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Dear Teacher Balanced Literacy My Writing Journey The Writing Cycle School Visits Frequently Asked Questions Why I Wrote These Books Coming Soon! Recent Books That Support Teachers of Young Writers |
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Dear Teacher, Thank you for taking time from your hectic schedule to investigate this site, and particularly this page. I, too, was a classroom teacher for eighteen years and had the pleasure of working with children in grades K-5 and 7. I sincerely hope that you realize the importance of your job. You are responsible for passing our culture to the next generation of citizens. Through your personal example and carefully planned lessons, children will grow academically, socially, and emotionally and take the best of you with them into the world. Teaching is a tough job, becoming more difficult each day. Since you are visiting this site, I know that you value literacy and the vital role it plays in education. Every teacher knows the power and joy in a good read aloud. I’m hoping that as teachers read to, with, and by students, they also share the writing process. Helping children learn how to express themselves is one of the greatest gifts that we can offer. All the best, Lola |
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Lola is hosting a literature conference for teachers, librarians, parents, and writers of all ages on November 2, 2007 at Unicoi State Park in Helen GA. Its title is Voices in Children's Literature. The following day - November 3 - is a writers' intensive entitled Wordworks for people who do or would like to write for children. Details can be found at: www.voicesinchildrensliterature.com |
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Reading and Writing In Balanced Literacy Read To: read alouds: picture books, stories, magazine pieces, poetry, newspaper articles, letters Write To: morning message, sign-ins, daily schedule, directions, teacher modeling of the writing process Read With: shared reading with large book, overhead stories or poems, choral reading, simple reader’s theater Writing With: shared stories or poetry on the overhead or chart paper, class journal entries together, experience stories, interactive writing Reading By: Guided reading: teacher is present, offering support and instruction through mini-lessons, providing scaffolding between known strategies and experimentation, modeling the reading process and talk of a reader, giving authentic purposes for reading, providing a framework for self-assessment, evaluating growth of students Writing By: Guided writing: teacher is present, offering support and instruction on procedure and the elements of craft through mini-lessons, providing scaffolding between known practice and experimentation, modeling the writing process and talk of a writer, giving authentic purposes for writing, developing rubrics for student assessment and evaluating growth of students  |
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My Writing Journey I began writing with my fist class of students more than 27 years ago. You could say that we were taking baby steps together. It was an exciting journey and we enjoyed finding the strengths in one another’s pieces. Ten years later, I knew that I wanted to write books for children. I attended conferences that explained the ins and outs of the publishing industry, but more importantly, authors of children’s books shared their strategies and tips on the craft of writing. Right away I saw a connection between what authors knew and practiced and what my students needed to improve their writing. At this same time, a wealth of professional literature was being published to support teachers of writers. I bought many of these books, read them several times, and shared passages with my students. Professional literature and writers’ conferences provided me with new understandings to share with my students. And, day by day, we grew as writers. That’s one thing you learn during the process – take it one day at a time. Read, read, read, then read like a writer, study the craft, experiment, share with an audience, revise, share again, and celebrate success. It’s also important to include the students in decision making. Meet together often and chat about what is working for them and where they need more help or instruction. For the past twelve years, I have been speaking on the craft of writing with students and teachers. I love it! With the renewed emphasis on writing in the classroom, teachers are actively seeking instructional and assessment strategies that support their students in the writing process. |
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Writing Cycle Here is a copy of the writing cycle that I use when working with students. I prefer this particular model because it graphically shows children that writing is recursive in design, which means an author moves freely between the different engagements while creating a thoughtful piece of writing. Sometimes it is necessary to revisit a stage of the process several times to refine a topic and plan the piece. Other times, an author may reread his writing and revise for meaning, then choose to reread again, and yet make more revisions before sharing his piece with an audience for comments. |
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Teachers, feel free to copy this cycle and use it with your students. Many teachers I coach like to place a large model of the writing process on display in their classrooms. It provides a physical support for both teachers and students as they work through their pieces. |
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| School Visits I visit schools regularly for a variety of programs. The children are great! I love hearing which books they enjoy most, answering their questions about my life as an author, and providing solid strategies to lead them deeper into an appreciation of writing. And, you – the teachers - you are fabulous! Visiting schools reminds me just how hard teachers are working to provide children with all the tools they need to lead productive, happy lives. |
