Haiku-A-Day December Challenge #3 Slice of Life Mash-Up: Three Daily Pages

For the last three years, I've intentionally spent time writing and sharing a Haiku-A-Day for the month of December. The first two years I exchanged a daily Haiku privately with willing friends, mostly through text and email. Last year I wrote and shared each Haiku on my blog. Throughout this process, I've discovered that the practice of noticing and reflecting through writing a Haiku grounds me, provides with with a certain kind of peace, assists me with better practicing gratitude, and helps me better navigate this "hurry up" world. This year my goal is the same as last year: to pen and publish a daily Haiku on my blog throughout December. 

Haiku-A-Day December Challenge #3
Slice of Life Mash-Up: 

Three Daily Pages

Several years ago I began carving out specific, daily time to write. Not just to complete a paper for graduate school or to write an example to use for teaching. This writing was only for me. I set a goal for myself to write three daily pages in my notebook. 

This summer I dug through some of my past writing notebooks. As I reread pages, I noticed patterns of my behavior and reactions to events. I marveled at how I grew as a writer and as a human. I generated new questions about myself. In retrospect, circling back to my writing gave me clarity about some difficult decisions I faced. 

I began writing in this notebook (see below) in early October. I'm approaching the last few pages, so I am excited to begin a fresh notebook soon. Ultimately, I'm grateful I got into a daily writing habit. I try to remember how my writing has helped me grow whenever I don't feel "in the mood" to write. 

Three daily pages - /

my ongoing writing goal./ 

Nearly full notebook.

Daily writing remains my goal, my fuel for growing.

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Looking to connect with a positive, supportive online community? Consider sharing a slice of your life with Two Writing Teachers. All writers are welcome! 

Slice of Life Tuesday: Why do THEY write?

Last week Saturday was National Day on Writing. Since National Day on Writing didn't fall on a school day, I proudly wore my NCTE shirt the day before and shared with my students about #WhyIWrite. I often write with my students using a document camera, but this time I prepared a triple Haiku to share with them:

Reflect. Question. Learn.

I write to know myself. Brings

calm, wonder, healing. 

Writing reveals my

surprise, gratitude. I play.

I notice. Record.

Daily writing fills 

me - helps make sense of my world

as better human.  

Later I asked students to write about why they write. Below are a few of their responses: 

"I write because it's a form of communicating.
I write so that I can clear out my mind.
I write to become creative.
I write to create music."  

"I write because my teachers make me.
I write sometimes when im really really made and I cant do anything about [it].
I write to communicate."

"I am forced to.
When I send something to my best friend in Florida.
When I m grounded and have nothing to do.
My cousin who lives in Cali."

"I write so that I can get all my feelings out because if I don't I would just feel crazy. Writing helps with pain." 

"I write so I can remember things that are important."

A few of these responses surprised me. I was delighted that I have a handful of students who use writing to create (such as write music). This gives me some new entry points with my students. In addition, although I am not happy that my students are going through tough situations, I am relieved to see that a few are using writing as a healthy way to manage their emotions.  

Head over to Two Writing Teachers today. Join me in sharing a slice of your life.

Slice of Life 2018 Day 23: Golden Lines - On Writing

In the summer of 2016, in my former role as a secondary district literacy coach, I led a professional development session to middle level and high school English Language Arts (ELA) teachers in my district on best practices in teaching adolescent writers.

I wanted to lead a session that wasn't just me talking and telling. I wanted participants to be engaged. I yearned for teachers to leave with new learning and insights.

I ended up setting up this session like a workshop, providing participants with choice and inviting them to make something meaningful. You can see my plan here. I designed this staff development session based on what I learned from Samantha Bennett, who graciously guided me in developing it. (To me, Sam Bennett and Cris Tovani's explanation and examples for how to plan for and instruct using a workshop model makes the most sense. Check out Sam's That Workshop Book and Cris' So What Do They Really Know? for more on workshop.)

In the first part of the session I invited teachers to read an array of professional materials about teaching writers. I shared resources from some of my favorite teacher authors, including Katie Wood Ray, Katherine Bomer, Ralph Fletcher, Nancie Atwell, Penny Kittle, and Kelly Gallagher. In addition, I provided books on writing by Stephen King, Anne Lamott, Georgia Heard, and Natalie Goldberg. Participants could select which resources to read and determine what pieces that they were the most interested in.

