Living Life Twice

I always hold mixed feelings about commencing a new notebook. I am quite excited about the prospect of filling the fresh pages and I enthusiastically embrace the challenge. To see my words spread out and over the previously unmarked pages is a buzz for me as a writer.  I’m involved in the act of capturing the raw stuff of my writing life and bringing order to my messy mind. The harvesting of words and ideas adds to the energy of writing in this new place. I am like the farmer who ploughs a new field. I often make a conscious decision to choose a new notebook with different dimensions to its predecessor.  I embrace its unique shape and form. I am keen to shape this new notebook in a way that establishes its difference from previous notebooks. The contents will add further to the individuality. There will be new discoveries.  This time remains a bittersweet moment in my writing life. It is that time when I am faced with saying farewell to a trusted friend. I am s...

'Writing needs to be seen as a reward, not a duty. I look forward to creating words on the page. This desire to write creates the discipline.' Igniting Writing- When A Teacher Writes,’ Alan j Wright When recalling these words, I find myself considering them in the context of the winter term break for Australian schools. It presents as a chance for students and teachers alike to step away from the learning that characterizes classroom time and restore themselves a little. It is time to focus on things that may have been on hold, to take a break, to visit a place or catch up with a friend. It may represent a chance to resume an on-hold project, or you may be planning to relax and indulge in some activity that feels just right. Something that literally slow the pace of your life down for a short period of time. You may go exploring or have an adventure or special trip planned to fit neatly into the break. It also represents a chance to do some reading and writing. It pre...

Yesterday I had the opportunity to share a collection of my writer’s notebooks with a group of young writers from Sunshine Heights Primary School in Melbourne's West. Two groups of Grade 3 and 4 writers and their teachers gathered in the library to undertake a close examination of the Writer's Notebook.  I have shared my notebooks many times across the years and given that I have been using  Writer's notebooks for 32 years, I have acquired quite an array. I impressed upon the students that my notebooks reflect my way of operating as a writer and that it may not necessarily be the way they choose to develop a notebook. It is one way,not THE way. Every writer must find a way unique to them when using a notebook. However, each notebook should reveal something about the writer you are, and something about your personality and interests. I challenged students and teachers alike to become text detectives and explorers. I was inviting them to delve into my collection...

One of the most frequently asked questions that writers receive concerns where ideas are hiding. The plain fact of the matter is that ideas exist all around us. Writers tend to draw on life experiences, observation, family and friends. There is also a wealth of possibilities in the stories we are told, in the books we read, poems plays, film and assorted media. Ideas exist in the conversations we overhear and those in which we participate. We are surrounded by possibilities.  ‘Sometimes the easiest way to start writing is not to try to think something up but simply -to write something down –and what better place to begin than with what is right in front of your eyes.'                       Andy Griffiths,Once Upon A Slime Writers need to practice being observant and notice things other people miss. The challenge for all writers is to identify an idea and make it your own. The art of close observation is som...

I am fond of saying, writers are collectors, It is in fact, true. My notebooks bulge with harvested words, ephemera, photographs, artefacts, and the like. But as an avowed traveller, I am also a collector. I pondered this point as I walked through the house today. Scattered in and around our house are mementoes from our travels.  In each place we visit, Vicki and me try to bring home one item we both admire. An item to serve as reminder of our shared time in that special place. Let me share some examples: The Wedding Couple. We saw these distinctively sculpted figures in a shop window in Seminyak, Bali 2013. They proved irresistible. In 2006, we visited Istanbul. The pattern on this bowl is a traditional ceramic pattern. We looked at numerous bowls before settling on this one.  While living in New York, we visited Mexico on several occasions. This marble dominoes set caught the eye while visiting Veracruz. The pieces are heavy, but feel so ...

Today I attended a number of session at the ALEA Conference , but my absolute favourite was the one conducted by Ralph Fletcher,  where he outlined how he uses his writer's notebook. After reading his words for more than a decade, it was wonderful to hear the author give voice to those words. Among the many messages Ralph delivered the following are important to share. Creative ideas are just like infants They are Fragile, weak and in need of support Notebooks are a place to breathe in the world then breathe out and share your collected thoughts and ideas. Write about what moves you What you wonder about What you notice  Record it in your notebook. Ruminate on it, then do something with it. Di snowball talks about the conversation that surrounds a book. We must have these influential conversations. They will influence our written words. Find the mystery in ordinary things Lists and artefacts are important to the notebook writer A notebook has t...

