you get down the mountain. And so it is with life, which for many of us becomes one big gigantic test followed by one big gigantic lesson. In the end, it all comes down to one word: grace. It's how you accept… Continue reading Grace
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The Truth Matters!
My students published their research-based essays on the Holocaust this morning, which was not a small feat! I was so incredibly proud of their diligence and desire to produce a quality piece of writing during the final month of the school year. After their celebration, they went to recess and lunch. When they returned, I… Continue reading The Truth Matters!
