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WritingFix: The Mentor Text of the Year
a network that shares ideas for using great texts about the topic: what writers do What's a Mentor Text of the Year? Occasionally a great mentor text addresses a topic we're very fond of here at WritingFix: how to write like a real author. A mentor text that explores this important theme deserves to be brought out again and again (and again) during the same school year. A book about the craft of writing that has much more than limited appeal...that's a MTotY to us! Each year, this Mentor Text of the Year program selects a different book (or two books that complement each other) that shares advice on writing from a published writer. Share how the Mentor Text inspires a lesson! Teachers users of WritingFix are invited to purchase the text, incorporate it into a writing lesson or two or ten, then share how they used the book with us. Our favorite ideas submitted to this webpage will be published here on this page, and teachers whose ideas are published will be sent a complimentary copy of one of the Northern Nevada Writing Project's Print Publications. Join us at our Ning if you Plan on Sharing. Each year, We ask teachers to consider sharing any of the following with us by posting them (as simple write-ups or as attachments) at our Using Writer's Notebooks Group at our Ning. In order to post you will need to be a member of the Ning and specifically join the ning's Using Writer's Notebooks Interest Group. Here is a general list of things we are looking for:
For 2010-2011, we've selected Ralph Fletcher's A Writer's Notebook: Unlocking the Writer Within You, and to complement it, we've chosen Marissa Moss's wonderful and fictional "journal", Amelia's Notebook. A writer's notebook is a perfect tool for teaching better idea development, which is one of the six writing traits. In Northern Nevada, we're challenging our K-12 teachers to put a writer's notebook in place this year ( if they never have before), or we're challenging them to improve their use of notebooks that's already in place. We've handed out a great number of these books to Nevada teachers who plan to share their ideas and adaptations with us. Those ideas will become a part of this page. But...we also want teachers from around the country and world to join us in this endeavor. Both mentor texts of the year are easy and fast to read, they both have excerpts that are worth sharing out loud in class, and they could easily find their way into a piece of instruction that's worth sharing back with our website. This page of resources is set-up to be a network. We hope you're inspired to share; we do send NNWP Print Guides to the teachers who sent us our favorite ideas! And...If you'd like a hand in helping us select the MTotY for the 2011-12 school year, now is the time nominate texts. Click here to see texts that have already been nominated.
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And Amelia's Notebook by Marissa Moss, prominently displayed in your classroom chalk tray at all times, is a perfect tool for reminding students how creative and personal a writers notebook can and should be. Author Marissa Moss has created a wonderful book, story, and tool that will inspire your writers to collect their thoughts in a notebook. The book also shows how voice is very important in notebook writing. And it provides ideas for topics. The fact that it looks like a notebook written in a composition book is pure genius on the author's part These are the two titles that we will be accepting lessons, activity write-ups, and inspired student samples for all year long, starting in August 2010. If you've ever wanted to have a copy of any of the NNWP Publications for your classroom, remember that we give away complimentary copies of those guides to teachers who send us their original lesson ideas inspired by the mentor text of the year. Between now and August, we invite teachers to start looking at both titles and thinking of how you could use it as a mentor text when inspiring your students! |
Share Classroom Notebook |
Our First Lesson is Posted, Inspired by Amelia's Ideas and Voice |
Our WritingFix Journal & Notebook Homepage |
We've set up an online environment for our teachers to share the ways they teach with writer's notebooks and to ask questions of each other. To Join in the Discussion, click here, and You will not be able to post or ask questions unless you're a member of our Writing Lesson of the Month Ning. |
The lesson is called "Planning a Fierce Wondering Story," and we hope it inspires teachers to write down theirr lessons for using this year's MTofY! |
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Our Featured Author Shares: Marissa Moss, author of the Amelia Notebook Series |
Our Featured Author Shares: Ralph Fletcher, author of A Writer's Notebook |
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I could offer some new thoughts on the writer's notebook. These two thoughts aren't exactly connected, but here goes. I see a tendency for teachers to direct students to use the notebook in a particular way. While I understand this, I would caution against turning the writer's notebook into a teacher-directed workbook. To the extent that the notebook becomes our thing, it loses power for the students. Somehow, some way, students must feel that they own their writers notebooks. I am very interested finding better ways to engage boy writers. If we emphasize the notebook as a place to pour out deep feelings, well, boys may not resonate with that. However, boys are collectors. (Girls are often collectors, too.) I have had good luck "selling" the notebook to boys as a place to collect stuff. That seems to make sense to them. |
When you read Marshfield Dreams, you'll be taken in by the wonderful, nostalgic memories embedded in the book's short-but-powerful chapters. When you start to analyze Fletcher's strengths as a writer for the purpose of discussing them with your students, you'll probably keep coming back to these three writing traits: idea development, voice, and word choice. During 2009-2010, we gave over 100 copies of Marshfield Dreams to participants in our teachers workshops. Together, we designed dozens of chapter-inspired writing lessons. Below are some of the favorites we created. |
A Teacher-Suggested Prompt:
Students Create: A personal "Heart Map" that shows topics that are personally important to them. Throughout the year, students refer to these "Maps" to find new writing topics. This prompt suggestion was e-mailed to us at webmaster@writingfix.com by New Jersey teacher, Erin Decker. We sent Erin a complimentary copy of the NNWP's Secondary Writing Guide for sharing her idea!
