The World of the Visibly Literate Educator

This is a lengthy post...

I have had requests to publish my recent keynote address from the Beyond The Bell, Literacy Challenge Day in Hamilton, Victoria. This is a slightly abridged version. I therefore ask, -should you choose to use any part of this address, that you duly acknowledge the source.

The World of the Visibly Literate Educator

'Thank you for this special opportunity to speak today and share some observations gathered across a teaching life steeped in rich literate experiences. -A life that has nourished my passion and enthusiasm as a lifelong reader and writer and self-confessed, curious learner.

The following words of American educator and writer, Regie Routman in her book, ‘Literacy At The Crossroads’ sing to me over and over again. 

‘If we want our students to be thinkers, researchers, collaborators, readers, writers, and evaluators, then they need to see us thinking, researching, collaborating, reading, writing and evaluating. We need literally, to live the life we’re asking them to lead.’

Each time I enter a school a classroom, I strive to be the embodiment of Routman’s words, I want to be seen as the living, breathing embodiment of joyful reader and writer. This is the life for me as an educator. This is who I need to be. Our reading and writing life should be visible to the young learners in our care.

 If the people I work with, students, teachers, and school leaders see me this way I am inspired to live up to this characterization, to be that person.

You wouldn’t enlist a non-swimmer to teach you how to swim. The credibility of a teacher charged with teaching writing who chooses not to take part in writing remains equally questionable. An educator who is a non-reader by choice is unlikely to assume the role of a book whisperer. Kids can quickly spot a fake. It is tragic for any child to look at a teacher and think, -I can’t wait to grow up and become like you, someone who doesn’t read or write.

These things I know to be true- In order to be an effective teacher I must be prepared to explicitly demonstrate how proficient readers and writers make meaning of, and construct, texts. I must provide opportunities for students to discuss texts, developing appropriate language for meaningful talk. I must support them as they practice the skills and strategies demonstrated. I must encourage self-reflection and goal setting.

Opportunities for students to independently practice skills and strategies in authentic contexts have remained central to my practice.

I believe successful learning and teaching involves a shift in responsibility from teacher to student, as new learning impacts. It is imperative I make these beliefs highly visible within my daily practice. Let there be no room for doubt …

I took a photograph of a bicycle in Rome on Via Dei Pellogrino, close to Rome’s famous produce market, Campo de Fiori. Upon returning home to Australia, I had the photographed enlarged and now it sits prominently on the wall in my home.

It reminds me that one does not learn to ride a bicycle by observing pictures of said bike. No, we must clamber onto this two wheeled contraption just as Mulga Bill did all those years ago, and push off on that perilous first journey. It may be short lived and may involve a sudden ending.

Our first efforts are most likely accompanied by a high degree of uncertainty and are characterized by some white knuckled gripping of the handlebars. We wobble and shake in our desperate attempts to control the direction of the seemingly unmanageable machine. Our efforts are concentrated towards making those wilful wheels travel in a straight line, avoiding potential hazards such as fences, potholes, power poles, - people!

Learning to ride a bicycle may also involve a few mishaps. It is most unusual not to experience the occasional ‘prang.’ -the kind of accident that separates rider and bicycle and occasions cuts, scrapes and generally a few bruises. A bit of bark off our knees comes with the new territory the rider is exploring.

Despite such setbacks, the inexperienced rider generally persists and a measure of control begins to develop. The bicycle yields to the will of a determined rider. Eventually the ability to swerve around an errant dog, a muddy puddle, another cyclist emerges, and the journey becomes more controlled, more predictable, less angst ridden (pardon the pun).

I frequently find myself reminding young writers of these facts and drawing an analogy with learning to write. Wobbly at first, the writer starts out with great uncertainty and a lack of control. Through practice, persistence and good old fashioned stickability, the writer develops greater self-belief and control over the direction the writing takes.

This is a message I not only share with developing student writers, it’s a message for writers of all ages. I continue to meet a significant number of teachers who want to know more about being more effective teachers of writing. They are reflecting upon their current practice.

The conversation soon reveals, the vast majority of them do not write by choice. Their students do not view their teachers as writers. There is an obvious disconnect between what they wish to achieve and what they are currently doing as teachers of writing.  If teachers are prepared to write alongside their students they will grow to understand how writers think and what writers need.

The message here is a simple one. -Just as you did all those years ago, - climb back onto the bike and start pedalling. -On your bike squire. There you go…

Brave writers (and bike riders) can be any age. It just requires the necessity of daring. The writer must stare down the shiny blank page and cover it gradually with words. In this way the writer asserts freedom and the power to act.  Words lead to more words and so the journey is underway. A bit like riding a bike actually.

The Pleasure of Learning

For me, true learning possesses an innate pleasure – a joy, a sense of accomplishment and a measure of reassurance. It encourages further engagement because as a learner I have experienced a breakthrough. I have felt successful. When we experience success as learners, we become more energised. We are more inclined to seek out more of that same feeling.

Way back in my Grade 3 year just after the dinosaurs were cleared from our school playground, my teacher, Mr. Manzie asked our class to write a poem about ‘Spring-time.’ I shared mine with a couple of my classmates. They appeared to like my words and suggested I show it to the teacher, so I did. Mr Manzie like it too and suggested I read it to the whole class. They duly clapped. Now, all these years later, I have no recollection of the words I used in making that poem, but I have never forgotten the feeling that came from that experience. Looking back, I may well have lent on the words of William Wordsworth as he wandered lonely as a cloud.

