Today I talked with my writing classes about the importance of daily writing - I shared the research, explained the reasoning, that sort of thing. I think I was better able to sell it because I've seen the benefits first hand by writing here everyday. I can sort my thoughts and feelings, I can figure … Continue reading December 4: daily writing
writing pedagogy
November 16: reading essays
I graded an entire class set of essays tonight after work. Here's the thing about reading personal essays: you learn a lot about the lives of hundreds of young people - how they view things, how they process, what bothers them and what they care about tremendously. I've read thousands of stories from kids at … Continue reading November 16: reading essays
July 26: When We Don’t Want to Write
Tonight I really don't want to be writing. I've been thinking about what to write about and then I did some searching on the internet for ideas and literally everything made me think "ugh, I don't want to write about that." They aren't even bad topics, I just don't want to do it. So what … Continue reading July 26: When We Don’t Want to Write
July 22: there are stupid questions.
I wasn't feeling inspired by anything in particular, so I googled "journal topics," which led to a bunch of websites with questions for teachers to give students. I started reading one that had some pretty basic questions, but then, it got weird. Here are some of the questions (with my answers). What if cows gave … Continue reading July 22: there are stupid questions.
April 4: Placeholder
I'm teaching some writing with my squirrelly 9th graders, and they can't seem to get the idea of skipping part that they aren't sure about yet. I tried to explain to them that writing an essay is not so much like running a race where you start at the beginning and end at the end, … Continue reading April 4: Placeholder
January 31: One Month Celebration!
I actually did it. One whole month. I am actually not really sure what to think. I don't have a lot of will power and there have been a lot of nights (like tonight) where I thought UGH I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO WRITE but I just forged ahead and did it anyway. So what … Continue reading January 31: One Month Celebration!
Adventures in Distraction 