Bright Ideas Blog Hop!

If your kiddos know that YOU do not like to teach writing,
they are NOT going to WANT to write!
I love writing, I don’t have to fake it one bit.
But if you don’t enjoy it or find it hard to teach,
put on that big smile and ACT like you LOVE it!
Build excitement for the new writing project of the week.

Mentor texts are a fabulous way to grab that little learner
and get them into the writing project!
The key to mentor texts, you don’t HAVE to
read the WHOLE book every time!
Use sections.
Use the same book for more than one lesson.
Pick and choose what parts YOU need for the lesson to be successful.
{of course, at some point, the whole book will need to be read!
I normally have read the book prior to when I just pick sections!}
*Use sticky tabs to mark areas you want to concentrate on*

Use a graphic organizer to brainstorm ideas.
If a student can not write things independently,
or struggle to do so, let them draw!
Then, come together as a group to share ideas!
Use a THINK ALOUD style to model the writing.
During a think aloud, the teacher should be
 doing all of the talking aka teaching!
Make sure you make mistakes
and correct them while thinking out loud!

As you are doing your think aloud/modeling,
use two different color markers!
One color is used for the words or sections that a student CAN copy.
The second color is for the area that MAY NOT be copied!
This will make sure you do not receive 20 papers of your writing:)
I forgot to take a picture of our writing yesterday,
but here is a little example.

Keep the think aloud paper up for display!
And also provide a word list of “might need”
 words that were brainstormed by students.
This will stop the, “How do I spell……” madness.
While students are working, walk around to
 provide quick feedback on anything that catches your eye.
This will help keep the proof-reading time down!

Start pulling students back to conference once you see some finishers.
During a conference, do not focus on EVERYTHING!
Pick 1-3 items to focus on.
Otherwise, it will overwhelm the writer.
This is hard for me, especially when most buildings
want only “perfect” papers hung in the hallway.
{I hang many items in my class-room now because I know specifically what the student corrected and gained through our writing!}

And…never…ever…correct or write for the student.
Always, always have the student write and be apart of the proofreading.
I rarely will just point out anything, also.
I ask students questions to “lead” them
to finding the error as we are reading.

If you are academic based grading/portfolios,
don’t throw away the rough drafts!
Save them to use for grading and conferences!

A quick, yet cute craftivity to display
with the writing is ALWAYS a hit!
They are proud to have their work displayed!

The biggest way to get your students to write more,
is to get the thought out of your head that they CAN’T write.
In my classroom, I don’t care if you are below level, on level,
above level, ESL or special education.
You will write! You will make gains weekly on your progress.
Every student CAN write an introduction, body,
and conclusion with the proper teaching.
And with a teacher who KNOWS that the student CAN DO IT!

 “Next up on the blog hop is The Brown Bag Teacher!
 She has an great post for she has a great resources for finding nonfiction articles in the middle grades!
I am sure many of these resources could also be adapted for the lower grades!
Just click on the button below to check it out!

Alternatively, you can search by topic using the link-up below
and move along to any other blog on the blog hop!”