Since that time I have been re-assured by the words of Neil Gaiman who reassured me with his observation, ‘First we imitate, then we innovate.’

Looking back yet again, this experience of early writing success may well have been the spark that set my writing life alight. Knowing I had done something well, provided an energy to persist.

Pleasure is what I hope young learners will experience in their reading and writing lives. Without that expectation of a pleasurable experience and the increased interest that flows from that, they will miss out on the vital insights, the humour, the tragedy, the mud and the flowers that come from a rich reading and writing life. They may well grow to be illiterate by choice and that persists as a continuing tragedy.

The late New Zealand educator, Don Holdaway implored educators to present as joyfully literate readers and writers. Approaching our vital work with such a mindset is critical if we expect impressionable students to adopt a similar outlook.

The world recently commemorated the 50^th anniversary of Neil Armstrong’s historic man walk. This occasion was doubly significant for me personally, because it coincides with my very first year as an educator. There I was teaching Grade ¾ at the now defunct Ringwood Primary School and I vividly recall how the entire school was crammed into the Art Room watching Armstrong’s giant step for mankind on a small Rank Arena television set mounted on a trolley in the far corner of the room. Grainy black and white pictures flickering into the room on an overcast Melbourne day.

I have spent the intervening year earnestly presenting as a joyfully literate educator. I am pleased to tell you I remain just as enthusiastic about my work as an educator, as I did way back then. It has sustained me without a doubt. I remain a curious learner. And it’s all because I found the cure for boredom. It’s called curiosity and the great thing about curiosity is there is no cure. Once it infects you, you have it forever!

Each and every time I enter a classroom I am conscious of bringing with me all the reading and writing I have ever done. I must bring with me all those 'unwitting collaborators' as Frank Smith so aptly called them. I am never alone. They sit at my shoulder and whisper their important messages and I readily share their wise and wonderful words. This background knowledge represents a powerful armoury. When we consciously consider this mountain of knowledge, we are never alone in our teaching. We are not isolated as educators. All those authors support our valuable contributions to the reading and writing lives of students.

Young learners must be encouraged to do the same thing. Their own prior knowledge and experience has such potential to inform the work currently under consideration.

Bruce Pascoe, author of the revelatory book, ‘Dark Emu’ when speaking recently at the ALEA (Australian Literacy Educators Association) conference in Melbourne made a statement that made my heart sing: 

‘A teacher’s job is to liberate student’s minds, their pens, liberate their talents and liberate their tongues... it is both our privilege and our duty.’

I find myself in fierce agreement.

Quite understandably, I can't recall the titles of every single book I have read, but they remain a part of me. As my reading life continues to expand in various directions, the reading I am currently engaged in frequently allows me to connect to earlier texts. Quotations, fragments, memories.  They form in my mind. They enter my conversations, they squeeze their way into my writing. These moments and memories dance and swirl in my head. Reclaimed versions of personal truths mingle with flimsy recollections. All this history informs me, comforts me, and validates me as a literate being. At different times it propels me forward, or back. I am returned to childhood memories or launched forward in joyful, speculative and affirming ways.

Whether we are babies learning to talk or engineers learning to build bridges, our best learning resource is always someone who has previously mastered the skill we require and who will act as a model for us to follow.

Therefore, of all the things we as teachers need to know, possibly the single most important idea for any educator to hold onto tightly is this: If you want your students to read and write with passion you need to model it for them.

Never forget to let your students know that you are a reader. Let them ‘catch’ you reading and talk to them about what you read when you are not at school. Let them know that you truly value your incredible capacity to read.

Your credibility as a reader will depend on your knowledge of children’s literature. Being able to recognize quality literature will develop as you read the very books that children need to be exposed to -in the classroom and beyond. Your reading research will enable you to recommend titles to your young readers with some authority; confident in your ability to help match the reader with the most appropriate book to suit their learning needs and interests.

The issue of discussing books with students is easily facilitated by asking a single, yet important question ‘Well, what did you think? After all, thinking about what they have read is at the heart of the literacy process.

Books are dangerous they can change the world, or your particular world. Across time they have been banned and burned in order to stifle thinking. Nothing opens the heart and the mind like books do.

The Joy of Giving Books

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 give- that's what matters.

I also give books away to students I meet in the various schools I visit.

Sometimes, I give copies of my own books, and sometimes I give away books I purchase from second hand bookshops. It is gratifying to provide the books with a ‘second’ chance to work their magic on a reader, particularly an impressionable, yet ravenous reader. Literary treasures deserve to be read; not sit on a shelf at the back of a shop gathering dust. There is so much literary treasure out there deserving of rediscovery.

I spread a selection of books on the classroom floor and invite selected students to choose a book that appeals. The delight in their eyes when making a selection, coupled with the sense of  disbelief that the book they are holding is theirs to keep, serves to remind me how very precious books remain. It is especially so for children who are often coming from homes where books may be a rare commodity.

