Considers how students' texts are rituals that should both sanction existing truths and consecrate inventive freedom. Notes that in teaching writing, educators limit students' development by training them to practice only one kind of public ritual: the "official feast" of thesis-and-support writing. (SG)

Argues, in the context of national concern about standards in writing, for a reconceptualisation of the teaching of writing that acknowledges both the significance of the writer's voice and the need to teach about how written texts create meaning. Considers how young writers need opportunities to express their ideas and support in developing…

Describes the use of an interactive calendar that incorporates reading and writing in its use. Discusses a typical lesson, managing the interactive calendar, changes throughout the year, extensions and variations of the interactive calendar, and benefits of using the interactive calendar. Urges every primary teacher to learn about interactive…

Notes that most English-language haiku are not written in the 5-7-5 syllable format. Discusses the nature of haiku. Describes a three-day lesson plan for teaching haiku. Appends hints for writing haiku, and lists books and Internet sites concerning teaching haiku. (RS)

Discusses: poetry as a prereading activity; collaborative invention of poems; poet as gatherer of ideas; considering the poetic memory; remembering people through poetic memory; communication and creation; form and meaning; and engaging all students. (RS)

Describes how a high school English teacher taught herself how to use hypertext in her classroom. Discusses how she used it in her creative writing classes and then moved on to use it in her other classes. Notes the positive responses of her students to the activities. (RS)

Asserts that student misbehavior is linked to poor reading and writing skills. Suggests ways to improve reading and writing literacy based on experience with a literacy program in the Orange County (FL) Public Schools. Three-year study of the program found significant improvement in reading comprehension, student self-esteem, and classroom…

The acknowledged expert on the 6+1 traits of writing explains what the traits are and what they are not: The traits are not a curriculum; they are part and parcel of the writing process; they are a model, not a program; they are not a prepackaged replacement for teaching writing; and they are the language of the writing workshop. The author…

While academic discourse communities have been extensively studied as social contexts of forms/functions, and teachers, lessons, and students have been researched from every imaginable angle, the prevailing view of academic writing conventions is still quite normative. The conventions of the academy are often regarded as a stable collection of…

The experience of two teachers in teaching persuasive writing to their students is narrated. Persuasive writing can be taught in a principled way while also preparing students for high-stakes tests.

The history and philosophy of cultural studies is summarized explaining that cultural studies approaches to composition are concerned with delivering popular culture as subject matter into writing instruction, and that they do so by imagining a wide range of social phenomena. Paradoxically, in the professional literature on pedagogy within…

Creative warm-up activities help most of the articulate students who hate writing and unblock the most reluctant writers. Some of the warm-up activities for students in elementary grades that help in taking the fright out of writing, or just reduce the initial resistance are described.

Students will see writing as a powerful act when they learn to analyze a published author's writing style and send a written critique straight to the source. The author critiques help students to analyze their own writing and the Sentence Opening Sheet is an excellent device for this purpose as it reformats the text so that students can see their…

The effectiveness of writing instruction and process writing are discussed. The process writing approach has a significant impact on the U.S. education and hence, the principles of process writing provide guidance to teachers on potentially effective instructional practices.

In "Dialogic Origin," Mikhail Bakhtin -- as teacher-researcher and theorist -- presents readers with a remarkable essay on teaching grammar and style to 7th-year students (roughly equivalent to 10th graders in the U.S. educational system). In doing so, Bakhtin employs some of his most notable concepts (among them dialogism and "hero") as informing…