I believe that one of the most valuable tools I use as a writer is understanding my own personal process of creating and revising. Over the years, I have learned, through trial and error and lots of reflection, what writing strategies and approaches work best for me. As a writing teacher, I wanted my students […]
Minilesson Monday: Mapping the Writing Process Read More »
The book, First Year Letters, covers Mrs. Hartwell’s first year teaching at a new school. Through her student’s letters, we see their class grow through the year, complete with mistakes, mishaps, learning and growth. The end of the year is a perfect time to look back and reflect. For most of us, mistakes and
Minilesson Monday: First Year Letters Reflection Read More »
Anne Lamott calls the first draft of a story or essay the throw up draft because the point is to get all of your thinking and your ideas on paper. Once the first draft is done, the work of revision begins. But how? At the beginning, of course! Revision starts by defining the focus, the
Minilesson Monday:Revising with Focus in Mind Read More »
It’s not pots we are forming, it’s ourselves.” –M.C. Richards I love this quote from M.C. Richards. He is talking about the art of pottery, but it could as easily apply to writing as well. I know that it applies to my own writing. With fiction, as I write about how a character might
Writing Teaches Life Read More »
I love my critique group. We have been sharing our writing, and for that matter, our lives, for over fifteen years. When we first started meeting, we were all new to writing for publication. Now, fifteen years and many, many stories later, we have all been published. I honestly don’t think I could have done
The Power of Belonging to a Critique Group Read More »
Research is creating new knowledge. –Neil Armstrong I haven’t written a blog post for a while. It’s not because I haven’t had anything to say. I always have something to say—just ask my family! The reason I’ve been away is that I’ve been lucky enough to immerse myself in the research for and writing of
The Thrill of Real Life Research Read More »
“Writing that is over-planned and over-rehearsed is juiceless. Later drafts are about pumping it up. How much better to have a wild and somewhat unruly first draft, something so full of detail, it’s a question of what we want to leave in, not a question of what still needs to be added.” –Julia Cameron
Write Like You Care….And You Will! Read More »
The environmentalist John Muir was born on April 21, 1838. If you are looking for a way to celebrate this great man’s birthday in your classroom, may I humbly suggest using my picture book, John Muir Wrestles a Waterfall. The book tells the story of John Muir’s midnight climb up a rocky ledge beside Yosemite
Happy Birthday John Muir! Read More »
“The shortest distance between two people is a story.” –Patti Digh. Before first period, Sandra told me about her funny cheerleading accident. After second period, T.J. described a movie he saw over the weekend. Trevor did too. Kyle always has a story to tell me. Sometimes it’s about his new kitten, sometimes about his little
Students Sharing Stories Read More »
As an author, I find that mentor texts are one of the most powerful, and versatile, tools in my toolbox. As a teacher, I used mentor texts to teach both reading strategies and writing skills. So here is one way I helped students understand inferencing by using my book, First Day Jitters. Strategy: Students
Using First Day Jitters to Teach Inferencing Read More »