Part two of the literacy practices series: Video interview of award-winning performance poets/master teachers Michael Salinger and Sara Holbrook by Dr. Sam Bommarito
As reported in this excerpt from the Write to Learn blog, I recently interviewed award-winning performance poets and master writing teachers Michael Salinger and Sara Holbrook. You can check out the video on YouTube.
In the wide-ranging interview, Michael and Sara talk about what they do when working with student writers and how teachers can employ these same strategies to get students engaged with writing.
Some of the topics they talk about are:
- How they use poetry across grade levels and content areas, virtually every day of the school year—not just during National Poetry Month!
- Why they prefer to use the term “versions” rather than “drafts” when having students revise their work.
- Strategies for keeping kids engaged during virtual writing lessons.
- Why they choose to teach writing through elements (metaphor, repetition) rather than through form (sonnet, essay).
Michael and Sara have developed an approach to teaching writing that gets kids started quickly in a very non-threatening way by using simple frameworks to start, then building complexity through revision (versions) as they go, and they will walk you step by step through this process in their upcoming workshop, “Jump Start Writing for Striving and Thriving Writers (And Everyone in Between).”
The first session takes place on November 12, followed by session two on November 19, and concludes (after a week off for Thanksgiving) on December 3.
We look forward to seeing you there!
Posted by Willy Wood
Write to Learn Conference Coordinator
Link to Register for the Conference
https://web.cvent.com/event/bf32ad3e-cd74-4eaf-87b3-ca33a66b00fd/summary
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The connection between reading and writing is well researched. Helping your students view themselves as writers and developing a writerly life is an important way to help them become lifelong readers. There were many practical tips given during the interview (e.g. teaching writing elements rather than writing form) Michael and Sara’s upcoming sessions will give you lots of new ideas to help you help your students. I’ll be attending, hope you will be too. Next week I will continue this multipart series on literacy practices. Till then- Happy reading and writing!
Dr. Sam Bommarito (aka the lifelong learner, still seeking new ways to improve my teaching)
Copyright 2020 by Dr. Sam Bommarito. Views/interpretations expressed here are solely the view of this author and do not necessarily reflect the views of any other person or organization.
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