Writing Tips from Mark Overmeyer

Have fun when you teach writing. Be joyful.

Whether you have just started back to school or you are weeks into your writing workshop, I cannot stress enough the importance of joy. I am lucky enough to visit many classrooms in schools across the Denver metro area, and the ones that function best seem to include one key element: joy. Here are some tips for creating more joy in your workshop:

Encourage the use of humor. Consider using humorous mentor texts with your students. Mo Willems has become a standard feature of most primary classrooms I enter these days, and I have yet to meet a student who wouldn’t jump at the chance to write a new Pigeon book (along the lines of Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! or a book similar to Knufflebunny: A Cautionary Tale. Also for primary students, consider Melinda Long’s books How I Became a Pirate and Pirates Don’t Change Diapers if you sense kids might like to write a pirate story. For intermediate grades, the books I continue to see in so many backpacks and on so many desks have a wimpy kid on the cover – Jeff Kinney has done us a huge favor as we try to convince students that they do have moments in their lives that are worth writing about. Kinney’s Diary of a Wimpy Kid books are full of short anecdotes in the form of diary entries that have helped many of my students in the past few years generate ideas and develop enthusiasm for writing personal narratives. And the film can be used in excerpted form to help students understand the concept of writing a scene, or a short part of a day, rather than the entire day.

Have fun while you read their writing. I work in a district just like many of yours: teachers have a lot of testing to do in the beginning of the year. Even if this testing includes some kind of required writing sample, raise the energy in your room by talking about how happy it made you to read their writing. Don’t read writing just to come up with a rubric score – have fun while reading it. Go in each day and talk about how much you are learning about your students as people because of their writing. One of the most resistant writers I have encountered in awhile is a third grader who managed to write a few words about fishing the first day of school. I use him as a model every day when I work in his classroom now. I say things like: “Writers, you are doing the work all writers do when they first come up with ideas – you are writing what you know. And Tyler knows about fishing. He knows about carp fishing on a lake, and he knows about fly-fishing in a river. I can’t wait to see what he comes up with today!” Though I cannot tell you that Tyler has produced pages of text, he does not produce at least half a page, and a picture, every day. And most importantly, he does not groan when it is time to write like he did the first day I met him.

Allow plenty of time to share. Don’t save sharing time for just the end of the workshop. Expect students to share ideas before they write, interrupt the workshop briefly to celebrate a student’s writing during writing time, and make sure to include as many students as possible at the end of the workshop sharing time. If your students are writing longer pieces, you can edit this process by asking them to share a favorite part of their story, or you can ask them to orally tell part of the story and just read their most recent page. If you have some shy students who do not like to share, ask for permission early in the school year to share their work with the class. All students, hopefully, will become confident enough to share their writing frequently as the year progresses.

Be positive about your own writing experiences. Be honest about your own struggles as a writer, but share your joy as well. Talk about how rewarding it is to create your own pieces and to share these pieces with the class. Let them into the world of your own writing process by sharing some real world examples of how writing made a positive impact on your life. You can think of cards you have sent, poems you have written for special occasions, or opportunities you have had because you worked hard on your writing. Help students to see that writing is alive and well in the “real” world: writing matters. Writing makes a difference.

Enjoy!

Thank-You Notes to Elementary School Teachers
Charles Fuhrken

To Mrs. Box,
First grade teacher,
For days I stared
out the window at
the playground
when I was supposed to
read about a boy
named Dick and a girl
named Jane. Instead of corner
time, you gave me
a pencil and a Big
Chief tablet and let me invent
my own stories—and I forgot all about
recess.

To Mrs. Meischen,
Second grade teacher,
I still have
the first place
prize I won in your spelling
bee—a ribbon of
blue construction paper cut out and
perfectly
laminated. Down to me and
Gloria, the word was
ap-pre-ci-ate,
verb,
“to be grateful for”—and I still
am.

To Mrs. Torres,
Third grade teacher,
Each day after
lunch we sprawled out
on the story rug and clung to
tales about a chocolate
factory, a red fern, and a giant
peach.
Spinning words like
Charlotte in her web, you
were Radiant,
Humble,
Terrific, and Some
Teacher.

To Teachers Everywhere,
We students remember
ant aquariums and Weekly
Reader, cursive
handwriting and talent shows, sock
puppets and science
fairs, show and
tell and field trips, times
tables and i before e. Moments glued together in our minds like
the collages you treasured from us, displayed in the hallway, and praised
with bright eyes and a contagious
smile.

