Stacey Shubitz and Lynne Dorfman welcome you to experience the writing workshop for the first time or in a new light with Welcome to Writing Workshop: Engaging Today's Students with a Model That Works. Through strategic routines, tips, resources, and short focused video clips, teachers can create the sights and sounds of a thriving writing workshop where: - Both students and teachers are working authors - Students spend most of their time writing--not just learning about it- Student choice is encouraged to help create engaged writers, not compliant ones - Students are part of the formative assessment process - Students will look forward to writing time--not dread it. From explanations of writing process and writing traits to small-group strategy lessons and mini-lessons, this book will provide the know-how to feel confident and comfortable in the teaching of writers.
It's been a decade since Lynne Dorfman and Rose Cappelli wrote the first edition of Mentor Texts and helped teachers across the country make the most of high-quality children's literature in their writing instruction. In the second edition of this important book Lynne and Rose show teachers how to help students become confident, accomplished writers by using literature as their foundation. The second edition includes brand-new "Your Turn Lessons," built around the gradual release of responsibility model, offering suggestions for demonstrations and shared or guided writing. Reflection is emphasized as a necessary component to understanding why mentor authors chose certain strategies, literary devices, sentence structures, and words. Lynne and Rose offer new children's book titles in each chapter and in a carefully curated and annotated Treasure Chest. At the end of each chapter a "Think About It--Talk About It--Write About It" section invites reflection and conversation with colleagues. The book is organized around the characteristics of good writing--focus, content, organization, style, and conventions. Rose and Lynne write in a friendly and conversational style, employing numerous anecdotes to help teachers visualize the process, and offer strategies that can be immediately implemented in the classroom. This practical resource demonstrates the power of learning to read like writers.
When writing workshop first blossomed in classrooms, its hallmarks were genuine curiosity, individual choice, quality conversations, and engaging children's literature. A joyous hum of intention, creativity, and craft enlivened the school day. But today's teachers are often faced with a range of obstacles, as new initiatives are embraced, mandates handed down, and scripted programs purchased. Sometimes teachers must sacrifice the original principles of writing workshop and lose that joyous hum. Above and Beyond the Writing Workshop by Shelley Harwayne is filled with original, joyful writing challenges designed to bring back the spirit of the original writing workshop model while encouraging educators to enhance it through invention, innovation, and inspiration. These challenges are meant to generate other lessons and other projects, as teachers come to realize that teaching writing is not only possible but perhaps the most important, relevant, and gratifying part of their instruction. Shelley invites teachers to keep the groundbreaking spirit alive by: taking back their writing workshops finding time for professional conversations trying out new ideas in the company of colleagues encouraging children to be inquisitive, outspoken, and independent reminding children how fascinating the world is helping students delight in figuring out how things work and then teaching others what they have learned offering children an opportunity to think deeply about their passions and giving one another new things to love showing children that high quality writing can and will make a difference in the world. Shelley believes children who write what matters to them - their experiences, their beliefs, their observations - will find their lives enhanced. She seeks to raise activists who, by becoming more aware of the world and asking why things are the way they are, will be empowered to make it better.
