Making The Write Start in 2016 Part 2 -First Notebook Entries


The first  notebook entry is most important…

It might be a letter to one’s self about what you intend to do as a writer. John, a fifth grader wrote the following poem as his initial entry.


It’s a Place

Why am I keeping this notebook?                                                                                                                          

Because it’s a place where I can keep track of my life                                                                                                                                                    
It’s a place where I can observe closely and where I can store little pieces of strength                                                                                                                
It’s a place where I can keep the elements of my life                                                                                

(Lightning, fire, ice, time and space)                                                                                                                      

And Writing (poetry, words, stories)                                                                

It’s a place where tales weave                                                                                                                                                      
All in all                                                                                                                                                                                                   
It’s a place for ME.




The first notebook entry might be prompted by an artifact or a significant piece of ephemera. Remember, you can set the tone and the expectation with the very first notebook entry.

You could ask each student to collect a piece of ephemera, or a photograph to be on page one of their notebook and write from this place.  

Other possible starting points :

  • The story behind their first name or family name (significance, history).
  • Lists. They can provide the launching pad for a series of writing ideas.
  • Questions and wonderings.
  • Treasure Trove. Collect magazine pictures, words, headlines and have students select, connect, talk and write about one of the items they consider to be treasure.
  • Lifting a line from a text and use that line to launch a notebook entry. The line can be used anywhere within the writing piece, -beginning, middle, end.
  • Another way to begin your writer’s notebook might be with a statement of intent:


‘My writer’s notebook will be filled with my thinking. Really filled. I want my notebook to be brimming with collected thoughts and ideas. I will share my thinking in words and sometimes in sketches. I will share what is important to me, what I notice, what I hope for, what I hear, what I read and what I learn. All these things I will gather in my notebook. This is the place all my writing will begin, -stories, poems, reports and opinions. I will collect poems, stories, quotes, extracts and favourite words and phrases. I will post in photographs and pieces of ephemera to act as memory markers. I will fill my notebook with all those things that inspire me to write. Maps, drawing, words and images all together in this very special notebook. A notebook containing the treasure I never want to forget.’



There are many ways to begin. Writers make decisions. Choose a way that suits you and your students. Exposure to a range of possibilities will ensure every writer successfully leaves the launch pad in an exciting way. 









Comments

Post a Comment

Popular With Other Visitors

Writing Opposite Poems

Image
 O pp o s ite  P oem s In his book, ' How To Write Poetry,'  Paul Janeczko presents the idea of opposite poems. Paul suggests they could also be referred to as antonym poems. This is wordplay and it's fun to try. Here are some examples Paul provides to help us see very clearly how these short little poems work. I think the opposite of chair Is sitting down with nothing there What is the opposite of kind? A goat that butts you from behind Paul Janeczko You will  notice the poems are written in rhyming couplets. They can be extended so long as you remember to write in couplets. Paul shows us how this is done. What is the opposite of new? Stale gum that's hard to chew A hot-dog roll as hard as rock Or a soiled and smelly forgotten sock You might notice that some of Paul's opposite Poems begin with a question. The remainder of the poem answer the question posed. Opposite poems are a challenge, but it is a challenge worth trying. Not every thing has a
Read more

Writing About Reading - Reading Reflection Journals:

Image
UPDATED February 2022 Writing in response to literature can be a great way for students to organize their thoughts, explore what they think, and generate ideas. One of the strengths of writing in journals is that it allows students to capture all of those great ideas that generally float off into the air during the discussion.  Journal writing can also become drudgery if students are asked to write too often, given little choice or inspiration in what to write, or if they simply don't have anything to say. While some students eagerly share their impressions about selections they have read in class discussions, others are less comfortable and keep their thoughts to themselves. In an effort to encourage all students to think more about what they read and confidently share their observations and opinions, some teachers are turning to the reading reflection journal and are gaining insights they never anticipated.  The Value of Reflection Journals   Journals assist teachers to gain i
Read more

Learning How to 'Zoom In' When Writing

Image
It is important for young writers to understand that not all parts of a story are equal. There are parts through which a writer moves quickly, and important parts where the writer slows down and lingers a while. This is where the writer might intensify the action or reveal the character’s reactions in greater detail. Young writers need to know that this is a deliberate strategy on the part of the author. The author consciously zooms in. The writer uses a magnifying glass to view a part of the story more closely; to focus on a moment and to slow down time. When an important part of the story is enlarged upon, it   is a signal to the reader, that this part of the story is important. The strategy of ‘zooming in’ goes by many names: ‘exploding a moment’ ‘magnifying a moment’, ‘hotspot’ ‘snapshot’, ‘adding detail’ or ‘slowing the action.’  What ever the name, the idea is the same. The author writes in a way that expands a significant part of the story with the intention of drawing t
Read more

Answering Questions Posed by Young POETS

Image
UPDATED, May 2020 As a frequent visitor to schools I have the great pleasure of working with groups of young, enthusiastic poets and their teachers. When I arrive in a classroom, young poets are often pre-loaded with questions, and most keen to have them answered.  I try to answer as many as I can, but we frequently run out of time, and the poetry caravan moves on to the next classroom. So I am here to answer some of those questions -right here, right now. So here goes: When you were little did you love writing? The short answer is yes. I have always enjoyed words and language. I can't recall a time when I wasn't doing some kind of writing. When did you write your first poetry book? I have had poems published over the years, but it wasn't until 2014 that I had an entire book of poems (an anthology) published. When I looked back through all my notebooks I realized I had hundreds of poems from which to choose. So, 'Searching For Hen's Teeth-Poetry From The
Read more

Slice Of Life Story-The Trials Of A Left Handed Writer

Image
Amazingly I learnt to write using my left hand. An achievement against the prevailing beliefs of the day. My very first teacher saw it as her mission in life to ‘fix’ the poor, wretched little boy suffering from what she clearly diagnosed as left handed disease. She must have thought, 'This child must be re formatted! If he remains left handed he will be forever condemned to writing in a scrawl that no one will be able to read. Ugly hand, ugly hand.' ...They tried to say it couldn't be done, it mustn't be done. They took the pencil out of my left hand and placed it in my right hand. It felt unnatural. It felt weird. It was not right. More to the point it was not left. I was not about to conform. At least they didn't try tying my hand behind my back. Watch me I said. I may be an oddball, left handed scribbler but I am a determined oddball. I mean how boring would the world be if everyone wrote with their right hand? So I dug my toes in –and my hands to
Read more