Professor Malu shows off Nonfiction Matters

My original plan was to center the lesson on how we can use high quality picture books to teach literacy, and then to show how each of your books contains strategies to help students master reading and writing skills. However, I found that my lesson needed adjustment because of the current language situation in Rwanda.
 
The traditional language of Rwanda is Kinyarwandan, although Swahili is also widely spoken. For decades, the language of education and commerce has been French, since Rwanda was once a Belgian colony.  In January of this year, Rwandan President Paul Kigame (who has just been re-elected for another 7-year term) mandated that the official language of Rwanda is now English and that all education must be conducted exclusively in English.  You can imagine what a difficulty that poses for teachers and students who speak fluent French but who may have little or no practice with English!  So, my classes–especially those with the younger undergraduates–as well as my interaction with teachers in the field had to be adjusted for the fact that most of them are beginning English speakers.  With the large undergraduate class (see picture), I periodically stopped during the lesson and defined words before we could go further.  (We were reading the picture book Mr. George Baker written by Amy Hest and illustrated by Jon J. Muth, a Candlewick Press publication.)  After the story we reviewed the Stenhouse books.  The students were very interested in them and wanted to know more.  They are excited that they will have full access to them and will use them in their subsequent classes at KIE.
 
With the older junior/seniors whose English is more advanced, we were able to explore the materialsin more depth and have pedagogical conversations.  In fact, the students took the books home and evaluated them.  Their assignment for Dr. Malu and me was to examine a text and report back what they thought of it and how they might use it as a teacher.  Here are excerpts of their reactions, unedited, straight from the students’ pens (the names have been changed).  I’m sure you can see that these books will not be lost on these young teachers!

Juliana talks to a group of students about Strategies That Work

Strategies that Work:

“This book details strategies, methods and ways to teach comprehension to students … as a future teacher I like it! … the elements found in this book are helpful to me in my career of education. It is the modern way of teaching which puts the student in the center of education and the teacher as a helper and not a dictator. … In teaching I will be using some of these methods found in this book to help my students to read and understand … –Jacqueline

Strategies That Work. “I have been exploring this package and I found it interesting as well as very helpful.In fact, I have liked it and I am still enjoying reading it. The choice and arrangement of the materials are some of the factors which make the book likeable. It seems to be selective in its structure, consistently well organized, and developed in a concise manner. … It is rather practical than theoretical. This is why it falls under my favorite choice. .. briefly, I really like this book mostly because it gives responses and hints for success while dealing with teaching young learners. I consider it relevant to both current and prospective teachers, as I am.”

Yellow Brick Roads: “… the book shows how much the participation of both teachers and learners is needed so that students get knowledge about reading skills. For many reasons, I liked this book.  It reminded me that it is better for the teacher to have teaching aids while teaching. For example, while the teacher is teaching how to read effectively, he/she has to give the textbooks to learners and guide them by correcting some mistakes … in teaching, this book can help me because each of its pages contains guidance for both students and the teachers.” –Marcel

Words, Words, Words: “After reading this book … I got interested in the topic called “Why teach vocabulary?”   –Auguste

These reactions show that the students are engaged in the difficult tasks of perfecting their English while training to be teachers (in that new language!), but also show that the ideas and methods proposed in the books are new and exciting and vastly different from what they have been taught, both as students and as future teachers.  For example, the idea of a student-centered classroom is revolutionary!  They have been raised on the “I-talk-and-write-notes-and-you-copy-and-memorize-them” method!

A great need still exists.  The people are intelligent, hard working, and motivated.  However, at present resources are few.  On a visit to the KIE Library, I saw scores of large boxes of donated books which, on closer inspection, were manufacturers’ leftovers and of no use to the Rwandan students at KIE.  For instance, one box was filled with workbooks to accompany an outdated textbook (which was missing) on the economy of China!  So, the Rwandans need books, but they need quality, relevant, culturally appropriate books, not leftovers.  You at Stenhouse can be proud that the books you’ve given them are the best available to teachers, the very top of your pedagogical line. That was not lost on the students, either.  They knew and appreciated they were getting materials that teachers in the United States are using right now.

