Writing from My Soul

First, let me say that publishing one's writing can be a soul changing experience that exposes the writer to harsh criticism and/or lavish praise. At least, that is how it is for me as a writer. Whether you are a teacher blogger or a contemporary novel writer, the act of going public is about bearing your soul to others. Writing in a public way such as this makes you vulnerable.

But there's a lot to be said for not going public, and just writing for yourself. The kind of writing I'm referring to here is the kind most often found in journals. Although I've always kept a journal of one kind or another, I'm rediscovering this kind of cathartic writing to help see me through difficult personal and professional situations. You could say it has become my main morning ritual. It cleanses my soul and allows me to go deeper than I might when I publish a post; the private writing is just for me and I can say anything I want to without feeling judged.

So, thanks to Stacey's post about a site called 750 words, on her blog (Two Writing Teachers http://twowritingteachers.wordpress.com/2011/10/13/750-words/), I am now on a 14-day streak! That means that I have been writing a minimum of 750 words for the 14th day in a row. It feels good to be doing this every morning when I first wake up. It's my brain dump for the day. At first, I found that I was writing in a stream of consciousness style only but over time I've discovered that this kind of writing allows me to solve problems on paper that had been bothering me when I went to sleep and were still nudging at me when I woke up. I feel so much better at the end of my 750 words. I often write over 800 and I could probably keep going but I have to set a time limit otherwise I might be late for work every morning!

Sometimes, I've had to write my 750 words by hand and then typed them into the website later because I'm on a daily writing challenge this month.

So far, so good.

So far, so good that I'm writing every day about whatever comes into my mind at the moment.

So far, so good that I'm working out thorny problems through my writing.

So far, so good that I'm not censoring myself and no one else is censoring me either.

So far, so good that I have challenged myself to keep going whether or not I want to.

So far, so good that I've seen the positive effects that writing things down as they surface in my head, first thing in the morning, has on the rest of my day.

Partner Reading and Content, Too Routine (PRC2)

I'm a hoarder. There, I've said it. I try to deny that I'm a hoarder but it comes back to haunt me every time I move houses, or pack up my classroom at the end of the school year. I have old articles, lesson plans, handouts, folders brimming with teaching ideas, past issues of profesional journals. I hardly throw anything out though I've learned to be more selective over the years. My one rule of thumb, and I really try to stick to this, is that if I haven't used or referred to something in a year, then it's time to toss it into the recycle bin. One exception to this rule (you knew this was coming, didn't you?) is past issues of journals from professional organizations. However, with the ability to locate articles online through my professional memberships, even this exception is becoming less and less useful, which brings me to the topic of this blog post. I am currently reading a copy of The Reading Teacher from 2010. I've clipped a cou...

The Reading Strategies Book - Chapter 12, Supporting Students’ Conversations – Speaking, Listening, and Deepening Comprehension

The strategy lessons highlighted in Chapter 12, Supporting Students’ Conversations – Speaking, Listening, and Deepening Comprehension, in The Reading Strategies Book by Jennifer Serravallo are critical to students’ engagement and comprehension, as well as their ability to write literary essays, or even book reviews, summaries and reflective pieces about books. If students aren’t able to talk about books in a way that is invigorating and joyful, they will be less likely to develop an interest in growing ideas for writing about books. In her introduction to this chapter, Jennifer Serravallo, reminds us that when conversations go well, children are inspired by what they read and are motivated to keep reading. However, when conversations fall flat, then kids get bored and tune out. How do we avoid this situation and teach kids to have focused conversations about books? The answer is easy: teach kids strategies to help them develop effective conversa...

Are we listening?

A child sits alone with a ripped worksheet packet on his desk. He appears to be singing or subvocalizing something though no one hears him. Or, perhaps they're ignoring him. The teacher stands at the front of the room teaching on the SmartBoard. The children follow along in their worksheets. Except the child sitting alone. He is in his own world. No one engages him and he engages no one. My heart aches for this child. He is physically and emotionally removed from the class. I ask him why his paper is ripped. (It's not an accidental rip.) He says he did that on a different day. When he had been frustrated about the work. He tells me that he sometimes sits by himself because the work is too hard for him. He later tells me that he sits by himself because the teacher thinks he talks too much during the lesson. He says he does that because he wants to find out about the "lives of the other children". My first impulse is to rescue him from the wrongheade...

A Teacher's Ruminations

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