“Never a day without a line,” Brenda repeated. In the summer of 2011, I had the pleasure of participating in the PA Writing and Literature Project Summer Invitational Writing Institute. Although I’d been teaching for several years by then, my experience with the writing project that summer was the first time I started to think […]
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Looking at On-Demand Test Writing in a New Light
On-demand test writing is an authentic genre that deserves a place in our workshops.
First Day of School: Six Word Stories with a Twist
Today’s guest post is from one of Rebekah & Allison’s colleagues, Maria Bartz. Maria is an English teacher at Trinity Episcopal School in Richmond, VA. She loves a clean white board for spontaneous think tank sessions with her inspiring colleagues, a fully charged laptop to explore the ever-growing world of educational technology, and big circle […]
Mentor Text Wednesday: Synonym Toast Crunch, Euphemistically Speaking
Mentor Texts: Excerpt from Labors of the Heart by Claire Davis Writing Techniques: Word Choice Background: In Nova Scotia, where we usually spend July, there is an amazing chain of thrift stores. They usually have an interesting selection of books, which corresponds nicely with my having more time to read. This year, I really lucked […]
Pedagogical Documentation: How Writing Teachers Learn From Their Students
When Allison and Rebekah asked me to begin a new year of blogging by considering the first thing I would want the writers I teach to understand, this post nearly began writing itself. You see, I’ve spent this summer learning more about the power and practice of pedagogical documentation, and this has inspired some unexpected shifts […]
The First Thing: Writers are Readers.
On Moving Writers and in Writing With Mentors, you get a taste of my classroom and a peek behind the curtain of my planning process. But what you see is only half the story. While I am passionate about writing instruction, it’s only one half of my instruction. I also teach literature — through whole […]
Permission to Start the Year with Blank Walls
Starting with blank space allows for more collaborative instruction throughout the year.
Mentor Text Wednesday: One Good Story
Mentor Text: Jesse Newton’s Facebook post about his Roomba and dog poop Writing Techniques: Anecdotal writing Descriptive writing Humour Background: I’m originally from Nova Scotia, on the east coast of Canada. That means that there are a few things hardwired into my soul. One of these things is an appreciation for a good story. I […]
Writers Explore Possibility
Writers explore possibility in their writing, in their own lives, in the world.
“Getting to Know You”: Introductions Inspired by Broadway
My last post mentioned Pippin, and now I’m quoting Rodgers & Hammerstein; I had musical theater on my mind this summer because I knew my break would end with a “bucket list” vacation to Broadway, the four-plays-in-four-days kind of trip my Tony Awards-watching teenage self had always dreamed about. The trip was an absolute treat, […]
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