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Frequently Asked Questions How can I get my students excited about writing? First of all, let children write what they know and care about. True commitment to writing begins when students can select their own topics. Then, model part of the writing process each day so they can see and hear how writers make decisions. This support is the scaffolding they need to experiment with new forms and language. Will using the writing process help my students get better test scores? Any authentic use of the writing process will help students express themselves. The instruction they receive on the craft elements through mini-lessons will improve their skills to become more effective communicators. These are the two most important reasons for teaching writing. Test scores are dependent on many variables: the health of the child on test day, the kind of prompt offered on the test, how nervous a child gets while being tested, etc. But the best practice for any writing assessment is writing many meaningful pieces for a responsive audience. When is a child ready to write? Many children begin writing at home before they enter school. Most of these children have been exposed to hundreds, possibly thousands of books. Their first attempts at meaningful print may be copying their favorite word out of a picture book, drawing pictures and adding labels, or writing a love note to Mom or Dad. These early approximations may resemble scribbled or random letters. But once these children are exposed to daily interactive writing, they begin writing longer messages with conventional letters, words, and spellings. Children tell us when they are ready to write by their eagerness and willingness to experiment. As with all developmental processes, it varies from child to child. How much proofreading and editing should children be asked to do? My opinion on this matter is based on personal experience with student writers. I let children know that the conventions of language are important. They add meaning to what we have written. But I believe that first we have to help children draft a well-written piece of writing that communicates what they set out to share. I also believe that children need much practice in these first stages of writing. So, I would suggest having them write 4-5 pieces over a period of time. Then take a week and have each student select his favorite piece from that set of writing. Each day, teach different editing strategies through mini-lessons that students can use to improve spelling, punctuation, or grammar. When editing skills are taught in a meaningful context, the children have a true purpose for their use. |
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Why I Wrote These Books For Teachers |
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Writing Lessons For the Overhead, Grade 1, Scholastic, August, 2006 This book will offer teachers of first grade what the other overhead craft books provide for teachers in grades 2-8. To support first grade writers, these mini-lessons show examples for: journal entries; meaning; focus; organization; vocabulary; details; leads; and revision. |
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Writing Lessons For the Overhead, Grades 2-3, Scholastic, 2006 Again, because of the other two books that provide overhead examples for mini-lessons on craft, I decided to write this book for teachers of grades 2-3. The craft elements discussed are: meaning; focus; organization; vocabulary; details; show, don’t tell; leads; endings; and revision. |
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| Writing Lessons for the Overhead: Grades 5 and Up This practical book contains the lessons and models you need to help students identify and use the elements of good writing. You’ll find teaching tips, discussion questions, and classroom-tested writing samples – already on transparencies – for these key writing topics: Focus, Vocabulary, Voice, Show, Don’t Tell, Organization, Development of Ideas, Fluency and Leads. |
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Teaching Young Writers: Strategies That Work, Scholastic, 2001 How does a primary classroom teacher begin teaching writing? Three years ago it was my pleasure to help two first grade teachers take those first steps into writing instruction.What we learned together about print rich classrooms, interactive, journal, story, and poetry writing became this book. Everybody needs a starting point and this book can launch primary teachers into a successful year of writing with their students. |
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10 Writing Lessons for the Overhead – Grades 2-6 Everywhere I visit, teachers are asking for more help with designing mini-lessons.I wrote this book to share the questions and pieces that I have used in successfully in helping students identify focus, details, voice, fluency, and other craft elements. Scholastic took a big leap by actually providing twenty overhead transparencies inside each book. |
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Recent Books that Support Teachers of Young Writers Writing Essentials: Raising Expectations and Results While Simplifying Teaching. Routman, Regie. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 2005 www.heinemann.com The Revision Toolbox: Teaching Techniques That Work. Heard, Georgia. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 2002. Writing Through Childhood: Rethinking Process and Product. Harwayne, Shelley. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 2001. Writing Workshop: The Essential Guide. Fletcher, Ralph and Joann Portalupi. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 2001. Kids’ Poems: Teaching Kindergartners to Love Writing Poetry (First Graders, Second Graders, Third and Fourth Graders). Routman, Regie. New York: Scholastic, 2000. Wondrous Words. Ray, Katie Wood. Urbana, IL: NCTE, 1999. http://www.ncte.org/ Live Writing: Breathing Life Into Your Words. Fletcher, Ralph. New York: Avon Books, Inc., 1999. Awakening the Heart: Exploring Poetry in Elementary and Middle School. Heard, Georgia. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 1999. Craft Lesson: Teaching Writing K-8. Fletcher, Ralph and Joann Portalupi. York, Maine: Stenhouse Publishers, 1998. http://www.stenhouse.com |
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