Getting Students to Write- Helping Elementary and Middle School teachers improve student writing.

A Thank You to Listeners

This is my last "episode" of Getting Students to Write. I have thoroughly enjoyed the last few years of recording this podcast. Being able to share ideas with fellow edu

Handwriting as a Main Character with Holly Britton

All teachers have had students who struggle with handwriting, regardless of their grade level. What we learn in this episode is that this is not just a problem of messine

Replay! Ep 97 Little Things Make a Huge Difference

Implementing effective writing instruction is a big task. There are many moving parts and lots of important young writers to take care of! Struggling writers? Struggling

Two Things Can Be True: An Interview with Leah Mermelstein

"Two seemingly paradoxical things can be true at the same time...and that tension, we are never going to resolve that." In this episode, Leah Mermelstein helps us sort t

Replay: Am I Over Scaffolding My Writers?

Episode Replay of one of my favorites! You want to help your writers, but often the more help you provide, the more you inhibit their learning. This can happen even more

A Passion for Writing! An interview with Ana Siqueira

What a fantastic discussion with a fantastic educator and writer, Ms. Ana Siqueira. Ana shares her journey of being an author and what is most important to her as a writ

Replay! Episode 60 What You Say Matters: The Language of Writing Instruction

This episode holds the key to transforming your writing instruction from WRITING-focused to WRITER- focused! This is how we truly grow our elementary and middle school w

More Freedom Equals Real Writers: Interview with Ralph Fletcher Pt 2

The second half of my conversation with Ralph Fletcher is full of takeaways for every teacher of writing! If you have writers struggling to write or to grow as writers,

What Writers Need: Interview with Ralph Fletcher Pt 1

"The best teaching comes when we teach at the point of our own learning."-Ralph Fletcher The one and only author and writing expert Ralph Fletcher joins us in this episo

Independent Writing Series: Observe, Assess, Decide

When starting to implement Independent Writing in your classroom for the first time, it is important to know what is really happening with your writers as a class as well

Independent Writing Series: Combating Common Obstacles

In almost every classroom where independent writing time is implemented for the first time, the same few issues seem to occur with a few writers. This episode tackles wh

Exploring "The Writing Rope" with Pat Pollack

Listen in to a thought-provoking discussion with literacy consultant extraordinaire, Pat Pollock. Pat shares a multitude of thoughts and ideas about teaching writing eff

Independent Writing Series: Anchor Lessons

The Independent Writing Series continues with lessons that will support all writers in this beginning phase. In this episode, Melissa shares a variety of lessons for all

Honoring Joy, Skill and Purpose in Writing with Kate and Maggie Roberts Pt 2

Part 2 shares valuable advice for teachers who lack a robust curriculum for writing instruction as well as Maggie Robert's new book (with co-author Melanie Meehan)! Kate

Honoring Joy, Skill and Purpose in Writing with Kate and Maggie Roberts Pt 1

You just can't miss this episode with the amazing authors, consultants and passionate educators Kate Roberts and Maggie Beattie Roberts! We discuss the biggest needs of

Replay! Ep 102 Help! I Don't Know What to Teach Them!

When I first began using the workshop model, I felt very unequipped to help my writers. I wasn't a writer myself and certainly had not had any training in writing or how

Independent Writing Series: Just Get Started!

This series is all about Independent Writing: The why, the what and the how! It can seem overwhelming and almost impossible to allow students to write on their own, but

Episode 132 Time Stealers turned Time SAVERS

I know there is not enough time for writing instruction. That means we need writing time to be as efficient as possible! This episode shares my top tips for making writ

Episode 131 Writing Together, Growing Together with Authors Irene Latham and Charles Waters

Listen in to another fantastic conversation with authors Irene Latham and Charles Waters. Both share their experiences and strategies for making writing an effective an

Episode 130 Struggling Writer Should Not Equal Limiting the Writer

It often seems that with writing, the first instinct for teachers when seeing a writer have difficulty is to hold them to what they are able to do correctly-to limit them