I occasionally leave copies of books in cafes- a gift to an unseen reader. I place an inscription inside, inviting the recipient to either read it, then pass it on, or place it in the hands of a reader they believe will savour the words. The inner joy derived from giving books as gifts remains boundless. It sustains me.

I am a frequent gatherer of words I wish I had written. Words from fellow writers, both inspiring and thought provoking. It is important for student writers to view this type of gathering as legitimate activity for them to pursue. My notebooks regularly reflect this passion for gathering word treasure. Individual words and words in clusters, alliteration, rhyme, short pithy words and words of convoluted length and sound. Old words that deserve preservation and newly invented words. There lies the truth of existence as a logophile.

Our capacity to talk about books increases with exposure to them. If your students know that you borrow and buy books, that you willingly make time to browse in bookshops and libraries, they will be more inclined to follow your lead.

Today, too many young learners are growing up in home environments where there are no books, no magazines, no diaries, no journals. They are being raised in literary deserts. You, the teacher may be the only model that a student has for developing a literate mindset.

This is an awesome responsibility. Therefore to put your literacy program on a realistic foundation, it is vital that you allow your students to see you, their teacher, as a reader and writer. Otherwise don’t expect great things from them. Importantly, if you don’t rate it highly enough to engage in it, they’ll quickly figure out that there’s little in it for them.

Richard Peck, the American novelist provides a timely reminder with these words:

 'Nobody but a reader ever became a writer. We write by the light of every story we have ever read.'

I understand that the more I read, the more I write because reading is input and writing is output. Annie Dillard, Pulitzer Prize winning author, further reminded me of the importance of my reading choices when she wrote-

'Be careful what you read, for that is what you'll write.'

For these reasons we must remind young readers to choose books that make them think, rather than books that do too much of the thinking for them.

I am conscious of exposing all those with whom I work to a broad range of quality literature. My aim is to increase word knowledge AND world knowledge. So if I want kids to be fully aware of their options, I must be a salesperson for both quality and breadth of literature.

When it comes to poetry, I like to go way beyond haiku and acrostics. My bookshelves and book boxes are bulging with poetry forms collected across a lifetime. My poet’s suitcase is tangible evidence of my commitment to free range poetry. They also need to see me embracing novels, graphic novels, verse novels, song lyrics, memoir, news articles, biography, auto-biography, magazines, films, fiction and non-fiction. In life and in reading, I pursue a balanced diet. I want them to read like my dog Boo eats –with an almost insatiable hunger.

Both my reading and writing lives require conscious focused attention. It is not merely an escape, but sustenance. I emerge knowing more than I did before. I have chipped away at my ignorance.

It was Khalil, a Grade one student I met in a school in Brooklyn who shared wisdom with me in a brief exchange we had following a reading workshop where I had delivered my best dramatic reading of Suzannah Marshak’s wonderful book, ‘I Am The Ocean.’ As the students were moving away to begin their own independent reading, Khalil appeared beside me and quietly shared his amazing insight. ‘Sometimes Alan, you have finished with a book, but the book isn’t finished with you.’ He then left me to muse over his profound observation. When reading, I frequently recall Khalil’s words.

Reading aloud to children is performance art. Choose the books you share carefully. –and not just fiction titles. Spread the net widely to include a broad range of genres. Reading aloud is powerful. We must make it count. Bring the words to life, Bring your passion and read frequently to kids of all ages. I vividly recall sitting under a huge shade sail at Darwin High School back in 2006 as Mem Fox read ‘Hunwick’s Egg’ to an audience of some 500 educators. They hung on every word of Mem’s dramatic and passionate reading. Mesmerized adults.

Reading Writing Connections -How Does It Work Best?

The ‘reading–writing connection’ serves to highlight how one aspect of literacy feeds the other. It is folly to think the emerging young reader and writer will automatically acquire knowledge of this vital link. It is a precious connection. It must be brought into the light through mindful teaching. We must make the connection visible and reinforce it on a regular basis.

I understand how they co-exist in an effective literacy program. I have learnt how important it is to choose good quality literature for children to read. Such literature plays such a vital role in improving the quality of student writing. The writing workshop is the perfect opportunity to share an author’s deliberate use of craft- leads, endings, voice, style, vocabulary, format, sentence structure, strong verbs, precise nouns and accurate adjectives. If one is attending to such aspects of the writer’s craft by reading and noting the author’s attention to such fine details, effective teaching about writing is being mindfully taught.

To do this, time must be created in order to read the essential literature. This enables informed choices to be made regarding the suitability of texts brought into the classroom- the trusted authors with whom we fraternize while sharing the task of teaching. I have made it a habit to read, purchase, collect and share examples of quality literature over the course of teaching life. -Authors in whom I have faith and confidence. They deliver the mentor texts I use. I am continually scanning the literary horizon for new acquisitions…

The Limited Offerings of Publishers

With these thoughts in mind, I recently noted (with much alarm) a box of books from a publisher sitting in a staff room awaiting approval for purchase. It wasn’t the fact that a publisher had left the books for consideration that alarmed me, but rather the lack of quality and range in the titles presented. A quick perusal of the books revealed the following topics –ogres, dragons, ghosts, freaks, aliens, sorcerers, ghouls, witches, curses. Not one realistic fiction title! Not one factual text! No poetry, just simply a narrow selection of fantasy. I realize the propensity for publishers to flog an idea for financial gain. Go into the children/young teen section of any book shop and you will see this scene repeated. Shelves crammed with fantasy novels and little else.  There is a paucity in the offerings bearing a resemblance to children’s own lives, fears, hopes, dreams, aspirations and realities. I now pointedly ask- where’s the poetry section? I even have a T shirt that asks the same question?

