Reading Like a Writer

How many of you looked at other blogs before writing your own? I did! I wanted to "notice" the kinds of writing that this new genre (for me) was all about. That is reading like a writer. In my elementary classroom, after spending several days immersed in reading the genre we would be writing, I selected a piece or page from one of the texts and asked students what they noticed about the writing. In the beginning comments like "they used periods at the end of their sentences" or "they told what happened" were common but soon students' noticings about structure and craft in writing were showing up in their own writing! The chapters in Crafting Writers K-6 reminded me of the personal power to improve writing that learning to read like a writer affords to authors of all ages.

Creating a Learning Community

A new technology does not wipe out what went before; it transforms and enhances it. When people started writing, they didn't quit talking.

Walter Ong, (2002). Orality and Literacy: The Technologizing of the Word. Taylor & Francis, Inc.

This is my first experience blogging. Creating a classroom culture where everyone's voice is heard is certainly enhanced by this technology! Responding, thinking, and wrestling with ideas to tell each of our "stories" facilitates building a strong learning community where new ideas will certainly emerge.