Have a clearly marked place in the room for students to turn in their work. There are a number of options for creating places where students can turn in papers:
• a set of tubs or trays, one for each period, desk cluster, row, or subject
• a set of magnetized or wall-mounted file folder trays, one for each period, desk cluster, row, or subject
• one main basket, tub, or tray into which everything goes
• folders, one for every assignment or one for every period, desk cluster, row, or subject

The way you prefer to grade will affect how you ask students to submit their work. You may want to grade all 150 projects so your mind is focused on the same things as you grade; or you may want to grade all the papers for each period you teach or all the work for one student, grading many different assignments. Grading by period seems to be the most efficient method. Breaking the larger task into five or six smaller groupings such as class periods gives a sense of accomplishment, and your mind is not dulled by huge quantities of repeated information. Don’t forget to consider asking students to alphabetize a set of assignments for you. It will make record keeping easier.

Students will occasionally (and chronically, depending on the person) submit papers on which they’ve forgotten to record their names. Please don’t throw these in the trash can as a way to teach students a lesson in responsibility. It won’t work, and you’ll be creating larger problems—resentment and an irretrievable assignment. Young adolescents are not capable of remembering to write their names on their assignments 100 percent of the time. Even my most conscientious students over the years have made this mistake. It’s not reasonable to provide a harsh response to students when they forget. We can be developmentally appropriate and hold them accountable in other ways. First, if we recognize the writing, write the student’s name on it and return it to him. Let him record his name and resubmit the assignment. It was a simple mistake; we can afford to be forgiving.

If we don’t recognize the writing, place the unnamed assignment in a tub or tray labeled “No Name, No Credit.” Invite students to inspect the contents of the tub or tray once a week or when others have their papers returned but they don’t. If students find their work, have them put their names on the assignment and resubmit it for credit. If you wish, take some points off, but not so much that it would significantly change the indicator of mastery you put on it.

A great way to maintain sanity with the paper shuffle in middle schools is to ask students to maintain a student assignment notebook or something similar. It’ll help them complete, find, and submit papers on time, preventing frantic paper chases down the road. Though there are plenty of inexpensive versions for mass purchase, students can make their own assignment notebooks. Just make sure there is a page for each day of the school year, and on each page there is space for writing down assignments for each subject, as well as places to record additional reminders, a place for parents to sign, and a place for teachers to initial that the information is correct. It is particularly helpful, too, if there is a section somewhere in the notebook for recording phone numbers and e-mail addresses of classmates
who can be contacted for homework assignments when students are sick, as well as a grade sheet on which students can record grades as papers are returned and thereby keep a running tab on how they’re doing.

Make sure to have a final tub, basket, tray, or folder to store extra copies of handouts. Inevitably, students will lose original copies of what we’ve given them, or they’ll be absent and not receive the handout. An “extras” tray provides a place where they can go to get back up to speed without bothering you or their classmates.

A caution about technology: Many teachers are exploring electronically submitted assignments and portfolios. I’m one of them. It’s the way to go in the years ahead, but we aren’t there yet in terms of security, technology, and equal access to technology. Experiment with your students, if possible, but be wise and back up every electronic submission with a hard copy, just in case. Until we can guarantee that diskettes and CDs won’t be broken or lost, servers won’t be down, and everyone has equal access and expertise with the technology, we can’t require across-the-board use. Another benefit of hard copies: successful editing. It’s been proven repeatedly in editors’ offices and English classrooms across the nation that our minds catch mistakes on hard copy more often than on a computer screen where we’re dealing with the oscillating pixels of the electronic image. Have students proofread by reading the hard-copy version of their work aloud.

Have a designated student of the week return papers or, if privacy is a concern, return papers yourself while students are working on something else. Be efficient with time. Just a reminder: There is a direct correlation between how long papers take to be graded and returned to students and the extent of complexity and depth students apply to the assignment. If students know they’re going to get feedback quickly, they’ll put more of themselves into it. If they don’t get feedback for a couple of weeks, their motivation fades.

When it comes to your own administrative paperwork, deal with everything within twenty-four hours. If you get a request to complete a teacher narrative form for an upcoming IEP meeting, sit down and do it right away. Need to complete a form requesting buses for your field trip in four months? Get the forms and complete them right now while you’re caught up in the trip’s planning. You can put off your own paperwork only if you’re stuck between a rock and a hard place. This means completing administrative paperwork even when you don’t want to do it, tired or not. Believe this repentant paperwork procrastinator: it’s worth doing it now. Don’t wait until the pile of uncompleted paperwork has hit critical mass; do it as it comes across your desk or into your teacher box. You’ll have a life if you do.

