This slice is part of the Slice of Life on Two Writing Teachers! #sol24. I’m slicing on as many Tuesdays as I can. I hope you’ll join me.
After school I hung up the slice we wrote in writing today, on a hastily made purple construction paper backing.
I titled it, “We Are Writers.”
We had written “From My Chair” slices to start out our writing time today.
I called it a “Writing warm up.”
Because this morning as I finished my coffee I wrote myself a goal sheet, and one of the goals was to actually do the warm-up writing I had planned to do each day.
“Friends,” I said, “we are ready to start doing writing warm-ups after recess.”
Then I thanked the kids who had their “Slices and Sparks” notebooks and a pencil out on their desk, because I had a giant “You need:” and a picture of their Slices and Spark notebook and a pencil on the board.
“This is one of my favorite slices because you can always write it. You can even write it when you don’t know what to write!”
I modeled one quickly for them, and had them get started to. They could choose to do this, or a “Rose and Thorn” slice. All but one or two tried the “From My Chair.”
When we started sharing them, I was, of course, in love with the poetry children create when they write.
“We have to make this into a collaborative poem. Choose your favorite lines to add to our class poem. If you didn’t write this kind of slice, write just one line now to share.”
We shared, I typed, we read our poem together. It was beautiful.
“Maybe we should keep writing on this page more and more slices!” Someone suggested
“Isn’t this just a warm-up?” Someone asked.
“I can’t wait to send this poem home in our class newsletter this week!” I said, and I nodded to answer his question.
“Or maybe you should just print it out.” They suggested.
They are very good at suggestions.
So I printed it out and our student teacher went to get it.
We needed a little break, a little change up from writing.
This was obvious, and if you are a teacher you know what I mean.
I gathered them to finish our read aloud book.
“But, wasn’t that just a writing warm-up?” Someone asked again, wondering, as I’m sure you are, why our warm-up took almost all of writing today.
“Yep, yep, yep.” I said, trying to figure out how to explain my flexible, responsive teaching plans to an 8 year old.
With 10 minutes left of writing, I had no other option. We got out our writing folders, our small moment story designs, and I passed out paper.
“Writers,” I said, “Let’s get started writing these beginnings! You have 8 minutes!”
I’m not saying that was my proudest teacher-of-writing moment. 8 minutes?
Tomorrow, we will do more story writing, I promise. It’s in the plans!
Tomorrow, our warm-up will not take almost half an hour.
Tomorrow, when kids walk into the classroom, I hope they see my purple construction paper sign with their published slice of life.
On a Thought 