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Finding Your Own Writing Process
This week I've been thinking about how the writers in our classrooms can find their own writing process. To help give weight to some of my ideas I've been rereading some of my notes from NCTE. Here are some of the snippets lingering in my brain: "Children can have the look of independence. We ought… Continue reading Finding Your Own Writing Process
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An Inspirational Professional Text + A Giveaway
When I was a classroom teacher I had my fair share of challenging students. Through the years I taught had quite a few students with social-emotional issues, learning disabilities, and discipline problems. I've had students hide underneath desks, crawl on the floor of the classroom, and who've screamed at classmates when things haven't gone their… Continue reading An Inspirational Professional Text + A Giveaway
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Words that are Speaking to Me
Participate joyfully in the sorrows of the world. We cannot cure the the world of sorrows, but we can choose to live in joy. --- Joseph Campbell Joy in one's heart and some laughter on one's lips is a sign that the person down deep has a pretty good grasp on life. --- Hugh Sidey
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Say Hello Giveaway Recipient
Congratulations to Kevin Hodgson, who was chosen as the recipient for the Say Hello Book Giveaway sponsored by Candlewick Press. If you missed the original post about this book, which was the fourth book recommendation in the Bullying Series I ran in November, then click here to read it now.
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Chanukah Poems + A Book Giveaway
As a practicing Jew, I'm a little perplexed about the popularity of Chanukah. Chanukah is a minor holiday. It doesn't have the same religious significance as Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, Passover, and Shavuot. Yet, Chanukah gets more attention than the other ones since it falls around Christmastime each year. I've been searching for holiday-related… Continue reading Chanukah Poems + A Book Giveaway
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A Story About Adoption + A Book Giveaway
Sweet Moon Baby: An Adoption Tale, which is written by Karen Henry Clark and illustrated by Patrice Barton, was released last month. When I received my review copy, from Knopf Delacorte Dell Young Readers Group, I began reading it and felt tears well-up in my eyes. The lump in my throat stayed throughout the entire… Continue reading A Story About Adoption + A Book Giveaway
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A Close Observation
Don Graves said, "If you want to understand how children write, then observe them closely. Write down everything they do and say. Then make a copy of their writing." This statement was shared at NCTE and it is one that is sticking with me. Since then, I've closely observed 7 primary students. I've studied each… Continue reading A Close Observation
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SOLSC
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Ugly Fish Book Giveaway Announcement
There were lots of people who entered the Ugly Fish book giveaway. Unfortunately, there's only one winner for the drawing. The lucky winner of a copy of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt's Ugly Fish is Lauren Wascher. If you missed the post about Ugly Fish, then click here to read it now.
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Writing as Gifts
We have three weeks until winter break in my school district. This is the perfect time for a unit about using writing as gifts. To begin this unit, we are asking students to envision possibilities for using their writing for a gift. For the first week of the study, we will be busy imagining the… Continue reading Writing as Gifts
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Nurturing & Nudging Independence
Last weekend at NCTE, I had the pleasure of attending a session co-led by Patrick Allen, author of Conferring: The Keystone of Reader's Workshop. Patrick shared some questions that he and one of his co-presenters, Troy Rushmore, asked their third and fourth grade students about independent reading in order to get a sense of how… Continue reading Nurturing & Nudging Independence
