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We can teach students about improving their writing process and to write with detail and voice by watching Guy Fieri on "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives."

Find out what sprinkled cupcakes and figurative language instruction have to do each other!

I’m working on a presentation, “Getting Started with Writing Workshop,” for a group of 3rd – 6th grade teachers I’ll be working with later this month. I’ve made a list of non-negotiables I’m… Read More →

Ever since I took Carl Anderson‘s course, “Assessment-Based Writing Instruction: Use a study of Student Work to Generate Goals and Systems for Recording Progress Towards Those Goals,” I’ve been thinking a lot about student goals for writing and record-keeping.  While everyone (likely) has writing goals for their students, I wonder how often we use two [...]

I’m taking Carl Anderson‘s week-long class, Assessment-Based Writing Instruction: Use a study of Student Work to Generate Goals and systems for Recording Progress Towards Those Goals, at the July Writing Institute this week.  Carl delivered an overview of our class on Tuesday, June 28th when he delivered the Keynote Address, Conferring with a Vision, to [...]

Kristine Michael taught fourth grade for fifteen years before becoming the Curriculum Director for Granville Exempted Village Schools in Ohio.  Kristine is a Nationally Board Certified Teacher in middle childhood who she loves talking books, literacy, and school. A newly confident writer, she’s currently developing character sketches for a fiction book inspired by her years [...]

Carl Anderson (aka: The Conferring Guy) has not only listened to the Beatles’ music; he has studied it.  He has determined by the Beatles wrote particular songs, how they wrote them, and what they did to write them well.  Carl shared what he has learned by studying the Beatles’ music with an audience of educators [...]

Mrs. V. left the following comment yesterday: “Thanks for your details. Could you tell me more about their idea notebook nightly assignment? What are the requirements and how do you assess it? Also, about how much time in class are you able to spend on writing per week?” My students have the same writing homework each and every [...]

I consider myself fortunate to have learned more about the art of conferring with young writers from some of the best folks out there: Carl Anderson, Lucy Calkins, and Jen Serravallo.  As many of you know, I spent a week of my summer studying more about conferring with Carl Anderson at the TCRWP Summer Institute [...]

Strategy Lesson Record Sheet Originally uploaded by teachergal It’s always been tedious recording the teaching point from strategy lessons on three - five kids’ conference record sheets every time I conduct a strategy lesson. Therefore, I’ve decided to separate the strategy record logs from my conferring logs. I created the record sheet, right, inside of [...]