The Power to Save a Life Jacob Chastain grew up in an environment filled with drugs and violence. Inside the home that should have felt safe, fear and anxiety were the desperate norm. Stability and security eluded him as he was shuffled between family and friends that would take him in. But at school, things were different. There, day after day, year after year, Chastain's teachers saved him. Teach Me, Teacher is the true story of a childhood marked by heartache--a story that may be similar to that of the children sitting in your classroom. It's the story that shaped Jacob Chastain into the educator he is today. Lessons learned from his experiences as a child and as a growing educator offer reflections on the trials and triumphs facing teachers and students everywhere. From these lessons, we learn that one's darkest moments can ultimately lead to a meaningful and fulfilling life when someone cares enough to step in and make a difference. Written in celebration of teachers and the power of education, Teach Me, Teacher affirms that you have the power to save a life. "Jacob Chastain pours his heart out on the pages of Teach Me, Teacher by sharing his personal journey through childhood trauma. His message that "action is the antidote to suffering" is a powerful reminder to us all to do more, be more, understand more, and care more for our students." --Kim Bearden, co-founder and executive director, The Ron Clark Academy, author of Talk to Me "Teach Me, Teacher is one of the most courageous, heartbreaking, hopeful books I've ever read." --Regie Routman, author of Literacy Essentials "Jacob Chastain's raw honesty is something that we need more of in the education world." --Halee Sikorski, A Latte Learning "Teach Me, Teacher is both an uplifting memoir and a message to all of us in education of the power we have to build relationships and make a difference for all of our students." --Dr. Sue Szachowicz, senior fellow, Successful Practices Network "Jacob Chastain takes us on a transformational journey where past and present converge into possibility. His story of resilience and hope is a celebration of the impact each of us can have when professional purpose leads the way." --Dr. Mary Howard, author of Good to Great Teaching
Foreword by Lester Laminack How do you choose mentor texts for your students? How do you mine them for the craft lessons you want your students to learn? In Craft Moves, Stacey Shubitz, cofounder of the Two Writing Teachers website, does the heavy lifting for you: using twenty recently published picture books, she creates more than 180 lessons to teach various craft moves that will help your students become better writers. Stacey first discusses picture books as teaching tools and offers ways to integrate them into your curriculum, and classroom discussions. She also shares routines and classroom procedures to help students focus on their writing during the independent writing portion of writing workshop and helps teachers prepare for small-group instruction. Each of the 184 lessons in the book includes a publisher's summary, a rationale or explanation of the craft move demonstrated in the book, and a procedure that takes teachers and students back into the mentor text to deepen their understanding of the selected craft move. A step-by-step guide demonstrates how to analyze a picture book for multiple craft moves. Using picture books as mentor texts will help your students not only read as writers and write with joy but also become writers who can effectively communicate meaning, structure their writing, write with detail, and give their writing their own unique voice.
This book starts with an inclusive definition of writing and suggests simple ways to introduce students to the purpose of writing. It discusses the key relationship between reading and writing, and the importance of oral language in building strong writers. Based on the work of real K-2 students, the book shows teachers how to interpret student work, identify what they know, and build naturally on the strengths their work displays. it argues for consistent teaching that includes a delicate balance between direct instruction and independent learning. Children will thrive as writers if they experience success. This book offers the tools teachers need to put that success in the hands of every young writer.
Everything You need to Write and Sell Your Work This is the ultimate crash course in writing and publishing! Inside you'll find comprehensive instruction, up-to-date market listings, a CD featuring recorded live webinars with industry professionals, an all-access pass to WritersMarket.com, and more. Writer's Digest University is the perfect resource for you, no matter your experience level. This one-stop resource contains: • Quick and comprehensive answers to common questions including: "How do I write a successful novel?" and "How do I know if self-publishing is right for me?" • Instruction and examples for formatting and submitting fiction, nonfiction, articles, children's writing, scripts, and verse. • Advanced instruction on business-related issues like marketing and publicity, using social media, freelancing for corporations, keeping finances in order, and setting the right price for your work. • A detailed look at what agents want and how to get one that best fits your needs. • Market listings for publishers and agents open to unsolicited work and new writers, contests and awards, and conferences and workshops. • A CD with recordings of 4 popular WD webinars: How Do I Get My Book Published?, How to Land a Literary Agent, How Writers Can Succeed in the Future of Digital Publishing, and Freelance Basics.* • A scratch-off code that gives you a one-year subscription to WritersMarket.com and a 20% discount on the WritersDigestUniversity.com course of your choice.* Get started now with everything you need to build a thriving writing career. Whether you're starting from scratch or have a bit of experience, you'll find the tools you need for success. *PLEASE NOTE: CDs and one-year subscription are NOT included with the ebook version of this title.
Learn to write science fiction and fantasy from a master You've always dreamed of writing science fiction and fantasy tales that pull readers into extraordinary new worlds and fantastic conflicts. Best-selling author Orson Scott Card shows you how it's done, distilling years of writing experience and publishing success into concise, no-nonsense advice. You'll learn how to: • utilize story elements that define the science fiction and fantasy genres • build, populate, and dramatize a credible, inviting world your readers will want to explore • develop the "rules" of time, space and magic that affect your world and its inhabitants • construct a compelling story by developing ideas, characters, and events that keep readers turning pages • find the markets for speculative fiction, reach them, and get published • submit queries, write cover letters, find an agent, and live the life of a writer The boundaries of your imagination are infinite. Explore them with Orson Scott Card and create fiction that casts a spell over agents, publishers, and readers from every world.