Children are generally being offered a reading diet that is narrow and poorly considered. Fantasy deserves a place on the shelf, not the whole darn shelf! Don’t get me wrong, there are some excellent books out there for children to read, but without knowing what to look for, or knowing where to look, how can we approach the purchase of books sure that what they are looking at represents good quality and adequate range? Where is the diversity? Do kids see themselves and their lives reflected in stories?

How do we begin to make demands on publishers about the kinds of books we want, instead of having such narrow options presented as a matter of course? Think about the standard book fairs that are used to raise funds for schools. So often what is presented for sale, is representative of what publishers wish to move, rather than titles schools view as desirable reading materials for developing readers.

It appears our young readers and writers and their teachers are being short changed…

Georgia, a young Grade 4 writer happily informed me during a writer's workshop session a few years back,

 'The more I wrote, the more I remembered.' While her classmate Maya told me, 'I was so involved in my writing just then, that I actually forgot I was in school. I was in another place. The place I was writing about.'

Given all the usual distractions existing in a classroom, given that writing is viewed as a solitary action, these reflections are revealing.

They remind us how important it is to create a climate and culture in the classroom that actively fosters growth and reflection.

The fostering of a genuine sense of community becomes paramount. A reading and writing community. Such a wonderful aspiration. T

Teachers frequently invest up to half a year nurturing and pursuing this outcome before the true sense of community emerges. And sometimes, it quite magically reveals itself.  My heart sings when I see and I hear the unmistakable signs of this sense of community rising up like a wisp of smoke. I know it grows from trust and example and being brave and committed. It also grows from consistent teaching. In the most consistent learning environments the most amazing things transpire. The learners feel free to take risks, experiment. A consistent classroom may be the one safe predictable, nurturing environment in which a student operates.

I always introduce myself to a new group of students by saying, ' Like you, I am a reader and a writer.' I want them to know that I identify with them in this very important regard. I further establish this connection by consciously sharing multiple aspects of my reading and writing life.

I reveal myself as a fellow learner. A learner both curious and vulnerable. I talk about the books I am reading. I bring books I consider worthy of their attention into the classroom each time I visit. I share the gatherings of various writer’s notebooks. I tell them about my writing projects and the processes I am following as a writer. My personal process. I encourage them to think about their own processes. I reveal to them that even when I'm not writing, I am frequently getting ready to write. Rehearsing my words, mulling ideas, sorting thoughts. Mind in motion. 

It’s important for inexperienced student writers to know this information regarding a writer’s process. It’s that critical think before ink...’

 I consciously demonstrate my willingness to be a risk taker. I venture along new pathways in my reading and writing, I share my questions, doubts and new discoveries. I open myself up to their questions as well. I highlight how I deal with the problem solving aspects of my literate existence and celebrate special moments where my knowledge expands. I remain a joyful witness to the growing of trust and mutual respect that these exchanges deliver.

I invite the less experienced learner to join me in this learning journey. Let’s try this together I say. I encourage their tentative efforts attempting to grow their self-belief and confidence. I begin to see brave readers and writers emerge.

I have never felt at ease with the term reluctant writers. Kids from an early age enjoy the creative buzz that comes from making marks on a page. What these kids lack is confidence and self-belief. It is likely something or someone has eroded that self-belief.

They are inexperienced writers. It is therefore important to keep them in the game. They need time, space, practice, and support for their efforts. They need teachers with a view of the child as a capable learner.

I need to show my own willingness to be a reflective learner. I am conscious of setting a model for the curious learner to follow. It remains an essential action if I hope to grow a dynamic community of readers and writers.

Observing The World

It is important to encourage young learners to hone their skills of observation. In order to do this they need to witness how this is done by those with greater experience and knowledge of the world.

A five year old once informed me- ‘I’m five years old now and I can see everything! Such a revelatory moment.

Young learners need proficient and practiced observers, curious learners, committed collectors, ponderers and wanderers to encourage close observation as they venture ever further out. All who wander are not lost…

I therefore find myself driven to encourage student writers to write what they notice, not merely what they think they know. We build our writing lives on the gathering of observations.

‘Before you can write anything, you have to notice something.’

said John Irving.

Annie Dillard, the Pulitzer Prize winning author taught me the power of close observation in her wonderful book, Pilgrim At Tinker Creek. It was slow read. The words seeped into me. It’s a book I often take down from the shelf and delve into a random page, just to recapture a sense of the magic of the writing.

