adolescent literacy · argument writing · awards · blogging · conferences · content-area writing · conventions · digital writing · engagement · Kylene Beers · Lester L. Laminack · punctuation · writing workshop

Snapshots From the NYSEC Conference

My time at the New York State English Council (NYSEC) Conference through snapshots!

writing workshop

My Ah-ha Writing Class

I’ve made my share of confessions here on this blog. I wrote about my struggle to keep a notebook here and here. There’s more. Now that school is in full swing, making time to write as often as I should, is hard. I write a lot, but not every day. I have two ideas that… Continue reading My Ah-ha Writing Class

writing workshop

A Weeks Reflections and Student Work

Thanks for stopping by the blog.  Last week I promised to share student work and my reflections after a week of Getting Kids Excited About Writing. As I listened to teachers talk about their plans to support the earliest demands of their writers,  "What do I write about?"  I began to wonder, "What if we… Continue reading A Weeks Reflections and Student Work

digital writing · technology · writer's notebook

Thinking About My Writer’s Notebook in a Digital Age

Without a notebook, my great ideas are going unrecorded and, ultimately, forgotten.

partnerships · Talking

Intentional Talk with Writing Partners

Elevate the experience of using talk within your workshop with some tools.

katie wood ray · slice of life · Slice of Life Story Challenge

It’s Tuesday! Write. Share. Give.

It's Tuesday! Write. Share. Give.

brainstorming · georgia heard · giveaway · heart maps · independent writing

Heart Maps: A Review and a Giveaway

"My hope is that as you explore heart mapping with your writers, you will fall in love with the stories and poems, truths and courage that will unfold--both theirs and your own." Georgia Heard in her newest book, Heart Maps.

conferring · EAL · ELL · multilingual

A Writing Conference with an English Language Learner Using Google Translate

Read on for a snippet of a writing conference using Google Translate with an upper elementary student who is learning English.

Contests · writing workshop

Authentic Audiences for Students

Contests and publication opportunities for young writers have potential to motivate and inspire.

writing workshop

And Just Like That, They Wrote

Last week, I wrote about the step back our kindergarten teachers took as they launched writing workshop this year. And I admitted to you that the children were not writing, they were drawing their stories. There were no words, not even letters, in their work. Their teachers were holding their breath, and we had begun… Continue reading And Just Like That, They Wrote

celebration · NWP · writing workshop

Are You Ready For The National Day on Writing 2016?

Next Thursday, October 20th, is the National Day on Writing! Are you ready? Read on for some ideas on how to mark this day with your writers.

writing workshop

Getting Writers Excited to Write!

So how do we help these young storytellers bring their stories to paper? How do we show them these are the stories writers write? I think we begin by getting our kids excited, really excited, like "I can do this, let me write NOW! Excited.