The Writing Round-Up {8.01.20}
Welcome to the August 1, 2020 edition of the Teach Write Writing Round-Up, the space where I gather tips for teaching writing and for growing as a teacher who writes.
Be sure that you have joined my email list so you never miss an update!
Now, onto the tips...
Bring Some Poetry Into Your Classroom:
Looking to invite poetry into your classroom a little more often? Teach Write blogger Christie Wyman shares some amazing resources to help you do just that in her post, Inviting Poetry Into Your Classroom.
Author Melissa Stewart teaches students to build their endurance as writers by sharing her own story of receiving manuscript rejection letters and persevering through revisions. Read more here.
Teacher-writer Sue Rounds shares how she records the noticings of the world around her and has taught her students to do the same in "Come Flaneur with Me." There are definite digital applications here too!
Writing Autobiographical Fiction:
How can you teach students to use events from their own life and fictionalize them? Teacher-writer David Lee Fitz explains how in "Teaching Students to Write Autobiographical Fiction."
If you have a story about being a teacher-writer or would like to share a writing experience from your classroom, we want to know about it for possible publication on the Teach Write Blog. Get started by filling out this form. Then check out the recent blog posts written by a few of the teacher-writers from our Teach Write Community here.
Starting a Teacher's Notebook:
Do you have lesson plan ideas in one place and teaching goals in another? Then notes on podcasts, professional books, and PD sessions in other places? If this sounds like you, then you should try keeping a teacher’s notebook. Check out Leigh Anne Eck’s post on Pencils, Pages, and Practices to help you stay organized this school year.
Teaching writing is not easy. The Writing for Pleasure Centre leads us through a series of five reflective questions in “What if almost everything we thought about the teaching of writing was wrong?” that could transform your writing curriculum and change the entire climate of your classroom.
Have you ever read a line in a book and immediately picked up your notebook to respond to it? Paying attention to beautiful words in the books we read can become sparks of inspiration or mentors to crafting to strong sentences. Check out Alison Doherty’s collection of 50 beautiful sentences from young adult books in this Book Riot post. It may inspire you to begin collecting (or writing) beautiful words yourself.
With many schools starting the year with some type of online learning, teachers are looking for ways to make literacy more accessible for both the student and the teacher. In “Creating Digital Notebooks with Google Slides,” Catlin Tucker shares some tips to help you get started.
Don't let summer end without getting some words on the page. When you join the Time to Write Workshop, you are not dedicating some time to writing, but you'll be connecting with a wonderful group of teacher-writers doing the same! (Plus, you'll have the opportunity to participate in our monthly challenges, feedback groups, AND contribute a piece to our anthology!) Join us in August here.