Getting Students to Write- Helping Elementary and Middle School teachers improve student writing.

In this episode, Christine Devane shares her amazing and inspiring journey from teaching to writing. As a teacher, Christine noticed a need for more representation of all students in the books they read, which is what fueled her motivation to create her book, Elephant Beach. In our conversation, Christine talks about her experience as an author which provides many insights for teachers who are wor...

This episode will prepare you to begin gathering formative data about your writers that will keep your instruction, and writer's progress, on track! As the data conversation continues, I share more in this episode about: How data adjust goals for writers How data informs your instructional choices Simple ways to choose data points and collect data If you want to teach writing more effectively, eng...

Do you have independent writing time up and running in your classroom but feel unsure of how to keep your writer's moving forward? It is difficult to support struggling writers or even know what to teach for writing if you don't know enough about your writers. The right formative data will help you plan instruction that supports progress! In this episode, I share: The importance of formative data...

A coach just telling a player to "hit the ball" or "be aggressive" does not improve their performance. The same is true for us as teachers of writers! We need to teach, not tell by addressing their needs and showing them how to do what we want them to do. Struggling writers will just keep struggling if all we do is have them keep trying to write without specific instruction. The trouble is that mo...

Are you wondering.... Why you have struggling writers? Why your writers aren't showing growth? Why your writers aren't engaged in writing? Perhaps they need MORE of something. In this episode, I share three main "mores" that writers need in order to be successful, and a few additional "mores" that are just as important. The first more is one I'm sure you have heard before...more time to write! The...

***I share some exciting news in this episode!*** In this episode, I discuss lessons cultivated from a multitude of resources combined with years of experience working with writers and with teachers who are new to writer's workshop. Ideas for lessons will be provided that will help with: How to introduce writing to your students Ways to support struggling writers The reality of being a writer (it'...

Reluctant writers won't stay reluctant with the right supports! As you start a new year with a new group of writers, you will want to make writing meaningful for each of them because engaged writers become successful writers! In this episode I share a few ideas for helping students make connections with writing by offering a variety of entry points as well as helping them to feel ready to write. R...

" ... it's really important that we start building their identities as writers and readers from that young age because they will rise to whatever level we set for them." ABSOLUTELY!!! So many good things in this episode with the wonderful Leah Thomas! -Building writing 'empathy' by being a teacher writer -Allowing writers to be self-directed, making decisions and choices -Leah's journey as a teach...

Ok, it's actually way more than 3...but I have placed them into 3 main categories! Make it Exciting and Meaningful Build Community Learn from Your Writers You will hear how to set a strong foundation for writing from the beginning with techniques such as: Sharing "real-world" writing for students Creating a safe and positive environment Being a part of the writing community "Kid-watching" during w...

Today's episode features a very special guest, Mrs. Melanie Meehan! As a reader of the Two Writing Teachers Blog for many years and a fan of Melanie's books, it was wonderful to get to talk with her all about writing! I know you will find inspiration hearing Melanie speak of: her writing belief statement the importance of teachers as writers thoughts on templates and GOs the recursive nature of th...

You will be inspired from this episode! The transformation that occurred for all three of these fabulous teachers as well as their students was incredible! Listen in to hear about: Huge wins in a short amount of time Increased teacher confidence with teaching writing How students' engagement and idea generation increased Growth in kindergarten writing skills with little instruction I know this epi...

The second part of my conversation with Carl Anderson provides you with helpful and interesting information about teaching writing and more about the genre of fantasy. You will hear Carl's thoughts on: writing your own mentor text-Do not be afraid! the importance of showing how writers navigate writing writing in front of students (modeled writing) the "elevator pitch" and how it helps students an...

You will LOVE this discussion with Mr. Carl Anderson about his newest book, Teaching Fantasy Writing: Lessons That Inspire Student Engagement and Creativity, Grades K6. This book is a MUST-HAVE for teachers and hearing Carl's insights on the book as well as his passion for the fantasy genre for students is palpable! In the episode you will hear about: The bias against fantasy writing This genre's...

We've all heard remarks about the writer's workshop method that are a bit off. In this episode, I bring up some of the misconceptions, and sometimes just untruths, of writer's workshop and try to set the record straight. After telling a bit about the history of the workshop model, I share what I feel are a few of the possible reasons for these misconceptions and advocate (again) for the method I l...

Oh so many tips and insights were shared by the fabulous Zeba McGibbon of the Kindergarten Cafe! Listen in to hear about: -the importance of supporting students with SEL -including a variety of aspects for helping students with writing -Zeba's Caring Critters book series! You can find Zeba - On her Podcast- Kindergarten Cafe On Instagram @kindergartencafe On her website- www.kindergartencafe.org *...

I am currently in the process of supporting three teachers with implementing an authentic independent writing time and wanted to give you an insider's look! In this episode you will hear about teachers and students from three different grade levels and how they are progressing with implementing student choice, multiple drafts and more. Our coaching work consists of one day of training and 4 days o...

I know that teachers are always looking for more ways to be able to provide effective support for their students who are multilingual learners. In this episode, Katherine Hamilton from Ensemble Learning discusses mindsets and strategies that are able to be implemented without lengthy preparation and will generalize across other areas of instruction. Katherine shares insights into: -fostering a sup...

The term "free writing" is used often, and I have to say, I don't love it. To me, it signals that providing students "freedom" to choose their own topics, make mistakes, right without what is considered "proper structure", make mistakes or go at their own pace is something that is different from or outside of the writing that is typically done. Hear more of my thoughts on this term and its meaning...

Students struggle with grammar. Teachers struggle with grammar. But...Patty McGee says it doesn't have to be that way! If you are looking for simple yet powerful ways to help your students to apply grammar skills, you will not want to miss this discussion! Patty shares a wealth of information on best practices in grammar instruction including high-impact techniques for doing so. Grab Patty's Noun,...

When teaching writing, there are so many things on our mind-so many skills to worry about our students mastering. Most of these skills are what we can see on paper, and they can easily steal the majority of our focus. However, there are a multitude of skills, abilities, beliefs and characteristics of writers that need to be developed and addressed that are beneath the surface, yet extremely vital,...

This incredible conversation with author and speaker Sarah McDavis will have you feeling inspired! Sarah gives us a peek into her mind as a writer sharing: How she begins a new book Her process for drafting Her own version of planning Strategies for when you are "stuck" Using charts and graphs to revise her book She reminds us that each and every writer is unique and that fostering our students' o...

How can we expect perfection from our young writers when we don't expect it of ourselves? Does a young basketball player need to perfect his shot before he can play a game? Do professional authors publish their first draft? For some reason there are literacy professionals who are promoting having students "master sentences" before they are able to write anything more. I'm not sure I understand thi...

This is it!!! The 100th Episode! For my 100th am joined by two incredible writers themselves who have given so much to the field of education through their work on writing instruction: Matt Glover and Carl Anderson. In this first episode of the two-part series, we discuss ways to provide more student ownership in writing, which increases engagement and drives learning. Listen in to hear Matt and C...

Get ready for the rest of this fantastic discussion with Carl Anderson and Matt Glover! You will hear more about the importance of student engagement in writing as well as helpful tips for navigating the various aspects of a writer-focused workshop model. Check out what the authors have to say about: Illustrations as an integral part of composition Teaching a non-genre specific unit Steps for begi...

Time just does not seem to be on a teacher's side! There are so many things requiring or affecting your time-some you can control, some you cannot. Some you are invested in, some you are not. More often than not, writing is the part of literacy that gets pushed aside for other areas. But writing is an ESSENTIAL part of our students' day and life and needs to be given what it is due! This episode w...