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Lesson 1: Borrowing Narrative Skills from Mr. Fletcher inspired by the "First Pen" chapter |
Lesson 2: Bizarre Foods with Ralph Fletcher inspired by the "Eating the World " chapter |
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Mentor Text: How To Write Your Life Story, chapter one Students Create: I Am Poems inspired by Heart Map Collages
Lisa also shared with us this I Am Poem Planning Worksheet and her I Am Poem scoring guide. |
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A Teacher-Suggested Comparison/Contrast Writing Prompt:
Students Create: A short piece of narrative writing about visiting (verb) relatives or visiting (adjective) relatives. This prompt suggestion was e-mailed to us at webmaster@writingfix.com by Oregon teacher, Paula Harpel. We sent Paula a complimentary copy of the NNWP's Elementary Writing Guide for sharing her idea! |
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A Great Picture Book with Solid Advice for Writers!
In Roni Schotter's Nothing Ever Happens on 90th Street, the main character--Eva--is struggling to write in her writers notebook until four of her neighbors stop by and give her four excellent pieces of advice on how writers write. Eva uses each piece of advice, and she is off both composing and revising. We selected this book as our very first Mentor Text of the Year because we felt the four pieces of advice were good enough to be used in any writing lesson throughout the school year. |
Original student samples inspired by Roni's book
Person/Character: a warrior Swish!! Swish!! You could hear the fighting noises from miles away as the warrior and the enemy brawled on the old, rickety, wooden bridge, arching over a long, skinny river. The bridge was a squeaky mouse as they clashed their heavy feet, battling over the treasure. Dressed in her bleach-white ghi with a pitch-black belt wrapped around her thin waist, the warrior karate chops the enemy. “HOI YA!” she shouts. All of a sudden the enemy flips the warrior and she lands on the ground next to a nearby bush. Searching around for a rock, the warrior reaches back and finds something solid in the bush. She pulls it out and notices it’s a sandal. She wonders for a moment until she sees her enemy approaching. Knowing that she has no time, she quickly throws the sandal forcefully. Flipping in the air and spinning and spinning like there’s no tomorrow, the sandal knocks the enemy over, onto the bridge. The force of his fall causes the bridge to break. Suddenly, the enemy and the sandal fall into the river. At the same time, the treasure is catapulted into the air and the warrior watches it land on the other side. The enemy sinks into the water and floats downstream with the skinny sandal. While she watches the enemy float away, the courageous warrior thinks, “What if the enemy comes back for revenge?”
Person/Character: a sailor Captain MacLeod had been sailing the oceans ever since he was a wee lad. This night was different; it was darker and deeper than ever before. Captain MacLeod was standing on the bow of the boat in his yellow rain suit. He had no use for it tonight, but he just loved wearing it. The black waves silently hit the side of the slippery hull, making the boat rock back and forth, back and froth. The sea spray scorched his eyes, but he didn’t care. The waves started to grow larger, rocking the boat violently. Then, a huge black mass arose out of the water. It had red eyes and smelled of rotten flesh. Suddenly, something crashed into the side of the boat. Captain MacLeod reached for his rifle. He aimed at the creature’s eye. “What if?” he thought. “What if I miss?" |
Overview: After cleverly playing with the four pieces of writing advice from the book, students compose a paragraph about a character with an object in a setting. Students attempt to use all four pieces of advice from the book as they create a paragraph that might launch a longer story. After revising their paragraphs, students should be challenged to turn their paragraphs into longer stories. |
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An e-mail message from Roni Schotter
Some time ago a teacher told me about your website and I checked it out and actually linked it to my website. I felt honored and delighted to read what you wrote and shared about my book. Now when you tell me that you have named 90TH STREET a "Mentor Text of the Year," I am truly honored! When educators appreciate my books it is so special for me. You are the gatekeepers--the people who introduce children to the world of words and literature--a sacred trust, if you ask me. So, again, it is such an honor for me to know that you and other teachers consider my book of help and interest. I wrote it out of my passion for words and story, and out of my desire to share that passion with children and encourage them to recognize the stories in THEIR lives, and be inspired to write about them.
