Curriculum Map update for 2019 at last! “How do I plan out my year-long curriculum?” is probably one of my most frequently asked questions. In the past, I had planned out my year through a combination of paper, Post-It Notes, gum wrappers (kidding on the last one). But when I lead our district’s instructional team,…
Writers Workshop
7 Ideas on How to Use Clipboards in the Classroom
Clipboards in the classroom can be a fun tool for students to use throughout their day. Check out these great ideas on how to use clipboards in your classroom. Clipboards in the Classroom Adding the use of clipboards throughout your day can provide an opportunity for greater student engagement. Whether students are working independently, in…
Fiction Writing in Second Grade
Fiction writing in second grade. Daily writing lesson plans, anchor charts, and resources to print and teach fictional writing in 2nd grade. Fiction Writing in Writers’ Workshop Fictional writing is such a great genre of writing! Second-grade students absolutely LOVE to create their own fictional stories. Plus they are fun to read, too! Check out…
Teaching Informational Writing in Second Grade
2nd grade informational writing. See how to teach nonfiction writing through writers’ workshop in a second grade classroom using our anchor charts and resources. 2nd Grade Informational Writing Second grade writing is amazing! As students develop from kindergarten and first grade, you see So. Much. Growth. When I taught second grade, I saw how much…
Writing Folder Organization FREE file!
I am often asked how I organize my student writing folders. Then the other day I was cleaning out a “special drawer” that I had (AKA: junk drawer, catch-all, blackhole) when I found an old writing folder I used with my 2nd-grade students. I’d forgotten all about them. So I decided to whip up a…
Using Mentor Texts in Kindergarten
Kindergarten Mentor Texts to teach reading and writing with Cynthia Rylant’s Scarecrow book (affiliate link)… you bet! This last week I had the pleasure of visiting a kindergarten classroom. She had already started the book, Scarecrow by Cynthia Rylant for her Guiding Readers/Close Read, so when she asked me to do a lesson on word…
9 Books that Get Kids Writing in Writers Workshop
I want to share with you some of my favorite books to help students get started with writing. I just got a new book today {EEK} so I added to my evergrowing collection! Books that tell a story with just pictures One of the things that might make kindergarteners a little reluctant to write is…
5 Things You NEED to Know About Writers Workshop
So… to be honest… there are WAY more than 5 things you need to know about writers workshop. But I hope this will get you started! I have been reflecting on the questions I get asked most frequently when I do presentations on writers workshop. Here are the some of the biggies! Student…
10 Wordless Books to Teach Story Telling
I love using wordless books to teach story telling. These 10 wordless books that are my favorite. Before students can be asked to write a story, they must first be able to tell a story. The Why! Has this happened to you? You are so excited to start writers workshop early in the year. You dismiss…
Writers Workshop… I love kid writing!
Shamelessly, I have carried these student samples around for MONTHS! I audibly gasped when I saw this date… (um…3 months in my bag? How does that happen?) Forgive me my sweet kinder friend! All About Polar Bears First polar bears can run and with claws swim far. Polar bears can catch…
Writers Workshop: How is it going? (FREE download)
I haven’t written about writing in awhile… where does the time go? Writer’s workshop is alive and well in my classroom. We have been busy writing “How-to’s” and “All About Books” over the last few months. Here’s a glimpse of what has been going on. We are really working on making our writing readable! The…
How-To Writing in Kindergarten
I have written this post 10 times (in my head). I have carried these writing samples around for weeks in my bag. I have been without a scanner (so that is my excuse for not posting these earlier). Better late than never… right? My class was knee-deep in “How-to” writing in November. This is…
Writers Workshop: Second Week of Kindergarten
Today we just completed our 9th day of writer’s workshop. I get a lot of questions about writer’s workshop, so I thought I would answer some questions and show you where we are! How can you teach students to write when they don’t know their letters and sounds? I believe that students can compose…
Writing-Making the last few months count! {Freebie}
Kindergarten Writing Goals Chart. Grab this free Writers workshop goal chart and see student examples from my kindergarten classroom. Is this you? You start off the first part of the year, letting your students “explore” skills, but as the summer months approach, you are starting to feel the threads of panic. I am looking for…
Kindergarten Writing Sample from the Fall
Kindergarten Writing Sample with Fall modeled writing lesson ideas? Kindergarten Writing Sample: Start with modeling! The last week or two, I have really focused on my modeled writing. Boy! Did I have a story to tell! First of all… this is a TRUE STORY! In Missouri, we burn our fall leaves. Suffice to say,…
Writer’s Workshop: Making Progress!
I have been thinking a lot about looking back in order to see where you are. Meaning… sometimes you don’t realize the leaps and bounds a student makes until you glance back. I have heard it said [not sure who] that looking at writing progression is sort of like watching a tree grow. Every…
Writer’s Workshop and Conferring (FREE Download)
After just a few months of writers workshop you can see how far my kindergarteners have come. This post will explain conferring in writers workshop and give you tips to make it go smoothly! Conferring in Writers Workshop: Making Books We have just completed our second unit in our Writing Through the Years unit on…
Writer’s Workshop-Updates!
Kindergarten Writers Workshop Fall examples are included in this post! Writing Around the Room During writers workshop, we get BUSY! Many students decide to spread out around the room. As long as they are working, I let them! SIDENOTE: This little friend is looking at the word wall… not chatting it up. Kid Friendly…
Writer’s Workshop: Trusting the parachute
Writer’s Workshop Making Books in kindergarten is not always easy. However, the reward is worth the effort! Launching Book Making in Writers Workshop This week we launched Unit 2 of writer’s workshop which centers around narrative texts. We also started making books. Yesterday I was thinking that whoever wrote Unit 2 was an…
A week in photos! Writers Workshop
Kindergarten Writing in September! We have made progress in writers workshop. Each day students have been working hard in their writing and the tree is beginning to bear fruit! Writers Workshop Publishing At the end of each unit (20 days of instruction), the students select one piece to revise, edit, and publish. Those pieces that…
Getting Started with Kindergarten Writing
Take a look at our kindergarten writing activities at the beginning of the year. Through shared writing and interactive writing, students learn the structure of writers workshop. Kindergarten Writing Activities I have promised to share a little about the writing in our classroom. I am pretty excited about how it is going so far….
Making a Class Book in Kindergarten
Making Class Books in kindergarten with my students. We had to say good-bye to our class beloved pet. So we wrote a book to her new parents. The Back Story behind the class book The last few days of school are such a blur. Rush here, rush there… I think it may be a…
Some Writing in Kindergarten
Here are a few kindergarten writing examples March and April from my classroom. We had a change in writing paper in writers workshop. Let me share my thoughts with you. What I want to be when I grow up This piece of writing was started the last week of March and was finished a few…
Writers Workshop-How about science fiction
Writers Workshop Science Fiction. My kindergarten students are exploring science fiction in writers workshop. Here is a student sample from February! Here’s the deal… Writer’s Workshop is still hard for me. I think I am over thinking it. I feel like I have relinquished all control and sometimes wonder if it was easier when I…