Here are some great ideas on writing for the new school year. Courtesy of Choice Literacy.

July 26, 2014 - Issue #392 If you are having trouble reading this newsletter, click here for a Web-based version. Beautiful Questions    always the more beautiful answer, who asks a more beautiful question . . .                                                             e. e. cummings I picked the theme of "renewal" for a series of writing retreats this year. What I quickly discovered is that it wasn't easy to find readings connected to the topic. As I searched with the usual tools in the usual places, most of what came up was religious -- which makes sense, because people who are soul weary are often looking for spiritual renewal. But I didn't think starting out our revision and response sessions with "Let us pray" would go over well at these secular writing retreats. The books that weren't religious often focused on time management or had gimmicky leadership tips.  I was close to giving up when I stumbled on A More Beautiful Question: The Power of Inquiry to Spark Breakthrough Ideas by Warren Berger. The book includes the sobering finding of researchers that children are taught to squelch their natural tendency to ask profound and creative questions at an early age (and schools are a big part of that). A More Beautiful Question looks at case studies from many fields of visionaries who broke through with ideas that upended the status quo by asking better questions. These questions are sometimes jolting, sometimes elegant, but always at their heart renewing, because they push the questioner to look harder and deeper at an issue vexing everyone in their field. As I read the book, I realized stress is nothing more than the questions we pester ourselves with continually. These "stress" questions may vary, but just contemplating the answers is a dull scrape to the spirit we give ourselves again and again: How can I quit this job I hate and still pay the mortgage? How much worse is my mom's Alzheimer's going to get? What can I do to get the kids' test scores up? You're going to ask yourself questions all day long - it's what humans do. So why not make them beautiful? If you're looking for renewal, stress reduction, balance, or a peaceful heart this summer (whatever you want to call it), maybe it begins with a bold, specific, and joyful question. A more beautiful question is one you can ask yourself about work every day that makes you want to jump out of bed and start thinking. What's the most joyful thing that will happen in my class this morning? How will my students take charge of their learning today? Who supports my learning and growth most in the school, and how can I reciprocate and support them more? I'm working on my big beautiful question for the school year right now. What might yours be? This week we look at student writers. Plus more as always -- enjoy! Brenda Power Founder, Choice Literacy Free for All [For sneak peeks at our upcoming features, quotes and extra links,  follow Choice Literacy on Twitter: @ChoiceLiteracy or Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ChoiceLiteracy or Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/choiceliteracy/]   Here are two articles from the archives to help make your writing workshops stronger than ever. Ruth Shagoury finds even five- and six-year-olds can develop independent conferring skills in Mix It Up: Helping Young Writers Learn to Confer with Peers and Teachers: http://www.choiceliteracy.com/articles-detail-view.php?id=61 We all experience slumps. Clare Landrigan has one in her fitness routine and uses the learning from it to develop principles for helping student writers overcome slumps: http://www.choiceliteracy.com/articles-detail-view.php?id=526 Are you looking for some fun mentor texts for discussions with young learners about the writing process? The LitforKids blog has compiled an annotated list of Picture Books for Young Writers: http://litforkids.wordpress.com/2014/01/11/picture-books-for-writers/ Ralph Fletcher shares his writing habits in this three-minute video. This is a good conversation starter for a professional development workshop on routines: http://asuonline.wistia.com/medias/8edcvoppew Have you visited Lead Literacy yet? It's our subscription membership site designed specifically for the needs of literacy coaches. You can view sample content at this link: http://www.leadliteracy.com/it-list/4

As you begin the school year, here are some ideas about the lay out in your rooms. Courtesy of Choice Literacy.

August 9, 2014 - Issue #394 If you are having trouble reading this newsletter, click here for a Web-based version.   Home   I would really rather feel bad in Maine than feel good anywhere else.                                                                    E.B. White   Last January I visited Keri Archer's kindergarten classroom in the teeth of flu season. Almost half the children were absent, and Keri and the weary remainder were all coughing and sniffling. It was one of those days when as a class visitor I would casually wander over to the sink and do a whole-body spritz with the hand sanitizer every five minutes. And yet, I looked around at the bright hand-painted tables, the cozy pillows, the charmingly mismatched but oh-so-carefully selected chairs that seemed to whisper "come and sit a spell." I realized Keri had created one of those places where you'd rather be there feeling a mite poorly than almost anywhere else feeling well. The classroom felt like home, no small feat for any teacher trying to navigate draconian fire codes, lice-resistant seating, and the requirements to post sterile standards prominently. What are you planning for your classroom this fall to make it feel more like home for your students? Favorite family photographs they bring in for you to frame and scatter among the shelves? Self-portrait craft projects or sketches of favorite fiction characters from years past? What will give a sense of welcome, warm as a hearth, when children return to school? This week we look at classroom design. Plus more as always -- enjoy!     Brenda Power Founder, Choice Literacy     Free for All   [For sneak peeks at our upcoming features, quotes and extra links,  follow Choice Literacy on Twitter: @ChoiceLiteracy or Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ChoiceLiteracy or Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/choiceliteracy/]     Here are two features from the archives to help you make classroom design changes to support literacy.   Ann Marie Corgill writes about the beginning point for classroom design in Starting with Why:   http://www.choiceliteracy.com/articles-detail-view.php?id=1637     Katie Doherty finds out a lot about her middle school students as readers when she spends the first week letting them define and design her classroom library:   http://www.choiceliteracy.com/articles-detail-view.php?id=442     Katherine Sokolowski does a video blog post on how design possibilities opened up in her classroom once she got rid of her teacher desk:   http://goo.gl/kYwCZI     The Choice Literacy Pinterest board Take a Seat highlights creative classroom seating options from our contributors:   http://www.pinterest.com/choiceliteracy/take-a-seat/     We've posted our fall online course roster, with offerings from Jennifer Allen, Katie DiCesare, Franki Sibberson, Clare Landrigan, and Tammy Mulligan. Topics include assessment, the Common Core and writing, technology, literacy coaching basics, and coaching writing workshops. Choice Literacy members receive a $50 discount off the $295 fee for each course. For detailed descriptions and to download a color brochure, click on this link:   http://www.choiceliteracy.com/workshops.php   Have you visited Lead Literacy yet? It's our subscription membership site designed specifically for the needs of literacy coaches. You can view sample content at this link:   http://www.leadliteracy.com/it-list/4