Enjoy!

Perfect
Kenn Nesbitt

Today I managed something
that I’ve never done before.
I turned in this week’s spelling quiz
and got a perfect score.

Read the rest of the poem here…

Some students struggle with topic selection. On the eve of the topic deadline, Thomas had not come up with a single idea for research. His mother rang Mary first thing in the morning and described a family in turmoil. Thomas had been up all night fraught with anxiety over his eleventh-hour missing topic. His mom’s voice cracked as she wondered how he would ever organize sources, take notes, or write a report if he couldn’t even think of a topic. School was not easy for Thomas. Thomas’s mother believed that independent inquiry demanded too much of him. She suggested that Mary simply assign Thomas a topic so he could get started. Mary felt bad for Thomas and promised to talk with him that morning. The last thing Thomas needed was to be losing sleep.

Before kids entered the room, Mary pulled out Thomas’s wonder book. The twisted spiral wire extended at least six inches beyond the half-torn cover. Writing was conspicuously absent. But precise drawings of NFL team logos covered the lined pages. Mary approached Thomas during writing time and asked how things were going.

“Lousy,” Thomas answered.

“Why?”

“I can’t think of a topic for this research project.”

“What interests you, Thomas?” Mary asked.

“Nothin’,” Thomas answered.

“Tell me about these drawings,” Mary nudged.

“Oh those, those are nothin’,” Thomas said, as he slid his notebook back into his desk.

“It looks like football stuff to me,” Mary commented.

“Yeah, I guess,” Thomas acknowledged.

“Can I see them?”

Thomas reached into his desk and handed the tattered wonder book to Mary.

“Wow, these are great. How many team helmets did you draw in here?” Mary asked.

“All of ’em,” Thomas answered.

“No kidding. Did you copy them from somewhere?”

“No, I know the logo of every team in the NFL,” Thomas said.

“Really! Which is your favorite?”

“The Broncos, of course.”

“Thomas, these are really terrific drawings,” Mary told him. She continued to draw Thomas out on the subject of football. Thomas not only knew the logos, but also the standings, schedules, and player statistics of most teams in the league. Thomas was an expert on the NFL and football in general, even though he had begun this conference by saying he had no interests.

When Mary suggested that Thomas write about football in his wonder book and list a few questions he had, he was pleasantly surprised. He didn’t associate football with school. Mary pulled out several beautifully illustrated picture books and wondered whether Thomas might want to write and illustrate a picture book on some aspect of football as his research project. Thomas pulled a Sports Illustrated from his desk. John Elway graced the cover. Mary left Thomas reading about his idol. She hadn’t actually assigned a topic. But she had explored Thomas’s background knowledge and nudged him in a direction that matched his interests.

Thomas’s struggle was far from over, of course. Reading, note taking, and writing challenged him throughout his inquiry. But finding an engaging topic represents a major step forward for kids like Thomas. Independent inquiry allows for the widest range of exploration. Choosing freely from an unlimited spectrum of topics gives kids the best shot at finding a subject that appeals to them.

Young writers need to know that selecting a topic is challenging. When I meet professional writers, I often ask them what they find most difficult about writing. The answer is almost always the same: thinking of something to write about. My students are relieved when I share this with them, because they too struggle to come up with ideas to write about.

To the Woman (We Think You’re a Teacher) with the Books on the 2 Train
By some anonymous students

On the platform for the 2 train
you stand with a book in your hand
the pages open
Which is how you enter the train
Reading

Sometimes you smile, or frown
Once you even cried
on the train
when you were reading Night
and a man sitting across the aisle
said he cried too, when he read that book
and we thought,
we want to read that book
so we did

And then you were reading all those
basketball books
by Walter Dean Myers
so we read those too
speeding along on the 2 train
one time you saw us reading Slam
and you said
I love that book
and do you think Slam is going to make it in high
school?
We do, we think he’s going to make it

Then you were reading some really hard stuff
Epistemology of the Closet, Postmodern Narrative
Theory
and we tried those, but we think you have to have read
the books those authors have read, if you want to read
their books

Our favorite is when you are reading poetry
Picnic, Lightning
and you lean back against the seat
and smile
and keep reading the same page
again and again
we do that now and it’s really nice

Last week you were reading Life of Pi
and we rushed out to buy it
So we could in the lifeboat
adrift in the blue, blue sea
with the boy, the Bengal Tiger, and you

If we don’t see you next year
on the train
Maybe sometime we’ll bump into each other on the
platform
You’ll know us because
we’ll have books in our hands.

