Writing Workshop: The Essential Guide From the Authors of Craft Lessons

Is the writing workshop the only way to teach writing? No. There are a variety of approaches or programs, but none of them matches the writing workshop when it comes to growing strong writers. That's why, despite the pressures of testing, the writing workshop has endured and even flourished in thousands of schools across the country.

Today we face a time when as many as ten million new teachers are entering the profession. It is for these teachers, and others who are unfamiliar with writing workshop, that Ralph Fletcher and JoAnn Portalupi wrote this book - as a way to introduce and explain the writing workshop . . . to reveal what a potent tool the writing workshop can be for empowering young writers.

Above all Writing Workshop is a practical book, providing everything a teacher needs to get the writing workshop up and running. In clear language, Fletcher and Portalupi explain the simple principles that underlie the writing workshop and explore the major components that make it work. Each chapter addresses an essential element, then suggests five or six specific things a teacher can do to implement the idea under discussion. There's also a separate chapter entitled "What About Skills," which shows how to effectively teach skills in the context of writing. The book closes with practical forms in the appendixes to ensure that the workshop runs smoothly.

Fletcher and Portalupi's twenty-plus years working with teachers have convinced them that there is no better way to teach writing. This important book is the culmination of all their years of effort, a synthesis of their best thinking on the subject.

Is the writing workshop the only way to teach writing? No. There are a variety of approaches or programs, but none of them matches the writing workshop when it comes to growing strong writers. That's why, despite the pressures of testing, the writing workshop has endured and even flourished in thousands of schools across the country. Today we face a time when as many as ten million new teachers are entering the profession. It is for these teachers, and others who are unfamiliar with writing workshop, that Ralph Fletcher and JoAnn Portalupi wrote this book - as a way to introduce and explain the writing workshop . . . to reveal what a potent tool the writing workshop can be for empowering young writers. Above all Writing Workshop is a practical book, providing everything a teacher needs to get the writing workshop up and running. In clear language, Fletcher and Portalupi explain the simple principles that underlie the writing workshop and explore the major components that make it work.

In clear language, Fletcher and Portalupi explain the simple principles that underlie the writing workshop and explore the major components that make it work.

Includes bibliographical references (p. 157-159) and index.

JoAnn Portalupi has helped teachers all over the U.S. find wiser ways of teaching writing. This is Ralph and JoAnn's third collaboration as a follow-up to Craft Lessons and Nonfiction Craft Lessons, which they coauthored for Stenhouse.

The Writing Workshop

The Essentials of Time and Space

Short-Term Goals

Launching the Workshop

Conferring with Young Writers

The Writing Cycle

Literature in the Writing Workshop

What About Skills?

Assessment and Evaluation

Troubleshooting

Yearlong Horizons

A Few Last Words

Appendixes:

A. Unfinished-Writing-Folder Form

B. Unfinished-Writing-Folder Alternate Form

C. Unfinished-Writing-Folder Conference Notes Form

D. Unfinished-Writing-Folder Alternate Teacher's Notes Form

E. Finished-Folder Contents Form

F. Finished-Folder Self-Evaluation Form

G. Books to Read Early in the Year

H. Strategies for Teaching Spelling

Record Sheet Form

J. Read-Aloud Response Form

K. Editing Checklist Form

L. Skills to Include on an Editing Checklist

M. Assessing Growth in Primary Writers

N. Assessing Growth in Elementary and Intermediate Writers

O. Self-Evaluation Form

P. Quarterly Inventory Form