Talk About Writing

Hi!  I know that all of us spend a lot of time during the summer reflecting on our teaching, and researching new ways to make it better.  If you haven't discovered Stenhouse Publishing, I would like to recommend it as another great resource for your browsing pleasure.  They have begun their, "Summer Blogstitute" and the first post is great food for thought.  Mark Overmeyer, author of "When Writing Workshop Isn't Working" and "What Student Writing Teaches Us" has posted about some of his experience and conversations during conferences with students.  I love his comment that we need to encourage students in doing the "work of a writer", and not just tell them their writing is good.  This is especially important when they have shown an understanding and are incorporating features of a mentor text we have introduced them to.  Here is a link to his blog posting:  http://tinyurl.com/talk-about-writing.  The Stenhouse Publishing site also has links to other authors you might like to check out, as well as, several entire books to preview online!  I am reading one now titled "Teaching with Intention" by one of my favorite authors, Debbie Miller.  Enjoy!