Good morning all! My question is for those of you who teach writing, regarding writer's workshop. I found it very hard this year, my first, to maintain a writing curriculum, i.e. lessons that build upon each other in a logical fashion. I felt like most of my lessons were random and unconnected.
As I'm planning for next year, I am faced with two choices, it seems: teach a series of genres, or teach skills (such as the 6 traits of writing). If I teach fiction, poetry, nonfiction, memoir, etc., do I require that the kids write in that genre while we're studying it? I don't want to limit their creativity, but I don't want to teach something they're not currently doing. On the other hand, if I teach the traits, I don't want to study voice, for example, once and then not again all year. If I do genres, I could teach all of the skills over and over again, showing how they change based on the genre in which you are writing. I am just generally confused about how to best teach writing and could use whatever input and advice you have! Maggie Irving, Texas P.S. I do have Atwell's Lessons that Change Writers and used some of her lessons this year, but started second-guessing the teaching of genres halfway through. Sigh. -- Maggie Dillier "If you want to build a ship, don't herd people together to collect wood and don't assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea." (Antoine de Saint-Exupery) _______________________________________________ The Literacy Workshop ListServ http://www.literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/lit_literacyworkshop.org. Search the LIT archives at http://snipurl.com/LITArchive