Page 58

‘I was ambling across this hill that day when I noticed a speck of pure white. The hill is eroded; the slope is a rutted wreck of red clay broken by grassy hillocks and low wild roses whose roots clasp a pittance of topsoil. I leaned to examine the white thing and saw a mass of bubbles like spittle. Then I saw something dark like an engorged leech rummaging over the spittle and then I saw the praying mantis. She was upside down clinging to a horizontal stem of wild rose, her feet pointed towards heaven. Her head was deep in dried grass. Her abdomen was swollen like a mashed finger, it tapered to a fleshy tip out of which bubbled, a wet whipped froth. I couldn’t believe my eyes. I lay on the hill this way and that, my knees in thorns and my cheeks in clay, trying to see as well as I could. I poked near the female’s head with grass; she was clearly undisturbed, so I settled my nose an inch from the pulsing abdomen. It puffed like a concertina, it throbbed like a bellows, it roved, pumping, over the glistening, clabbered surface of the egg case, testing and patting, thrusting and smoothing. It seemed to act so independently that I forgot the panting brown stick at the other end. The bubble creature seemed to have two eyes, a frantic little brain and two busy soft hands. It looked like a hideous, harried mother slicking up a fat daughter for a beauty pageant, touching her up, slobbering over her, patting and hemming and brushing and stroking.’

Small moments noted, magnified, shared, given light and valued. We are all charged with a responsibility to illuminate the authentic practices and rituals writers observe so as to ward off the unwelcome rise of questionable orthodoxies and flaky practices that find their ways into classrooms.

I find myself vigorously opposed to classrooms where the teaching of writing is presented in linear steps in the manner of a recipe. Swallow this and you’ll be fine. 

It is where you are more likely to see:

Charts of words to use instead of ‘said.’

The myth of the five sentence paragraph

Poetry studies that grind to a halt at haiku and acrostics

The hideous 5 paragraph argumentative essay format

The false premise that the complication in a narrative must be introduced in the middle of the story.

The prescribed use of the same graphic organizer for every writer.

Under such conditions the developing writer is far less likely to come to the important realization that writers react to the world around them. They consciously use their senses to better inform their readers. They write with the needs of a reader in mind. They are keenly aware of audience.

I was working with a group of Grade 1 writers in a school in Melbourne’s west and each time I visited, I would ask them –

What did you see this week that amazed you?

Nothing came back my way, so I shared some of the amazing things I had seen in that week alone. ‘One morning I watched the leaves in my driveway dance and swirl in the wind. -I saw two dolphins playing chasey in the cold water of the bay as I walked my dog along the beach. -I was right there on the spot when a seagull snatched a croissant from a woman’s hand as she walked across the pedestrian crossing at Mornington Central…’

I followed this routine for the next two weeks and each time I found myself surrounded by a rather loud silence. I persisted and on the third week a boy sitting at the back of the group raised his hand quite tentatively. ‘A great big bird came into our backyard one day this week, but I don’t know what type of bird it was.’

A girl then suggested he draw it on the board which he duly did and the conversation and questions flowed freely from that point as if a tap had been turned on. A sea of talk. From that time on there was no shortage of amazing things they brought to our writing workshop time. 

I became aware very early on in my writing journey that a considerable amount of time is devoted to rehearsal. Writers play with possibilities, they roll words and ideas around in their heads until they are ready to be brought forward and spread across the page. Almost as much time is devoted to rehearsal as one devotes to composing a piece of writing. Many years ago, author and illustrator, Terry Denton used the analogy that it is like having a tumble dryer in the head with all those thoughts and ideas spinning around and around and when they are ready we bring them out into the light.

I share this information about rehearsal with young writers. I reveal this important understanding about a writer’s process. Writers share. They reveal the wisdom acquired from experience so the less experienced writer may benefit from that particular knowledge. These small acts serve to demystify writing and make it possible for the less experienced writer to access that special feeling that comes with being a more confident writer.

When introducing the writing craft of ‘show, don’t tell’ I often find myself leaning into the group and saying ‘Young writers, let me show you something I have discovered about writing. Something that has the power to greatly improve the quality of your writing. Something that can move your writing from good to great. Not just for today in this workshop lesson, but forever.’ 

The late author Morris Lurie taught me the inestimable value of reading your writing aloud before sharing it with a reader. ‘You read it aloud so you hear it as a reader would hear it and you quickly discover where the lumps and bumps in your chosen words might be found. Try to imagine you are reading it for the first time,’ Morris said.

I remain indebted to Morris for this important tip. I now ask young writers to take their fresh new words and a pen or pencil and I get them to read their words to the walls and windows prior to asking anyone, anyone at all to read it. This has become an act of respect for our potential readers.

'When you read your writing aloud you hear the original intent. You discover rhythm, or the lack of it.' Colum McCann

It is extremely difficult for a teacher who does not choose to write to share such pearls with their students. They remain unknowing, regarding the mud or the flowers of writing. They cannot appreciate the struggle the young writer faces in what is essentially a problem solving activity.

Across the years many teachers have told me they loved to write at one point in their lives, but now find they only write reports, memos, shopping lists and the like. Somewhere along the journey they abandoned their writing. That's a shame for them and more importantly their students.

The enduring words of Don Graves resonate;

'Seldom do people teach well what they do not practice themselves.'

A teacher's life needs room for writing. We must heed the call of those compelling stories and moments in their lives and try to capture some small part of that to share with others. Writers are essentially story tellers. Often they tell their stories many times before they write them down. I am no exception. I embrace story telling. In fact I revel in it.

