Welcome to #TeachWriting, the bi-weekly chat about writing instruction. Tonight's host is co-founder @bkuhl2you, who will be leading our conversation about narrative!
Let's start with introductions - tell us your name, where and what you teach, and a REALLY short story or anecdote that tells us something about you . . . #TeachWriting
This chat follows a standard Q1, Q2, Q3 format. Questions start with Q1, Q2, Q3 . . . please begin your response with A1, A2, A3 . . . And enjoy the new longer character limit! #TeachWriting
I was in 1st grade, and I called my neighbor a mean name, and she pushed me down - BAM - I hit my head on the sidewalk, went to school anyway, threw up, had to go to the hospital, and THAT's how I found out I couldn't be a pilot. End of my dream. #TeachWriting
Our moderator will be tweeting out several short twitter-length stories from his various avatars on this hashtag. We're trying to share models of short twitter stories for you to look at when we ask you to do the same at the end of the chat. #TeachWriting
The first question was a new student, trying hard to blend into the wall in the back of the room. In one minute, she's going to ask you a question. . . #TeachWriting
A1 The importance of more than one voice reminds me of @Jess5th and her work with her students! Also, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and the Danger of a Single Story. Narrative is essential to celebrate all voices! #Teachwriting
A1: Writing is hard and Ss are intimidated, but they love stories in the cafeteria at lunch. Use it in writing! Story is a bridge to other types of writing. #teachwriting
Our second question is sort of loud and ornery. It's a frustrated 4-year-old with a problem. . . and it has to talk to you about that problem in one minute. . . #TeachWriting
A2 - #teachwriting - Story writing is hard work because there are so many aspects of story writing to consider, so one thing that makes it fail is . . . . not giving it sufficient time.
A2 A culture of acceptance is needed in a thoughtful writing community. Ss need to feel safe to take risks and tell THEIR story. Authentic voice and CHOICE. #Teachwriting
I also think that kids get attached to their stories like a little piece of themselves, and when a teacher doesn't see that or treats it roughly, they feel hurt or get defensive. Sometimes we have to tread lightly. #TeachWriting
Hi all! I'm Susan Hughes -- not a teacher but I do work on teacher's guides and student texts. I'm the author of many children's bks, inclding pic bks, ch bks, MG, #NF, etc. I'm up here in Canada, listening in! #teachwriting
A2 #TeachWriting S misperception of what a good story needs. They think flowery language, big drama. But many great stories thrive on authentic language, small moments/dilemmas
Another challenge is that teachers don't think it helps kids learn what they "need." That it's somehow not related to standards or learning. If you teach science, for example (like me), are we allowed to ask kids to write stories? #TeachWriting
Along with narrative, we need to hone their understanding of FEEDBACK...not correction. They need to learn the difference. We need to help them. #TeachWriting
I also think that kids get attached to their stories like a little piece of themselves, and when a teacher doesn't see that or treats it roughly, they feel hurt or get defensive. Sometimes we have to tread lightly. #TeachWriting
The THIRD question is a happy old friend - maybe a little too happy - and you're worried that you might be asked to join a party in a minute when you're, maybe, not really ready for a party right now . . . #TeachWriting
Sometimes kids jst start writing wo an idea of what the story is they want to tell -- and yet, sometimes these end up being wonderful stories, if they have time to go on, or revise, or they end up finding a direction. Too many times we outline first. #teachwriting
A2 - #teachwriting - so true! Sometimes students forfeit substance for style. That's why it's so important to read and discuss lots of different types of stories, to uncover what makes them great!
Yes! I often ask my Ss to “say it like you’d say it”—telling a story to a friend, we rarely leave our essential details or skip chunks. #teachwriting
Nice point about oral storytelling - some kids who hate writing love to stand up and tell a good story - great when you can connect those things - question about that coming up! #TeachWriting
A3 I love https://t.co/UAJabYEmGd stories told by the people who loved them. Powerful examples of narrative for students. Completely absorbing and excellent for modeling! #TeachWriting
A3 #TeachWriting increasingly, just being a public reader—creating a lending library, putting what I’m reading in my email signature, taking a few minutes at the start of class to recommend a book, etc
A3 - You ask kids to pretend to be an object or an animal, then write from that point of view. It's a great way to use imagination, writing, and develop a deeper, more meaningful and long-term understanding of concepts, systems, and relationships. #TeachWriting
A3 I love https://t.co/UAJabYEmGd stories told by the people who loved them. Powerful examples of narrative for students. Completely absorbing and excellent for modeling! #TeachWriting
Some great poetry mentor texts for that kinda thing in @ClintSmithIII Counting Descent! Poems in the voice of the ocean, a cathedral, a window, a fire hydrant #teachwriting
A3 - #teachwriting - We read lots of stories - independent, read aloud, shared, whole class novel, lit circles . . . We tell our stories just because (what happened last weekend?), and we write story, memoir, even a sentence is a very brief story.
