Stenhouse Newslinks December 2, 2005 C O N T E N T S 1) When Writing Workshop Isn't Working 2) PD Corner: Getting into grammar 3) Stenhouse author spotlight 4) Helping adolescent readers determine what's important 5) Author Conversations: Debbie Miller & Kathy Collins, Part III Note: If you'd rather not receive Newslinks in the future, just forward this message to unsubscribe@stenhouse.com. ---------------------------------------------------------------- 1) When Writing Workshop Isn't Working ---------------------------------------------------------------- "I love the format of this book--the way it's organized around hard, yet common questions that we've all asked ourselves about writing quality, organization, revision, management, planning, and even test writing." --Stephanie Harvey "A smart, practical first aid kit for writing teachers." --Georgia Heard How do you motivate students who don't know what to write about? What about those who need help crafting more complete and interesting sentences? And how do you manage writing conferences effectively? In his new book, When Writing Workshop Isn't Working, Mark Overmeyer draws on his experience as a literacy coordinator and teacher to answer these questions and many others that arise. Filled with student examples from grades 2-5, this concise handbook offers a range of suggestions--not one-size-fits-all prescriptions--and each chapter includes a section on working with ELL students. When Writing Workshop Isn't Working is available now in print, and you can also review the entire book on-line here: http://www.stenhouse.com/0404.asp?r=n79 When Writing Workshop Isn't Working: Answers to Ten Tough Questions, Grades 2-5 * Mark Overmeyer * 144 pp/paper * $16.00 Foreword by Stephanie Harvey http://www.stenhouse.com/0404.asp?r=n79 And check out this 9-minute podcast interview with Mark Overmeyer, by Paul Cryderman of the Red Cedar Writing Project, at the NCTE Annual Convention last month. Mark talks about the genesis of his book, assessment in writing workshop, and formulaic writing: http://www.stenhouse.com/rdovermeyer.htm ---------------------------------------------------------------- 2) PD Corner: Getting into grammar ---------------------------------------------------------------- *December Quote of the Month* "Only in grammar can you be more than perfect." --William Safire There is an amazing variety of resources on the web for teachers interested in grammar--so much that it's hard to wade through. If you want to start a discussion of grammar and usage at a staff meeting, a good piece to share is "Usage Experts Change Their Minds, Too." This brief essay, by the executive editor of the American Heritage Dictionary, explains how usage of certain words evolves over time: http://www.eeicommunications.com/eye/usage.html Bartleby.com is a great source of reference books that you can access in their entirety at no charge. They've posted the original William Strunk classic, Elements of Style, here: http://www.bartleby.com/141/ The University of Ottawa's HyperGrammar site has lots of quick links to definitions and web tools for grammar mavens: http://www.uottawa.ca/academic/arts/writcent/hypergrammar/ Paul Brians, a Washington State University professor, has catalogued the most common errors in English at his popular web site: http://www.wsu.edu/~brians/errors/ The new Stenhouse book on merging craft and grammar instruction, Jeff Anderson's Mechanically Inclined, is still available to preview in its entirety: http://www.stenhouse.com/0412.asp?r=n79 ---------------------------------------------------------------- 3) Stenhouse author spotlight ---------------------------------------------------------------- ***Congratulations to Matt Copeland, author of Socratic Circles http://www.stenhouse.com/0394.asp?r=n79, who received a $25,000 Milken Educator Award, given nationally to less than 100 outstanding educators each year: http://reference.aol.com/printcanvas?id=20051104125609990001 ***Judith Tannenbaum's memoir, Disguised as a Poem: My Years Teaching at San Quentin, is available from the University Press of New England: http://www.upne.com/1-55553-453-8.html Judith is author of Teeth, Wiggly as Earthquakes: Writing Poetry in the Primary Grades http://www.stenhouse.com/0323.asp?r=n79. ***Aimee Buckner, author of Notebook Know-How http://www.stenhouse.com/0413.asp?r=n79, is featured in the syndicated column "A+ Advice for Parents," where she explains how daily writing can help students even if it's not being "corrected" by the teacher: http://www.stenhouse.com/rdaplus.htm ---------------------------------------------------------------- 4) Helping adolescent readers determine what's important ---------------------------------------------------------------- In "The Power of Purposeful Reading" (Educational Leadership), Cris Tovani writes about how teachers can improve their students' comprehension by helping them determine importance in text: http://www.stenhouse.com/rdimportance.htm Cris Tovani is the best-selling author of the following books and video series: I Read It, but I Don't Get It http://www.stenhouse.com/0089.asp?r=n79 Do I Really Have to Teach Reading? http://www.stenhouse.com/0376.asp?r=n79 Thoughtful Reading (videos) http://www.stenhouse.com/0369.asp?r=n79 Comprehending Content (videos) http://www.stenhouse.com/0375.asp?r=n79 ---------------------------------------------------------------- 5) Author Conversations: Debbie Miller & Kathy Collins, Part III ---------------------------------------------------------------- In the final installment of this three-part video series, Debbie Miller and Kathy Collins talk about the benefits of having a designated time for partner reading: http://www.stenhouse.com/conversations.asp?r=n79 ---------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------- Please send comments and questions to Chuck Lerch, Newslinks Editor, ator call (800) 988-9812. 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