Do you receive letters from your students at the start of the year? Do you write them back? In what ways do you get to know new students? How do you keep track of the information and use it as a guide for helping your writers grow?
Category: writing workshop
Building Word Superheroes: With Permission and Invented Spelling
Teaching students to take the risks necessary to be inventive spellers means I have to respect the stage of development of the student. I can't expect the students to know (or use) something I haven't taught. It also means communicating to parents about what it means to use inventive spelling and its role in developing writers and readers.
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Stepping Toward Poetry
Did you experiment with some poetry now that the school year is in full swing? If not, here are a few more ideas to convince you poetry can be woven into your day. It starts with you.
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Questioning Traditional Homework Practices
It can feel scary and uncertain to step away from a traditional practice like assigning homework. Following your teacher heart (and your gut) and reading what other professionals and researchers have shared can make you feel more confident in taking a risk and trying a new policy. Read on to see how one teacher (me) changed how and why homework is assigned.
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The Forging of a Writing Community
No longer scared and timid, our work has forged a community of writers.
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Poetry Every Day in 5 Minutes or Less
For some, this might be your last evening before school begins. For others, you might be on your third week! Tonight I'm sharing five, five-minute ideas that might just help you fit poetry into your day, each day. I needed to find a solution to the lack of poetry in my day for my students and I'm hoping these ideas might just inspire some of your own as you begin a new year.
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Playing Around with Instagram Stories
I've been tinkering with Instagram Stories this summer. I've discovered several ways teacher-writers can use them as a tool for living and storytelling.
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Quick Tip: Twitter Digital Notebook
Do you wish you can save all the bits of inspiration and ideas you read on Twitter? Now you can! Read on for an easy way to never lose those tweets again.
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My One Piece of Advice
"If you were going to give just one piece of advice to a colleague who is just starting out with writing workshop, what would it be?" As a literacy coach and consultant, this is a question that I have been asked again and again... and again. And each time my answer is the same.
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This is the Year I’m Going to Make Share Time a Priority
A glance at the clock tells me we have just three minutes to get our coats and lunches and line up. Students are still writing, but now there is no time to gather and share. I sigh, realizing this has become a pattern; without a clear plan for making the share happen, it often does not. But all that will change because... This is the year I'm going to make share time a priority!
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This is the Year I’m Going to Create and Use Strategic Writing
“It’s a practice,” is a common refrain from the instructor in my yoga class. That being said, if my mat is anywhere close to a certain yoga rockstar, I admit it--I find myself glancing over to check out her poses. She gets into positions that I’m sure would cripple me. I would fall on my… Continue reading This is the Year I’m Going to Create and Use Strategic Writing
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This is the Year I’m Going to Use Purposeful Partnerships
Welcome to a crash course in setting up partnerships for your writing workshop. You'll find actionable steps to get started with room to grow and make partnerships a seamless part of your workshop environment.
