Living Life Twice

  Let's Turn Up The Volume In Student Writing!   A priority for any writing program should be to progressively build the stamina of young writers, enabling them to sustain their writing efforts for extended periods. The aim is for the writer to reach a stage where the ideas flow freely and the blank page surrenders to a relentless flow of words. We want young writers to view the blank page as an invitation to write, rather than something filling them with trepidation.   The answer lies in the act of writing. Too often young writers become distracted and a gap emerges between their intent and their action. The talking so vital in the pre-writing phase continues into the composing stage and the promise of words not surprisingly, evaporates. There should be plenty of time for talk and discussion when the writer has produced some words on the page. We owe it to the writer to provide such discussion time.   A range of issues may arise to interrupt the flow of writing. Some young

I have recently been working with two groups of young writers in my capacity as Writer in Residence at a local primary school. Among these writers I have discovered writers who are experimenting with the writing of song lyrics. One writers has brought himself a new notebook solely for the purpose of capturing his emerging lyrics. He has another notebook dedicated to the collecting of stories and observations. I love how he recognized this need for specialization in his writing. Two others writers have been collaborating on the writing of song lyrics and have also put some of their words to music at home. These writers are making decisions regarding their personal writing projects and their sense of agency and volition is being revealed to theeir fellow writers.  Their focus upon writing lyrics and using dedicated notebooks has reminded me of a special notebook I was given as a gift. A notebook clearly designed to celebrate music in all its forms. The deliberate and intentional focus of

The ability of young writers to reflect upon their written works and to reflect upon the thinking that influenced their writing processes is of significant importance.  It is essential to develop a sense of ones-self when writing.  It is a critical component when striving for improved levels of writing attainment. Young writers begin to thrive when metacognitive awareness and reflection is fostered by their teachers.  The role teachers play in this growth of metacognition is evidenced when writers in a classroom community exhibit a shared metalanguage while discussing aspects of their individual writing process. When prompted in this way young writers willingly convey their writing intentions, or engage purposefully in writing conversations (writing conferences) with fellow writers -peers and teachers alike. In other words, they discuss the events surrounding their writing lives, and they do it using the specific vocabulary of writing. This is the result of teacher's  concerted eff