Today I give you fish. More particularly, a fish on a plate. In this little presentation, I combined my poem about a fish on a plate with a picture of an empty plate. So, the fish on the plate poem is hereby presented on a plate! Watch out for bones...

Students frequently need extra guidance and support in those early stages of the year to develop that essential momentum and confidence necessary for successful writing. They are learning to trust a new teacher, new surroundings, and maybe new classmates. There is a lot to consider. It takes a little time to adapt to new routines and expectations when the new school is beginning. What does this teacher expect of me as a reader and writer? How do we as teachers assist students to gain trust and momentum as writers? Well, if it is your intention that students use a writer’s notebook, then you will have to gently lead them forward by revealing the hidden potential of this writer’s resource, showing them how it can play a vital role in their daily lives as writers. Used appropriately, Writer’s notebooks allow developing writers to make stronger connections to the world surrounding them. The harvesting and documenting of their daily lives provides an easy, informal way to sta...

I have recently been showing young writers how we can create a potential topic list by gathering artifacts, treasures, mementoes , curios and then photographing them. It’s a topic list using images, rather than words, but it works in exactly the same way, -providing a stimulus for thinking around writing. I shared this idea teachers and students at Rowville Primary School and one teacher I work with has taken the idea and really extended it with her class. Kate Chinner teaches Grade 4 and she challenged her students to go home and gather personal artifacts from around the house and photograph or draw them. Those students without acess to a camera, were able to bring their artifacts to school if they wished. Kate then gathered all the student examples and displayed them in her classroom. A wall of wonder has been created. The talk and conversation around the display arouses much inquiry and curiosity from students. Who owns that? What is that? Tell me about that… Gathering su...

I have been considering making a video that would unveil some of the treasures one finds inside a writer's notebook when I stumbled across a great little video on You Tube created by Ruth Ayres of Two Writing Teachers fame. Ruth shares the influences on her writing and how they come together within the collective pages of her notebooks. I want to share it with you as I believe Ruth captures quite clearly the essence of why we as teachers need to develop our own writer's notebooks. It's a powerful model for our students, and a wonderful resource to use in our teaching. Check it out!  I might still make a video. Ruth has inspired me...

Invite your students to gather some small artefacts from around the house. Have them arrange the gathered items in a pleasing design, then when satisfied that the items are clearly presented- take a photograph. These simple items form a pictorial topic list that writers may delve into. Each one has its own unique story just waiting to emerge. If your students don't have access to a camera have them bring the selected items to school and do the snapping there! This is a wonderful stimulus for promoting talking and thinking about wriitng intentions. try it yourself first and share your discoveries with your students. Show them the writing that springs forth. The photo above repesents my quick household gatherings. The writing that follows sprung from scanning and thinking about the assorted items. Sea Glass The beach is not a place to labour Too warm and damp And soft Never a place to conjure flights of fancy It rises against one’s m...

During this past week, I have been focusing on this particular question, trying to tease out the connection to the world the writer inhabits. it is this world that provides the ideas a writer can mine. It is the rich vein the writer must tap to create texts. Our youngest writers frequently undervalue their own lives and the small and large moments that punctuate those lives, as a source for writing. They often cling to second hand experiences derived from watching television and dvd's, playing video and computer games as a narrow source of potential writing ideas. They remain unaware that this means their writing is frequently a rehashing of somebody else's ideas. We are all influenced by such experiences, but it would be sad if it was used to the exclusion of all those rich experiences that take place beyond the small screen. Kids miss out if this is all that inspires their thinking.  So how do we assist our students to make stronger connections to their o...

The most challenging part of writing for developing writers is often finding something to write about. This occurs because they are not practiced at harvesting ideas. They under value their thoughts, experiences and observations as potential writing fodder. It is therefore critical to show them how to think and act like writers. In this way they will develop behaviours that will help them to be more watchful and aware of their world and the writing that can spring from their interactions. Connect With The World - Look, Listen, Learn! Essentially, writers need to keep their eyes open. They need to look, listen and be ready to learn. Sometimes a subject finds you. You may just happen to be walking down the street when something quite extraordinary takes place. – like the time I was travelling on the New York subway and a guy entered the carriage wearing full medieval knight’s regalia. My mind immediately began to speculate –Where did he come from? Why was he dressed in this fashion, Wher...