To encourage students to become risk taking writers, what better way to support their development than to demonstrate our own willingness to write? Such action shows we value the craft of writing, and understand the challenge of the blank page. It takes courage to expose your ideas through writing. The willingness to share accounts of our life experiences with students may make a significant difference for your young writers.

It requires courage to present yourself as joyfully literate. Sometimes that visibility may mean encountering some level of resistance, or outright opposition. Change like democracy can prove messy at times. As my dear old High School Principal, Ernie Hughes used to say- you need stickability. Lots of stickability.

That is why my writer’s notebook is the place where I harvest ideas- where I live as a writer. A place for me to take risks.  A safe place.  A place where all the things that spark my thinking come to meet. My collection zone for the raw stuff.

Young learners are frequently surprised to discover I spend as much time thinking about my writing as I do actually do engaged in the act of writing. This revelation has gravitas when they scan my notebooks and see for themselves the volume of writing I collect.

The act of rehearsal is critical to my writing. I find myself constantly reminding inexperienced writers that it can take place anywhere, anytime. I work hard to have this thinking process activated prior to the commencement of the writing workshop. To have young writers enter the classroom brimming with possible ideas means they are bringing the outside world into the room. Writing ceases to be merely something we do at school.

I love hearing a young writer announce, ‘Alan, I know what I’m going to write about today.’ My heart sings.

One of my writing heroes, the late Eric Rolls was a prolific and sometimes controversial author, poet, cook, historian, ecologist and farmer. He was a superb writer, documenting is great detail and clarity, the history and nature of Australia. He farmed at Baradine in NSW and spent a considerable amount of his farm time ploughing the fertile land he owned. He used this tractor time to rehearse his words. His mind was immersed in word lightning.  Following the long days managing the farm he would write into the early hours of the morning. Rehearsal, pre-writing is essential in ensuring an enhanced end product for any writer.

It puzzles me why students writers are not afforded as much choice as we offer young readers. I note with concern that choice, real choice over topic and genre is all too rare in the writing programs in our schools.

Why do we generally trust young readers to decide what is a just right book? but continue to control almost every aspect of writing from topic to genre to length and writing duration. Why can’t writers be supported in making choices about just right topics and ideas?

Why can’t young writers be supported to make decisions as to the genre most suited to convey their written words?

Fountas and Pinnell provide a timely reminder of this questionable pedagogy.

‘It is important to recognize that effective writers do not write in a genre just to practice it. They choose the genre that will best convey the meaning they intend.’

Nobody knocks on my front door each morning and provides me with a predetermined topic. I never wake up thinking ‘Hmm, today I really feel like writing an expository text.’ I always start with the spark of an idea and think to myself- how do other writers write about this? What have I seen that is similar to what I wish to write.’ So the matter of topic and genre are matters I must devote some thinking too in order to grow as a writer. Without choice students are less likely to increase their writing volume. They will participate mostly from a perfunctory viewpoint. The following poem from my book, 'I Bet There’s No Broccoli On The Moon,' mirrors my personal writing experience way back in Grade 5.

Writing Time with Miss Dungeon

In grade 5,

Our teacher, Miss Dungeon,

Would ask us to write.

She called it a composition.

She gave each of us a book,

A book she called

A composition book.

Every Thursday,

Straight after lunch,

Was composition time.

We all knew this because Miss Dungeon

Would stand in front of the class

And, using her very loud voice

That made the windows rattle,

Announce,

“Open your composition books!”

With pencils poised,

We would sit silently,

Waiting,

Waiting,

Anticipating

Until Miss Dungeon,

Standing at the front of the room,

Giant-like on a raised platform,

Looked over her spectacles and announced the weekly writing topic—

‘Autobiography of an ant.

Start writing now!’

No smile.

No frown.

‘Start writing now!’

A few kids began writing.

Some stared out the window.

Some froze at their desks.

And the rest of us stared at the blank white page of our composition book.

No one looked at Miss Dungeon.

No one dared to look at Miss Dungeon.

“You’ve got twenty minutes.

Start writing!”

The room fell silent.

Pencils scratched wobbly words.

Blank pages slowly filled with ant words.

Miss Dungeon prowled the room,

Gliding along the aisles between our desks like a shark;

A grey nurse shark.

Suddenly, the silence was shattered.

“Add more detail!

Add more detail!”

Miss Dungeon demanded,

Jabbing her finger,

Spearing the page,

Sharing her rage with a bewildered writer.

After twenty minutes, Miss Dungeon bellowed,

“Stop writing!

Close your books!

Pass them to the front!”

We put our pencils down.

We sigh with relief.

We stop thinking about ants.

She will return our ant stories

Covered in red ink

And a mark out of ten,

And we will all await the next topic

When next Thursday

We will do it all again.

Composition—

A new topic

Thrown our way by Miss Dungeon.

Thinking must be nourished throughout the school day. Ownership and independence and responsibility won’t grow if they are continually starved of oxygen. We therefore must embed the mantra, -writers make decisions! We only get better at making decisions through practice.

If we ferociously hold onto control we eventually entrench dependency. Like sparrows in a nest our students will squawk- ‘Feed me feed me.’ And further down the road the desire to read and write will wither and die when they find themselves alone. The practices of literacy will be forever linked to ‘stuff schools make you do,’ not a broader and fulfilling literate life.

