Is That a Fact?

The book you are about to read is destined to be the first, middle, and maybe even the last word on nonfiction writing for young, young children. It is certainly a text that you will return to over and over again as you do with a beloved cookbook.
—from the Foreword by Tomie dePaola

Over eighty- five percent of the reading and writing we do as adults is nonfiction, yet most of the reading and writing in K–3 classrooms is fiction or personal narrative. In Is That a Fact? Teaching Nonfiction Writing K-3, Tony Stead shows you how to open the door to the rich world of nonfiction writing that goes beyond "what I did" narratives and animal reports. And he convincingly demonstrates the importance of introducing nonfiction writing in the primary grades.

Nonfiction inspires enthusiasm in young children because they can choose topics that are of interest to them personally. Is That a Fact? explores a variety of authentic purposes for writing nonfiction, such as describing, explaining, instructing, persuading, retelling, and exploring relationships with others. You will learn how to introduce each purpose using a variety of forms, including letters, reports, poetry, captions, directions, and interviews.

Part One provides a complete overview of teaching nonfiction writing in the primary grades and includes:

• practical ways for organizing nonfiction resources within the classroom;
• how to assist children in collecting information for research;
• ideas for helping children keep their sense of voice when writing nonfiction;
• a chapter on spelling, with examples of how to guide students at each stage of spelling development;
• strategies for assessment and evaluation that guide teaching and learning engagements.

Part Two provides five different explorations that were implemented in actual K–3 classrooms. Each focuses on a specific purpose for writing nonfiction and features:

• examples of whole-class, small-group, and independent instructional engagements;
• a comprehensive assessment rubric that will help teachers tailor instruction to the needs of all learners;
• an extensive resource section that includes lists of books in the exploration, grouped by readability levels;
• answers to the most commonly asked questions about teaching nonfiction writing.

The appendixes include a self-assessment questionnaire, reproducible pages for exploring specific writing forms, and letters to parents.

Children need to be introduced to the different purposes of nonfiction writing. They need to know how to plan, compose, revise, and publish nonfiction beyond narrative. Is That a Fact? guides you in achieving these goals with your students.

Table of Contents

Click on the green links to the right for readable chapters (new titles are available in full)

Contents Part One: Teaching Nonfiction Writing 1. Opening Doors to a World of Possibilities 2. An Approach to Teaching Nonfiction Writing 3. Helping Children Locate Information 4. Interpreting, Recording, Publishing, and Sharing Information 5. Helping with Spelling Part Two: Explorations in Action 6. Instructional Writing 7. Descriptive Reports 8. Scientific Explanations 9. Persuasive Writing 10. Nonfiction Narrative 11. Your Questions Answered Appendixes Bibliography

Reviews

"Throughout the book, Stead makes his own pedagogy clear. He believes that young children can be successful with nonfiction writing, that it has value even when it is not directly connected to school, district, or state assessments, and that time spent on an in-depth study of nonfiction forms pays off in the long run…Reading Stead, I see ways to make my own nonfiction writing instruction richer and more rigorous, incorporating some of his ideas, and adjusting others to fit my own approaches. Is That a Fact? Teaching Nonfiction Writing K-3 is a resource that respects young students and their teachers."
The Quarterly--of the National Writing Project, Fall, 2002

"If you are interested in incorporating more nonfiction into your curriculum, there is probably no better book available for primary teachers than this one."
—Educationoasis.com

About the Author

Tony Stead became a teacher because he wanted to make a difference in children's lives. And he is certainly doing that through his publications, teaching, and work with teachers, all over the world.
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