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A 90th Street Lesson from WritingFix's Revision Workshop |
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Lesson overview: Each corner of your room becomes the "home" of one of the four advice-offering residents of 90th Street. Before revision, students look over their drafts and decide which character's advice might improve their draft during revision. Students go to the appropriate corner and, before revising, discuss how they believe they can improve their writing with other students thinking about applying the same advice. If there is time, students can move to a second corner and apply a different character's advice to their writing. The trick is to know when to stop your students so they don't over revise and make their writing worse. To access this new and popular revision technique, click here. |
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Just a Few 90th Street Ideas e-mailed to us by Teachers during 2008-2009 |
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"I love this book, but I find it to be a long story to read aloud in one sitting with my fifth graders. The first third of the book is about Eva getting writing advice from her neighbors, then the last two-thirds is about the story she creates. I break it up so that on the first day we read up to her getting the fourth piece of advice (from the soup lady). "For a few days we just talk about the advice and try it out in our own journals. A few days later, we review the advice and then read the rest of the story."
__________________________________________________________ "What a great choice for your book of the year! I have used this book for the past four years at the beginning of the year to kick off my picture-book writing lessons! "After reading the book to the students, I tell them that for homework they have to pick a spot by their house, inside or out, where they can sit quietly for fifteen minutes observing everything around them. Their assignment is to write down every thing they see, hear, feel, smell, etc. in fifteen minutes. "The next day in class we revisit the characters in the story and their writing tips for Eva. Then the students read over their lists, eliminating any thing that they don’t think will fit in their 'Nothing Ever Happens…' stories. (The title of their story will be their address put in place of '90th Street.' This really seems to personalize the story for them, as everyone likes to write about themselves!) "Next, we talk about the elements of the story that they should include….a bit of poetry (alliteration seems to work best for fourth graders!), a hint of romance (usually they choose to have animals fall in love at this age!), stretching the truth to make the story better, and finally using 'spicy' words to make their story come alive! "After editing and revising, the students add they own touches to the cover and we present the stories for everyone to read! They remember these writing tips all year in all of the other writings that they do, especially that the whole world is a 'stage' and there are stories everywhere! This book is also a great way to introduce the writing traits, beginning with 'ideas.'"
__________________________________________________________ "I teach 6th grade. I planned on having the kids 'map their neighborhood' to get ideas for writing personal narratives. I modeled the neighborhood where I grew up. The class was excited as they drew their own neighborhoods and label events within those areas. One kid drew a great map and then said, 'I can't think of anything that ever happens in my neighborhood.'
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"After reading Nothing Ever Happens on 90th Street, I had my students form groups based on which advice they liked best. Students worked in small groups to paraphrase the advice onto sentence strips, or write a quote from the book about the advice. I placed the sentence strips on the bulletin board along with each character's picture. "Now after students finish a piece of writing, they highlight their favorite part. Students place their best writing excerpts onto sentence strips, which are added under the advice from the book."
__________________________________________________________ "Let me first say that your website has been an inspiration to my teaching and to my work with colleagues! Thank you!! "I used your lesson for Nothing Ever Happens on 90th Street with my 6th Grade students this school year. This book truly was a mentor text for Writing Workshop in my classroom throughout the year. We often referred back to the different pieces of advice during peer collaborations/revisions, mini-lessons, and writing discussions. But, I felt like this text could play a larger role for writing beyond the walls of my own classroom. I kept playing around with the idea until almost the end of our school year and then it hit me. I have been asked to leave the classroom and step into the role of academic coach for our K-6 building. The first action I took, after signing my contract, was to order a copy of this book for every classroom teacher. "My plans are to utilize this text as an anchor piece in facilitating writing workshop for our entire school building. During our back to school in-service, I will provide the teachers with this text and the lesson plan from your site. We will then spend some collaboration time discussing ideas for utilization in their individual classrooms. Once the teachers have gotten Writer's Workshop underway and have utilized your lesson, I am making plans for the students in our school to receive advice from the various faculty and staff employed on our campus. The students will take a 'field trip' around the building to see if Nothing Ever Happens on Ouachita 88. Visits will include a stop in the cafeteria to receive advice from the food service staff about putting flavor into your writing with word choice. Another stop will be in the principal's office where students associate discipline and guidance and they will hear advice on using structure to build a good solid piece of writing with content and remembering to follow the mechanical rules when editing. Students will also visit with the art teacher who will advise the students to use their pencil to paint with words like an artist paints a beautiful picture on a canvas. One stop will include a visit to our school music teacher who will talk to the students about rhythm and beat and our unique voice in writing to make music in our ears. "When I spoke to our principal about this project, she was thrilled at the idea. I've also spoken to the other various faculty members who will be playing key roles, all are excited and on-board. I can't wait for school to start again next fall! I am anxious to see the results in our student writing! Talk about a learning community! "Thank you for all of the wonderful tools and resources you provide!"
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WritingFix's Popular 90th Street Lesson! 
Dear Corbett and WritingFix, 
Lesson:
Show; Don't Tell!: Secrets of Writing Theme: The Year of Idea Development |
The Boy Who Loved Words Theme: The Year of Word Choice |
Written Anything Good Lately? Theme: The Year of Writing Genres |
Voting will happen in April of 2011. You can nominate a title/theme between now and March of 2011. Send your nominations to webmaster@writingfix.com |
Copyright 2010 - The Northern Nevada Writing Project and WritingFix- All Rights Reserved |