Writing is fun and rewarding when it feels real. So, writing needs to be approached in a way that teaches how to write, rather than what to write.

A Closer Look At Writer’s Notebooks

I understand, not every writer has a notebook in the traditional sense, but many do. I am one of the many. My relationship with writer’s notebooks winds all the way back to September, 1983. Across the intervening years, my notebooks have been various. I have an extensive collections of notebooks. Notebooks documenting my journey as a writer across more than three decades provide a rich paper trail from which I am able to mine some writing wisdom.

My notebooks have evolved over time with respect to shape, form, and content. However, there are elements of that notebook/writer relationship which have remained consistently unchanged. Each notebook has been sturdy in its design. All my notebooks have had strong spines and hardy covers. Most have had ruled lines, but occasionally I have consciously chosen a new notebook with totally blank pages. I enjoy the variety such decisions bring to my life as a writer. Spiral bound notebooks have never been a consideration. They just don’t inspire confidence that they possess the qualities to enable them to go the full journey. Ask any left hander if they like spiral bound notebooks and they’ll tell you how annoying they are. It can be a tough life for a notebook.

Each notebook has been quite transportable. They are required to travel with me on journeys of varying length, so they need to fit conveniently into a bag. Some of my notebooks have been quite thick- chunky even, while others have been somewhat slim volumes. They have been ruled and unruled. Each notebook is a place where writing begins. It is after-all, a ‘writer’s notebook. Each notebook contain a multitude of ‘beginnings.’ Each writer and each notebook is unique. I have ingrained that belief through my words and actions.

I have always viewed my notebooks as a place from which I launch writing ideas. The analogy of a launching pad is one I quite like. My notebooks are not merely used to begin thinking and planning writing, I actually write in that space. I expand on my initial thinking. All my writing projects begin here. I roll up my sleeves and write. All my published works began inside one of my notebooks. I have never felt the need to own a secondary notebook, or a draft book -a practice I encounter in some classrooms I visit. When I lift a writing piece from my notebook, my next stop is a digital platform –computer, phone, iPad. 

All writers need a place to keep ideas, thoughts, reactions, words, lists of names, places, anecdotes, words, phrases, short descriptions of people, places and events to trigger a memory for more in depth writing at a later time. Writers need a place to record reactions to the daily events in the world surrounding them. This is where the writer’s notebook becomes a critical component of the writing teacher’s life.

For me, the notebook isn’t just a place where I collect so called ‘seed ideas.’ It’s a place where my raw words emerge. Alongside lists, quotes, drawings, maps, and fragments of ideas, there are initial drafts, introductions, fragments and probationary poetry.  My notebook remains a designated place to practice my ‘writing.’ It is also where I experiment and risk take. It is here I engage in deliberate wordplay.  In this space I am also assembling memories of things I don’t wish to forget.  My notebook is where my delicate ideas gradually develop. My aim is for them to grow into writing pieces. Pieces I can eventually lift into the full glare of public scrutiny.

My notebook is a tool. I employ it to assist me to become a more competent writer. It is not a 'workbook.' It is a book I cherish. I view it as a special place where I am constantly engaged in writing, reflecting and rereading. I go to this place eagerly. These messages I have just shared with you, I have shared many times with student writers. Thousands of young and impressionable writers have viewed them. I urge them to carry away as many ideas as they can to try for themselves. Writer’s share. I always hope they will elevate their notebooks to a place where they have integrity and worth as a writing tool.

I spend a lot of time adding to my notebook. The more I write, the more likely I am to improve. Keep writing until the good words appear I tell anyone who feels they must write. The more time I spend writing, the more likely I am to find pieces with the necessary appeal to grow into more significant works. A teacher once said to me ‘It’s okay for you Alan, you have the time to do this.’ Well, no. In reality I make time for this because it is sits at the heart of my teaching.

So along with remembering to take out the rubbish and thinking about what to cook and going to the supermarket when it’s my turn and being there to help make the bed each day and a host of other shared household responsibilities, I quarantine time for writing. Everyone has a day of 24 hours. We all make choices. We all have priorities.

I write in my notebook almost daily. It is always close by, just in case a potential idea bobs up unexpectedly. I strive to give voice to my writing ideas every day. The more time I spend in generating thoughts and ideas for my writing, the more likely they are to present themselves.

Over the years I have developed a keen eye for observing my world. I am well supported by my ever alert senses. I am a scanner, a logophile, a gongoozler, an active listener, a living, breathing image catcher.

I strive to ensure I apply these acquired understandings and beliefs about notebooks to my teaching. The notebook behaviours and processes I have developed over these many years have become integral to my engagement with teachers and student writers alike. Each time I enter a classroom I need to bring these collected understandings with me. Writing is essentially problem solving. I am able to share my various responses to these writing problems. Writing entries of any size- long short, a single magic line, can be employed to teach an aspect of writing. My notebook is therefore a most valuable teaching tool. I have positioned my writer’s notebook as a tool for writing. It’s a TOOL if it’s used to confer, share & reflect and revisit. It can spark amazing collaborative dialogue & offer a paper trail of writing growth over time.

I have had the pleasure of introducing notebooks across many schools and I am in the habit of seeking feedback from young writers as to their particular view of the notebook as a writing resource. The following writer reflections came from a group of predominantly EAL students at the end of their first year with a notebook. Their teachers were notebook writers too.

