Living Life Twice

Memory of times gone by emerge from time to time prompted by words, images, thoughts and people. For my recent birthday I was given two pens, both of them special in their own way. One was a fountain pen, beautifully balanced with just the right feel in my hand. The other a finely shaped ball point pen, also possessed of subtle feel when held. I am enjoying having both of them to call upon when I write.  Upon receiving these gifts, I found myself pondering my life journey from a handwriting perspective. Much has changed across the years. The tools we use for writing have evolved, expanded and improved.  I began to think back to my early handwriting experiences as a left hander in a predominantly right handed world. My response takes the form of a poem. A poem titled appropriately 'Inkblot,' Inkblot I was born into a world of blotting paper Ink wells and fountain pens A left handed writer Living in a writing minefield Ink wells and fountain pens Held...

I have always derived immense pleasure from giving books as gifts. It has evolved as a habit of a lifetime. Special occasions such as birthdays and Christmases set me to searching for books to match my target reader.  Matching a particular book to a reader is a challenge, I enthusiastically accept. Establishing strong connections between the reader and the words I unearth, drives my search; brings me joy. For this reason, the time spent book browsing for suitable titles, never fails to deliver immense pleasure. This time in bookshops is time well spent.  The outcome of all this exploring remains uncertain, but the act of giving possesses such untold potential for any one book I find to work its magic upon its reader. The strike rate will never be perfect. I remain undeterred. Some books only reach a select number of hearts. Not all books possess the power to be transformative. That's okay. You give and you hope. You give with the highest hopes. You ...

Available research data shows children provided with opportunities to write every day begin to compose even when they are not actually writing. In other words, they begin to think about their writing beyond the confines of the classroom.  There is  immense satisfaction gained from hearing students, who upon entering the classroom first thing in the morning announce ‘ I know what I’m going to write about today ’ They indicate clearly that they understand the power of writing. They think as writers do. Unless students have this daily opportunity to write they will not develop the ability to think through their writing. They will not fully understand the process of writing. Donald Greaves suggested that young writers require a minimum of four days per week to write for their own purposes. This, he believed assisted the ‘learning to think’ process to develop. It is therefore important to approach the teaching of writing from the position that students will be provi...