The Power of Memoir

This fall I was asked by one of the graduate students in my language arts methods class to explain the difference between personal narrative and memoir.  And I immediately thought of the personal narratives so many of my high school students had written.  Stories of experiences that were often rich in detail but missing what I so appreciate about memoir: the why of the personal story.  Personal narrative is the starting point for memoir, but it is in the selection of what to include and what it all means, that we move from narrative to memoir.  As William Zinsser, author of Inventing the Truth: The Art and Craft of Memoir notes, “A good memoir requires two elements—one of art, and the other of craft.  Memoir is how we make sense of who we are, who we once were, and what values and heritage shaped us….Memoir writers must manufacture a text, imposing narrative order on a jumble of half-remembered events” (1998, p. 6)

I have loved memoir as a personal reading choice since I was in high school. And I am not alone in my appreciation of memoir.  I am on the waiting list at my local library for Mary Karr’s newest memoir, Lit, and I note Karr’s previous memoirs, The Liar’s Club, and Cherry, also have waiting lists.  But it took me longer than it should have to recognize the teaching value of memoir in middle school and high school classrooms.  What I know now is that students appreciate the wisdom and humor that can be found in a memoir.  As one high school student noted after reading a selection of memoir excerpts,  “I have been interested in how people can express their life in a book.  Everyone has had problems and gifts, and everyone has their own story to tell.” Having a story to tell is particularly true for adolescents who are in the very process of discovering themselves. As Nancie Atwell writes in her chapter, “Call Home the Child: Memoir” in In the Middle,  “Memoir celebrates people and places no one has ever heard of.  And memoir allows us to discover and tell our own truths as writers” (1998).

I appreciate how reading memoir supports writing memoir.  So the discussion that follows will first focus on recommendations for memoir reading followed by prompts that support writing memoir.  It’s my hope these ideas will support those of you who are already working with memoir in your middle school and high school classrooms. And I am counting on you to respond to this blog with your recommendations for reading and writing memoir.  For those of you who have not yet worked with memoir, I hope you’ll be willing to explore this genre with your students and share your discoveries.

In choosing memoirs for whole class or literature circle reading, I look for a mix that address a variety of topics.  I also look at the writing craft of the memoirs we read: What lessons can students learn from this author’s writing.  Typically I select excerpts from longer works, although please see the reference to a collection of short memoirs, edited by Amy Erlich in the section on “Lessons from Childhood.”   Listed below are memoir excerpts that have worked well with middle school and high school students.  Each one illustrates the power of focusing on “small self-contained incidents that are still vivid….because they contain a universal truth that …readers will recognize from their own life” (Zinsser, 2006)

Memoirs to Read

As noted above, I try to provide a mix of memoir and particularly appreciate memoirs that focus on lessons learned from childhood, memoirs that highlight the importance of reading and/or writing, and memoirs that make me laugh.

Lessons Learned from Childhood

Excerpt from Part I of Annie Dillard’s memoir, An American Childhood (1987).  Dillard describes throwing snowballs at cars and the chase that ensues when one driver pulls over and chases Dillard and her snow-ball-throwing friends.  I admire Dillard’s appreciation of the chase and her craft, particularly her use of  descriptive details.

When I Was Your Age, Volume Two: Original Stories about Growing Up, ed. by Amy Erlich.(1999) is a rich collection of short memoirs of adolescence by authors who write YA fiction. I admire the accessibility of these memoirs and the fine writing craft, in particular, compelling leads (“ In the Blink of an Eye” by Norma Fox Mazer and “ Pegasus for a Summer” by Michael Rosen) and setting details to illustrate the power of place (“The Long Closet” by Jane Yolen).

The Importance of Reading and Writing

Excerpt from Hunger of Memory: The Education of Richard Rodgriguez: An Autobiography (1982. pp. 62-72).  Rodriguez details his love of reading and its impact on his life in a distinct style of varied sentence lengths, questions, parenthetical remarks, and repetition.

Excerpt “20” from Stephen King’s On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft (2000, pp. 55-58 (Please be aware there is profanity in the opening paragraph). In this excerpt, King shares the revisions and advice he received from the local newspaper editor in response to his sports story, “[w]rite with the door closed, rewrite with the door open.  Your stuff starts out being just for you, in other words, but then it goes out.  Once you know what the story is and it get right—as right as you can, anyway—it belongs to anyone who wants to read it” (2000, p. 57).