Nina wrote:

‘My writer’s notebook holds all my memories and captures all my ideas. I have loved writing since, well, since I learned to write. I keep my notebook near me at all times. When an idea pops into my head, I write that idea in my notebook.My writer’s notebook helps me to relax my mind. All the ideas pour out of my brain, into my ear and onto a page. Holding ideas in my mind for me, -makes me stress. It is like getting sick. My writer’s notebook is the antidote.’

Christian wrote:

‘Keeping my ideas trapped in my mind is an illness. My writer’s notebook is my rescuer.  Writing is my life, but there’s a door in front of it. My writer’s notebook is the key to open it.‘

Rachel wrote

‘When I write I give my words a voice. A voice that’s honest and true. I have to put my ideas on paper before they fly away like a bird. Ideas to me are bundles of joy. Putting them to paper is so exciting. My ideas are tree branches. They sprout and grow bigger.'

Maryama wrote:

Writing in my writer’s notebook makes me feel like the queen of a parallel universe. The words are ready to go on the page.

It’s only me though. No Mum. No Dad, brother or sister. Writing is a part of me that I never want to let go. It makes me who I am, not who everyone wants me to be. My stories are on lock down until I choose to reveal them. I love hearing the feedback. It lifts me to the next level. What would my world be like if I couldn’t express myself? ‘

The teaching of reading and writing with equal emphasis is vitally important. We should never pursue an education system merely focused upon creating consumers. Writing will help them be producers – producers who can organize their thoughts cohesively, sequentially and compellingly.  An over emphasis on reading to the detriment of writing, (which still occurs in so many places), is a lopsided view of literacy. If we want to increase the volume of writing students are producing, then we must also increase the time they are given to read.

I issue a big thankyou to Robert McFarlane a British writer and poet best known for his books on landscape, nature, place, people and language for introducing me to wonderful old words like -blatter, smirr, doddle. Words McFarlane shares in order to preserve them. Words that have seeped into my writing.

When sharing my harvest of notebook entries, I frequently say things like:

'I love that line, let me tell you why.'

'Listen to the sounds of that magical sentence. Can you hear it too?'

'What great description of the setting. 

'I can see that so clearly in my mind.'

Emotional response to the writing of others is important to acknowledge within yourself, as a reader. It is also important to share these responses with less experienced readers and writers. When we are moved or provoked, by the words on the page, the writer has done their job.

As writers, and teachers of writing, we need to develop a close relationship with those authors we admire. We need to get close to their words. We need to study closely, aspects of their craft. We need to learn to savour their words. We need to learn to read, not just with our eyes, but our also with our ears, our hearts. Reading like a writer requires a coordinated effort within each of us. My reading and writing life has been greatly enriched by this way of reading.

In time, I hope the inexperienced writers in I meet begin to appreciate how the quality of writing improves when we instinctively, read like writers.

When my eyes fall upon words I identify as wondrous, I copy such extracts into my notebooks as a reminder of powerful and inspirational writing. These words are the words I wish I had written…

These words and passages come from those writers I view as mentors and heroes. Their words inspire me to greater efforts as a writer. I write under their influence, I write in their style. Sometimes, I include extracts that serve as reminders to write in a certain way. I implore kids to write under the influence…

The words I collect from other authors sit among my own words. That way my words are hanging out with only the best possible examples of writing. I want my words to be thinking wow, I want to be like that.

Many young and inexperienced writers have not been in the habit of working in their notebooks in this way. This approach is often new to them. They have not been opened up to such influences.

Encouraging young learners to be text detectives is a buzz. Lots of reading, talking, choosing, writing -and lots of explaining those choices. A chance to make decisions about words they truly admire. Asking them what are you noticing, hearing, feeling? Such actions mark the beginning of learning to read like a writer. Such actions hopefully spark the possibility that they too might be able to write in such engaging ways. When in time student writers begin to notice such things themselves, teaching becomes so much easier and much more fulfilling.

In our classrooms we must encourage students to become involved in the things that writers in the wider world actually do. As teachers we need to do to do them too. If we don’t do these things we’re asking students to undertake tasks and teaching them to do things we’ve never attempted ourselves.

Connecting to the writing world of your students is critical. Consider the following questions:                                                                            

Where does my knowledge about teaching writing come from?

Are some sources of knowledge more important than others?                                              

How do I develop my knowledge about teaching reading and writing?                                                  

Is my reading and writing visible to students?

The Huge Matter of Choice

I consciously avoid:

Sentence Starters–teacher directs- students respond, disrespects a student’s capacity to think and entrenches dependency

The control of topics, genre, mode.                                                                                      

Teaching that deals with surface features to the detriment of developing the whole writer  

Journal writing ad-nauseum!

I have tried to make my literate life highly visible not just today, but throughout the entirety of my teaching and writing life. I don’t wish to leave any doubt as to my passion for what I do.

I hope your reading and writing lives are clearly visible to your students. We need educators who are brave and bold and proud literate beings. Our students deserve nothing less.

I trust my words have provided some affirmation of your practice and beliefs. I also hope they have provided some provocation for further consideration.

Alan j Wright

Education Consultant/ Author

Twitter: @alwriting