A week ago, Kathleen Tolan, Senior Deputy Director of the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project, died peacefully in her sleep. Kathleen was the one who hired me, first as her own and Lucy Calkins's intern in 2003, then as a staff developer in 2004. Over the next decade she was my boss, my mentor, coach, teacher, leader,… Continue reading Pick Your Head Up: Remembering Kathleen Tolan
Stronger Essay Writing: Differentiating Between Reasons and Evidence
The word essay comes from the latin exigere, meaning "to ascertain," or "to weigh." It was used in the late 15th century as a verb, meaning "to test the quality of." Writing in essay form certainly leads to these things: weighing of evidence, testing the quality of reasons, ascertaining the strength of an argument. When we teach students… Continue reading Stronger Essay Writing: Differentiating Between Reasons and Evidence
Share this:
Share this:
Active Authentic Audiences: PART OF #TWTBLOG’S THROWBACK WEEK
Deb shared fabulous ideas about developing authentic audiences in a post she wrote for the blog series on What Matters Most.
Share this:
Share this:
Watch and Notice–Part of #TWTBlog’s Throwback Week
Dana's post on the power of demonstration writing is one of my favorites. Writers love to see their teachers write, and teachers have a terrific platform for instructing using this technique.
Share this:
Share this:
Incorporating Play-Based Learning in Writing Workshop at any Age- Part of #TWTblog Throwback Week
I am honored to share Beth's post today on Incorporating Play-Based Learning in Writing Workshop. We need to bring the joy back to our teaching, and Beth's post is a roadmap to get started.
Share this:
Share this:
Straight From Students: Why Teachers Should Write: Part Of #TWTBLOG’S Throwback Week
Melanie asked the students, "What makes you feel like a writer?" Read the voices from the classroom. YOUR writing matters to YOUR students.
Share this:
Share this:
It’s Tuesday! Write. Give. Share.
It's Tuesday! Write a post. Share your link. Give at least 3 comments to other Slicers!
Share this:
Share this:
It’s Not Just About the Notebook — Part of #TWTBlog’s Throwback Week
Read what happens when Lisa makes a commitment to her writer's notebook.
Share this:
Share this:
We Are Writers Here: Part of #TWTBlog’s Throwback Week
This week on Two Writing Teachers, we are each chosing another co-author’s previously published post to feature as part of our Throwback Week.
Share this:
Share this:
Three Favorite Word Wall Games
A well-planned word wall allows students to quickly access familiar high frequency words from word study instruction. As they are writing, they can simply glance up, find the word, and continue to write. With the word wall, there's no need to interrupt their work to search through a dictionary or booklet. Glancing at the word word… Continue reading Three Favorite Word Wall Games
Share this:
Share this:
Using Mentor Texts With Students
Kelly Boswell reminded me of a three step process for using mentor texts with students.
Share this:
Share this:
‘Tis the Season… Where Did the Writing Go?
Maybe you teach in a school where all is calm during the weeks between the end of Thanksgiving weekend and the beginning of Winter break. I do not. (If you do, will you share your secret?) It is a busy time for most of us, both in and beyond school. All too often writing workshop… Continue reading ‘Tis the Season… Where Did the Writing Go?