Memoirs that Make Me Laugh

Opening section of the chapter “Bawlbaby” in Chris Crutcher’s, King of the Mild Frontier: An Ill-Advised Autobiography (2003, p. 19-26)  In this excerpt, Crutcher shares his struggle with showing anger through crying and life with an older brother.  I also appreciate his candid passion for cookies.  It’s funny, poignant and Illustrates the power of dialogue in support of memoir.

A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Moreland, Indiana by Haven Kimmel (2002)  is a delightful memoir focusing on a series of vignettes that celebrate the wisdom and humor of childhood.  In particular, I recommend “Daniel” (p. 40-45) and “Diner” (p. 167-172).

“Thinking Small” in Support of Writing Memoir

William Zinsser talk about the challenge of finding an entry point to memoir, deciding “What to put in? What to take leave out? Where to start? Where to stop? How to shape the story?”  He suggest that as writers of memoir, we are well served to “think small.”  Two memoir writing strategies that have worked well with adolescent writers and heed Zinseer’s “reduced” writing approach are described below:

Candy and Me

Hilary Liftin’s wonderful memoir, Candy and Me: A Love Story (2003) details the author’s passion for candy and other sweet treat, including canned frosting.  Excerpts from this text have inspired many middle school and high school students to craft their own candy memoirs.  The key elements of this writing workshop include reading selections from Liftin’s memoir:  I recommend the chapter on “Snickers.”  (pp. 62-64). As Liftin notes, Snickers is the perfect blend of chocolate, peanuts, nougat, and caramel.  And she goes on to describe that in a pinch, it’s the candy bar that “eats like a meal” so it sustained her on a two-week-long high school graduation camping trip that surprisingly didn’t include meals.   I follow this reading by providing students with a sampling of candy.  I know this idea of giving students candy has its challenges and may even be prohibited in some schools.   But I have watched in amazement as students (grades 6-12)  respect and embrace the idea that the candy is in support of their writing.  Some teachers have found it helpful to ask students to wait to eat the candy until the end of the quiet writing period.

Just last week, in a senior English class, students sampled candy as they wrote their candy memoirs. One student, who described herself as a reluctant writer and who had not been been willing to share any of her writing with the class, willingly volunteered to read her candy memoir about Smarties.  When she was finished reading, her peers applauded.

Six-Word Memoirs

I have read that Hemingway was once challenged to write a story in only six words. He wrote: “For sale: baby shoes, never worn.” SMITH magazine (http://www.smithmag.net/sixwords) celebrated Hemingway’s efforts by encouraging readers to write their own six-word memoirs.  The result is a magazine, website, and series of books celebrating six-word memoirs, including the original published collection: Not Quite What I Was Planning: Six Word Memoirs from Writers Famous and Obscure, edited by Rachel Feirshleiser and Larry Smith (2006).   In this collection journalist Chuck Klosterman writes, “Nobody cared, then they did. Why?”  and Amy Sedaris offers a very different approach, “Mushrooms. Clowns. Wands. Five. Wig. Thatched.”

After sharing Hemingway’s model and excerpts from the original collection described above and the SMITH website (http://www.smithmag.net/six words), juniors and seniors in a Creative Writing class wrote their own six-word memoirs:

            “Treading through the waters of the past” by Bradie

            “Silver lining sliding over murky puddle” by Chelsea

            “I’m fat but I am tender” by Shanji

            “Life is creating your own Stories” by Taylor

            “Internal Assessment due Tomorrow: bad words” by Vivian

            “I’m worried, thinking, twisted, and …shrinking.” by Chelsea

And as evidence that students will build on their six-word memoirs in crafting longer memoirs, Sam wrote “I need more than six words.”

A group of middle school students turned their six-word memoirs into a compelling video.  Check out Mollie Dickson’s blog to see their outstanding work.

Why Memoir?

Memoir is an opportunity for us, as readers, to experience the well-told moments of the author’s life.  It’s an opportunity for us as writers, to craft our own stories, carefully selecting each detail in an effort to discover our own truth.  As memoir author  Mary Karr notes in describing good memoirs, “they elevate experience into art and use individual lives to locate universal truths.”

You can download one of these tools today titled Concepts and Vocabulary: Categories and Labels. This activity helps student think about a cluster of technical vocabulary words and students categorize and label the words based on common attributes.