Yes! They can turn confessional at times. Me: “I’m glad you wrote this. And this is not the audience or context for this powerful story” #teachwriting
I'm the FOURTH question, and I'm a long-winded old man who wants to tell you a long, complicated story - it might be the best story you've heard in years, or it might wander away from me in the middle. I don't know. But I'm telling you the story in ONE MINUTE. #TeachWriting
Q4 - Think about RAFT for a moment - where kids are asked to write a story from the point of view of another person, an object, an animal, etc. What are some ways you/other teachers might use this type of writing task to help kids explain and understand something? #TeachWriting
A4 Writing from the perspective of a historical figure, a cell, a raindrop...allowing the writing to develop and the voice to be crafted through imagination #TeachWriting
A4 - I was just teaching environmental science. I asked kids to write a RAFT essay from the point of view of an animal in a food web - they pick the animal, then imagine and explain a typical day - who you hunt, who hunts you. Had some cool answers. #Teachwriting
A4 #TeachWriting I’d probably lean on colleagues in the sciences, whose writing protocols for lab reports hone & reward direct observation, clarity of expression, educated guessing, etc.
A4 - Some of the most creative answers were from kids writing from the point of view of the grass. Lots of fun to read, showed some pretty serious thinking about systems and relationships. Exactly what we want, eh? #TeachWriting
Q4 - Think about RAFT for a moment - where kids are asked to write a story from the point of view of another person, an object, an animal, etc. What are some ways you/other teachers might use this type of writing task to help kids explain and understand something? #TeachWriting
Q5 - What about narrative reflection - having kids tell the story of how they learned something, or didn’t learn something. How well might narrative work when we ask kids get metacognitive? #TeachWriting
I'm working on ways we can use the mysterious script from the Indus Valley civilization - a whole language and writing system that is undeciphered - and ask kids to translate what they're saying. Need to find specific texts, scaffold, and stir up some creativity. #TeachWriting
A4: A principal I know says when 2 kids who've been fighting are sent in to see her, she asks each to "become" the other and take on their POV and argue their side. Lots of learning! Empathy. And grt tool for story-telling! #teachwriting
A5 Reflection and writing to learn are vital skills in developing mindful learners in the 21st century. It is one of the most important life skills one could teach another #Teachwriting
#teachwriting Such a GREAT idea!! I remember being so absorbed by the Rosetta Stone when I first learned about it as a kid. Pored over hieroglyphics and tried to write with them, making up my own codes!
A5 #teachwriting for my Ss @GreenhillSchool, the metacognitive thread is the hardest to rein in. They’re eager to explain the story before they’ve completed the telling. The metacognitive is what makes a story’s resolution NOT a conclusion imho
A5 - We asked our college writers to do this when I taught first year comp, and it was hard then, too. Of course, we expected a little more. The idea is to tell the story of how you learned something - beginning, middle, end. Hard to separate yourself that much. #TeachWriting
The SIXTH question talks a lot. It can't stop talking. It's kind of a problem in quiet places, but it doesn't mind. . . it might be the nicest question you've ever met. . . and it's here in one minute. . . #TeachWriting
Q6 - Do you think that oral storytelling is as effective as written storytelling as a learning tool? What’s the difference, in your opinion? #TeachWriting
A couple of years ago, @bkuhl2you was trying to lead a chat. He was super excited and super-tweety. He tweeted so much, that an obscure Twitter rule about tweeting more than 100 times in an hour kicked in, and he was blocked from tweeting. So I was born. #TeachWriting
For that kind of writing exercise, I’ve had years of success w this Hughes narrative. So much heart and drama and reflection in 880 words! #teachwritinghttps://t.co/MgBV906kJA
A6: Much more difficult to review and revise unless the oral story is taped or recorded in some way. But there is an energy in oral storytelling that comes from the spoken word that is more difficult to achieve in the written wrd. #Teachwriting
A6 The art of stories passed on throughout humanity...oral tradition of storytelling transcends culture and time. Definitely needs a place in today's classroom. #Teachwriting
A6 #teachwriting Poems were sung before they were written; stories, heard before they’re read. Tone, diction, dialogue all emerge naturally in the mouth—less naturally (to most) on the page
A6 - I think we want kids to be able to do both, but it's hard to assess and/or make other use of the oral. It's a cool way into writing, and a cool way to get kids thinking about the concept and structure of story, but not as portable or durable as writing. #TeachWriting
A6 #teachwriting I mean, to circle back to @lisahughes196, check out the rhetorical prowess of folk on @TheMoth. Or @buttonpoetry or just about any good podcast. There’s a hunger to hear *voices*
One question to rule them all,
One question to find them,
One question to bring them all
And in the twitterverse bind them!
The Lord of the Questions is coming - in one minute!
#TeachWriting
Q7 - STORY CHALLENGE - Using our new, extended 280-character canvas, tell us a story that makes a point about narrative and its use in the classroom. Take your time. . . #TeachWriting
I asked kids to write a story, and one student - a girl who had struggled with writing and reading for the past few years - wrote a fascinating and gross story about a fight between two dogs - I read it aloud, ignored the mistakes, and she transformed as a writer. #TeachWriting
A7 #Teachwriting I had my 1st original thought when I was 11. The priest said, “A certain man had two sons.” Seated behind Fr Brown in my cassock, I knew what he should teach; as if by magic, he said what I wantd him to say. What the story meant. I knew then that tales are sacred
Thanks so much for joining us tonight! We appreciate your time, attention, and contribution! Please watch here for the archive in just a few minutes - and see you in two weeks! #TeachWriting
