eBook downloads, eBook resources & eBook authors
Explains how to create the philosophical and physical environment needed to develop successful writing communities in which students learn, practice, and apply writing-craft skills.
With these words, written long before his Iowa Writers' Workshop became world famous, much imitated, and academically rich, Paul Engle captured the spirit behind his beloved workshop. Now, in this collection of essays by and about those writers who shared the energetic early years, Robert Dana presents a dynamic, informative tribute to Engle and his world. The book's three sections mingle myth and history with style and grace and no small amount of humor. The beginning essays are given over to memories of Paul Engle in his heyday. The second group focuses particularly on those teachers—Robert Lowell, John Berryman, Kurt Vonnegut, for example—who made the workshop hum on a day-to-day basis. Finally, the third section is devoted to storytelling: tall tales, vignettes, surprises, sober and not-so-sober moments. Engle's own essay, "The Writer and the Place," describes his "simple, and yet how reckless" conviction that "the creative imagination in all of the arts is as important, as congenial, and as necessary, as the historical study of all the arts." Today, of course, there are hundreds of writers' workshops, many of them founded and directed by graduates of the original Iowa workshop. But when Paul Engle arrived in Iowa there were exactly two. His indomitable nature and great persuasive powers, combined with his distinguished reputation as a poet, loomed large behind the enhancement of the Iowa Writers' Workshop. This volume of fine and witty essays reveals the enthusiasm and drive and sheer pleasure that went into Iowa's renowned workshop.
Writer Identity and the Teaching and Learning of Writing is a groundbreaking book which addresses what it really means to identify as a writer in educational contexts and the implications for writing pedagogy. It conceptualises writers’ identities, and draws upon empirical studies to explore their construction, enactment and performance. Focusing largely on teachers’ identities and practices as writers and the writer identities of primary and secondary students, it also encompasses the perspectives of professional writers and highlights promising new directions for research. With four interlinked sections, this book offers: Nuanced understandings of how writer identities are shaped and formed; Insights into how classroom practice changes when teachers position themselves as writers alongside their students; New understandings of what this positioning means for students’ identities as writers and writing pedagogy; and Illuminating case studies mapping young people's writing trajectories. With an international team of contributors, the book offers a global perspective on this vital topic, and makes a new and strongly theorised contribution to the field. Viewing writer identity as fluid and multifaceted, this book is important reading for practising teachers, student teachers, educational researchers and practitioners currently undertaking postgraduate studies. Contributors include: Teresa Cremin, Terry Locke, Sally Baker, Josephine Brady, Diane Collier, Nikolaj Elf, Ian Eyres, Theresa Lillis, Marilyn McKinney, Denise Morgan, Debra Myhill, Mary Ryan, Kristin Stang, Chris Street, Anne Whitney and Rebecca Woodard.
The premise of Developing Writing Teachers is this: When teachers of writing identify as writers, it adds a special dimension to their writing pedagogy. Practical and accessible while drawing on a range of relevant research and theory, this text is distinguished by its dual focus—on teachers as writers and the teaching of writing. Part I addresses the question, What does it take for a teacher of writing to develop an identity as writer? Using case studies and teacher narratives, it guides readers to an understanding of the current status of writing as the 21st century unfolds, the role of expressive writing in developing a writing identity, the relationship of writing to genre and rhetoric, writing and professional identity, and writing as design. Part II focuses on pedagogical practice and helping writer-teachers develop a toolkit to take into their classrooms. Coverage includes building a community of writing practice; the nature of writing as process; the place of grammar; the role of information, communication and representational technologies; and how assessment, properly used, can help develop writing. Ideal for for pre-service and in-service courses on the teaching of writing, the Companion Website provides aadditional readings/documents; PowerPoint presentations; assessment resources; and lesson and unit plans and planning guides.
Teachers in English schools have now had ten years of prescriptive national literacy strategies and it is time for a new approach. This book encourages children from their early years to think of themselves as writers who have something to write and know how to write it. Creating Writers in the Primary Classroom offers an exciting and refreshing approach to teaching writing in the primary school with very practical suggestions to help build a community of writers in your school where everyone writes and loves writing. Building on the research of recent years and with whole-curriculum provision, it shows teachers how to actively engage children in the writing process, excite them about what they can achieve and help all children to think of themselves as writers. The book begins with a clear analysis of what real writers really need and has chapters on working outdoors, using the very best of children’s literature, drama and imaginative play, as well as sounds and images. It also features a chapter on practical, productive planning, including two case studies that show the approaches in use at schools. Creating Writers in the Primary Classroom is packed with practical advice, games and strategies for the classroom based on the authors’ successful experience as teachers and in-service providers. These new approaches will enable teachers to get their children up and moving, experiencing what writers experience, feeling what writers feel and, most important of all, writing how writers write.
This how-to manual is a sure fire way to establish a successful writing workshop in any classroom. Tips and strategies offer a practical application of a variety of formats that can be incorporated, such as mini-lessons, differentiated practice, and planning and assessment features. With guided steps and supports, your classroom is sure to be filled with successful writers in no time at all!
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.
This book investigates blogs as digital spaces where students can practice writing and converse with an authentic audience. It focuses on idea development and gives students voice.
Writing centers are places where writers work with each other in an effort to develop ideas, discover a thesis, overcome procrastination, create an outline, or revise a draft. Ultimately, writing centers help students become more effective writers. Visit any college or university in the United States and chances are there is a writing center available to students, staff, and community members. A Guide to Creating Student-Staffed Writing Centers, Grades 6-12 is a how-to and, ultimately, a why-to book for middle school and high school educators as well as for English/language arts teacher candidates and their methods instructors. Writing centers support students and their busy teachers while emphasizing and supporting writing across the curriculum.
