Over the past couple of weeks, I have been more active in a number of FB groups and have placed several of my writing workshop videos in my YouTube channel.
Many teachers have said something closely akin to this …
“Holy cow … your kids write with such great voice, rhythm, and flow … how and the heck do you teach that?”
It’s really quite simple.
In their book – Write It Right by Strunk & White – they assert that there are 12 different ways to construct a sentence.
My students practice and practice and practice manipulating these constructs until their hands fall off.
Ultimately, the skill set transfers over into their writing.
In this writing workshop video, I share with teachers a game (Hollywood Squares) that I have created to help students transfer these syntactical elements into their writing.
If you would like the game, please feel free to reach out. I’m more than happy to share.
And keep in mind, Strunk & White’s book is free online as a PDF. I simply house it in Google Classroom for the year. It’s a staple of my instruction.
Here’s the link to the YouTube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PYPLm4vcMs0
These tricks of the trade are at the core of what Timm Freitas and I will be addressing in our forthcoming textbook. The bulk of the focus will be on our respective templates, but a template alone isn't enough. You gotta dive in at the foundational level as well in order to get at the heart of teaching nuance.
As I've mentioned in the FB groups, I'm looking to work with a few "hardcore" teachers that really want to embrace these methods and try a whole different approach in their instructional approach.
If that sounds like you ... then please reach out. There's also a bit of information on my webpage at: www.teachinghow2write.com
Happy teaching and happy writing!
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