teaching emerging writers from drawing to writing by gail cartee
TRANSCRIPT
Teaching Emerging Writers from Drawing to Writing
by Gail Cartee
What if children are introduced to key qualities of good writing in the context of illustrations? What if children gain lots and lots of experience planning, drafting, revising, editing content in the process of composing illustrations for their books?
Katie Wood Ray
ROAD BLOCK!
How do I move children from list books to writing stories with a beginning, middle, and
end?
Goals:
Children will be able to notice important features in both illustrations and text in mentor texts.
Children will be able to identify beginning, middle and end in mentor texts.
Children will be able to create their own books using features of mentor texts.
Children write picture books easily because they are most familiar with picture books. K.W. Ray
How do we get there?
We could easily spend the first several weeks of writing workshop teaching specific things about drawing.
Matt Glover, Heinemann
August: Mentor texts to teach shapes. Drawing and combining shapes to create shape books. (List books)
September: Mentor texts to teach colors. Adding color to drawings in book making.
September: Retelling stories with skits
September/October: Mentor texts to teach beginning middle and end. (Transitions to narrative books.)
What’s the importance of making picture books? Picture books:
are a familiar kind of writing.
expand avenues for meaning –making.
forces the issue of composition.
helps children read like writers.
builds stamina for writing.
is fun and children like it. K. W. Ray
When children are making picture books, teach into the illustration part of the composing process.
Linger longer with the illustrations
Use color and other media to make meaning
Expand what the words say by intentionally composing with illustrations.
Katie Wood Ray
Works cited
Glover, M. 2009. engaging young writers: Preschool-Grade1. Portsmouth, NH: Heinnemann.
Ray, K.W., and M. Glover. 2008. Already Ready: Nurturing Writers in Preschool and Kindergarten. Portsmouth, NH: Heinnemann.
Ray, K.W. 2010. In Pictures and In Woods: Teaching the Qualities of Good WritingThrough Illustration Study, Portsmouth, NH: Heinnemann.