If your writing workshop has felt squeezed for time, then NOW is the time to chat with your grade-level colleagues or administrator about allocating more instructional time for the teaching of writing.
Category: scheduling
Five Ways to Maximize Time If Time for Writing Workshop Gets Cut
Time is a precious commodity in elementary schools. Making the time for a daily writing workshop often means that something else has to get short shrift. However, sometimes, the time for writing workshop gets cut by five or ten minutes. Here are several suggestions for what you can do if writing time gets cut.
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Time to Write
Donald Murray, author of the seminal text A Writer Teaches Writing (Houghton Mifflin, 1985), teaches us that one of the most important things to a writer is time, time to write. But with the many time constraints faced by teachers, how can we be thinking about time in ways that make a difference for our students?
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On the Pitfalls of Hiding Out
Sometimes in a busy and chaotic schedule, we inadvertently miss attending to some of our students who like to "fly under the radar." Being systematic and intentionally positive can make a big difference for some of our writers.
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The Right to Write: Starting with What Matters Most
Like any other skill, children need long stretches of time to practice writing if they're going to develop strong writing muscles. Seeing as muscles need to be used often to get bigger, it's important teachers are providing kids with (four or) five times a week to engage in a writing workshop where they have at least 30 minutes of independent writing time.
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Creative Scheduling in Middle School
The one question that comes up again and again, no matter what part of the country I happen to visiting, is TIME.
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A Mini-Crash-Course on Oral Storytelling
It's been several months since I've written for Two Writing Teachers. In December my son was born, and I was on maternity leave until a few weeks ago. Then, in March I pushed aside all excuses and did the Slice of Life Story Challenge. Every day in the month of March I recruited my four year old daughter to tell… Continue reading A Mini-Crash-Course on Oral Storytelling
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Tailoring Our Teaching: No Need to Wing It If You’ve Got Great Conferring Notes
Lucy Calkins, author of many books on teaching writing, often says that conferring is the heart of writing workshop. I once heard her say to a group of graduate students that she wished we called it “conferring workshop.” This way it would be clearer to everybody that it is the conferences that really make the… Continue reading Tailoring Our Teaching: No Need to Wing It If You’ve Got Great Conferring Notes
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Schedule some time for yourself in 2013.
Teachers tend to take care of everyone else before they take care of themselves! It's time to start carving out a little ME time for yourself at least one afternoon a week.
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Be more than busy. Be productive. Be happy.
Seven tips to help you get and stay more productive during the holiday season and all year long.
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Scheduling Time for Yourself As the New School Year Approaches
I just finished reading the July 2008 Issue of Real Simple, which I've been subscribing to for years. Since I didn't start it until AUGUST, I realized that the cover story "More free time: realistic ways to tame your schedule," was one I should read. If you're the kind of teacher that I am (i.e.,… Continue reading Scheduling Time for Yourself As the New School Year Approaches
TWO WRITING TEACHERS 