Ralph Fletcher outlined the Writer's Notebook effort recently at The Wayland Literacy Institute. Now, I'm reading his book, Ralph Fletcher, Author at Work, to build background and specific strategies with regard to my own writing and student writing.Similar to Fletcher's recent presentation, Author at Work provides us with an inside look at Ralph Fletcher's writing life. Fletcher writes, "I don't write for fame or money, either. Honestly, I do it because writing is fun."
That comment brought me back to Leo Lionni's book, Frederick, which tells the story of a young mouse who loves to write. In the book, Frederick uses his gift of writing and drawing to lighten the dark days of winter for his mouse friends. I'm going to begin the writing year by reading and discussing Frederick with my students. I'll also show wonderful videos of Lionni describing his writing life.
At the start of the writing year, the students and I will spend a lot of time getting to know one another as well as building a strong foundation for writing. Fletcher notes, "It's common for authors to produce something autobiographical when they write their first work." Hence, we'll share stories and artifacts of our lives as we develop our writer's workshop routines and community. We'll also spend these first weeks developing "writer's eye" as Fletcher describes it--an eye for observation as we carefully observe classmates, playground activity, courtyard beauty, and the sounds, sights, tastes, touch, and smells at home.
Reader's Workshop naturally connects to writer's workshop--the two overlap again and again, and that's why mentors such as Ellin Oliver Keene call reader's and writer's workshop, literacy studio. Fletcher's world of reading increased his desire to write. He remarks that the author "Jack London built a whole world out of words!. . .I felt jealous when I realized that--I wanted a nice fat slice of that fun for myself." Similarly I tell the students, writer's are magicians who create pictures, movies, experiences, and emotions in the reader's mind with words--amazing! Recently a local author, Juliette Fay, shared a New York Times article with me about the positive brain effects of reading fiction. Hence, reading, as we always suspected, is good for us in many, many ways including its effect on writing.
Multiple writing tools are available to students today, so I won't let handwriting get in the way. At the Wayland Literacy Institute, Fletcher pointed out that handwriting gets in the way of writers, particularly boy writers. A skilled colleague and writer, Kristin Murphy, noted that research has shown that keyboarding rather than handwriting has been proven to effectively develop writing skill and fluency. Hence, multiple tools such as keyboarding, speech-to-text, handwriting, and the use of a student or teacher "secretary" will be available during my classroom writing workshop.
Plenty of positive reenforcement will also be available as I play to students writing interests and strengths. Fletcher demonstrates the power of positive support when he tells the stories of the many relatives who encouraged his writing. Fletcher writes, "Writing at home was fun because there was no teacher around to tell me what to write about, grade it, or correct my handwriting." Hence, there's a need for the classroom to be a "home away from home" where children feel comfortable exploring, practicing, and following their passions and interests.
Fletcher shares the strength and wonder of the writer's notebook. Similar to Fletcher, my love of writing began in high school when my wonderful English teacher, Ms. Habestro, demanded that we keep a daily notebook, one that she didn't micromanage, but instead a notebook that she responded to with positivity and encouragement. Fletcher describes the categories of writing he includes in his writer's notebook including fascinating facts, quotes, trivia, descriptions of people and places, bits of conversation, artifacts, goof around writing, projects, and feelings. I think I'll use these descriptors to craft individual lessons for students, times when students are able to try out Fletcher's writer's notebook ideas.
As the writing days get established for my class, Team 15, I'll pause to read Fletcher's chapter 1, "My Missing Manuscript" to students as we begin to discuss editing, conferencing, and revising. In that chapter, Fletcher describes his dismay when he notices that ". . .on every single page my editor had attached an electric-pink sticky note containing a question or suggestion about how I might make the story better, clearer, stronger."
In chapter five, Fletcher describes "Drafting" and "what works for him." As I work with students I'll regularly circle around to the question, "What works for you as a writer?" We'll discuss that as a class too as we talk about writing routines, times, clothes, and spaces." After Fletcher lets us in on the structure of his writing life, he describes drafting as ". . .the fun part, generating ideas, learning about the story, finding its shape, fleshing it out." Unlike Fletcher's recommendations, our ELA program still requires us to focus on specific genre at specific times. I'll separate my writer's workshop into two threads: the "free-write" thread and the focused, genre thread. Each week we'll spend time on both threads. I plan to read "Drafting" to students as we embark on the drafting stage of our personal narrative unit, then I'll reread that chapter again when we work on fictional narratives as well as MCAS prep.
Only in my later years have I had the patience for revision. Blogging and posting on the Internet have led me there. Knowing that my work is read by many has made me much more conscious of the intent, craft, and meaning of my prose. Hence, one way to invigorate revision for students is making sure that you've chosen an audience at the start of a project, and ensuring that student work is published and read regularly by a much larger audience than the teacher and parent. "Bottom line: revision can be a painful process, but it's necessary," Fletcher writes. Similar to "Drafting," I'll read this chapter multiple times to students as they learn about and embark on revision with each genre and the "free-writes" that they want to publish.
I have read Fig Pudding by Ralph Fletcher many times. I will read the story again as the students and I embark on the personal narrative unit. At that time, I'll read Fletcher's paragraphs, "Fig Pudding" and "A Conversation with Ralph Fletcher" to students. The chapters are short and succinct. Each chapter serves as a fine start to a reading/writing focus lesson.
Ralph Fletcher avails himself to budding authors young and old in his book, Ralph Fletcher, Author at Work. I recommend this book as a great mentor text for writing workshop, writer's notebook, and students' writing year. Next, I'll read his book, Live Writing, Breathing Life Into Your Words, to support students' and my craft with greater intention and detail. Stay tuned.
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