A few of the writing resources I shared with teachers. 

As teachers poured through materials, I asked them to collect golden lines, or lines that particularly resonated with them. After teachers collected golden lines, I instructed them to star or circle one or two of their favorite lines. Next, each teacher shared his or her top golden lines with a small group and later with the large group. Based on conversations they had with each other about their golden lines, teachers were invited to add lines they heard about from their colleagues to their own list.

Finally, I asked each participant to create a writing manifesto based on the collection of golden lines or ideas based on what they read. The idea was that if teachers could create a writing manifesto, then they could articulate their beliefs on best practices AND be able to support their beliefs with theory or research.

Prior to leading the staff development session, I created two samples to share with teachers. Below is my writing manifesto, based on a collection of golden lines from my favorite teachers of writers:

We live in the world as writers, searching for and capturing ideas for writing.

Writing is a process and by focusing on the process and habits of a writer, writing improves.

Good things happen when writers are able to articulate what they are doing and why.

The daily practice of craft sharpens the writer’s vision and tunes the writer’s voice.

The more you do it, the easier it becomes for you to continue to do it and the more you learn about how it gets done.

No matter where we start as writers, we can reach for more.

*********

I also wrote a poem as a different way to communicate my beliefs about writing. You can read it by visiting this post.

Collecting golden lines gave teachers the opportunity to write a manifesto similar to how someone would create a found poem. However, had the option to create his or her writing manifesto using any format desired. Honestly, the format didn't really matter. What mattered most was that teachers thought deeply about their practices in writing and how he or she synthesized that information in order to make positive change for writers.

At the end of the morning session, teachers shared their writing manifestos in small groups and a few shared in the large group. This led to a fantastic discussion about instructing writers. This was, by far, one of the most powerful staff development sessions that I have ever led. All of the high school and middle level teachers were engaged. Many commented that they appreciated making something that mattered to them. I encouraged all participants to hang their manifestos in their classrooms or where they plan as a reminder that our beliefs about teaching writers matter for planning.

Nearly two years later, both of my manifestos (my poem and my collection of golden lines) hang near my computer at school. They are daily reminders of what I strive to do as a teacher of writers.

Slice of Life 2018 Day 13: Why Do I Write?

"It's enough to know you want to write. Write." 

Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg 

One of my favorite books about writing is Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg. Written in short chapters, Goldberg provides short bursts of advice for writers. As shared on her website, "Goldberg sees writing as a practice that helps writers comprehend the value of their lives." I couldn't agree more. 

Natalie Goldberg has chapter called "Why Do I Write?" She suggests to ask yourself this question every once in a while. 

Why Natalie Goldberg writes

In the spirit of Natalie Goldberg's question, below are the reasons I write:

1. Because it makes me feel satisfied to fill a page with words. To fill a notebook.
2. Because when I write I notice things differently-more deeply.
3. Because it provides me with more insight and empathy when teaching writers. 
4. Because it helps me make sense of what's going on around me, especially when my life seems messy. 
5. Because it's sometimes the easiest way to communicate.
6. Because it helps me pour out my emotions in a healthy way.
7. Because it makes me feel smart.
8. Because it makes me feel humble.
9. Because I like playing with words and phrases.
10. Because I remember better when I write. 
11. Because I can tell what I know and what I don't know by writing.
12. Because I like to tell stories. 
13. Because writing often surprises me. 
14. Because I am a little weird.  
15. Because I want to be taken seriously.
16. Because I want to be heard. I want to matter.

Why do you write? 

Slice of Life 2018 Day 9: Thinking Through My Fingers

A popular quote from Isaac Asimov

To me, writing IS thinking. I am amazed when I write about something and later realize that my thoughts have been altered in the act of what writer and professor Isaac Asimov once called, “thinking through my fingers.”  

The 100-Word Story I posted yesterday was based on a familiar memory from my childhood. My defiance was often brought up by members of my family at the dinner table with gentle teasing. It is a story that I have shared with my own children as a cautionary tale.

Although I have thought about this story many times, it wasn’t until I was writing about the nail polish incident that I considered my mom. At the time I remember feeling so angry when I was told that I could not paint my nails. I did not understand why my mom told me no, especially when I had painted my nails before without an issue. As the youngest kid in my family, I felt like I was forever being told that I couldn’t do something: I was too little, there wasn’t enough time, it wasn’t my turn, I needed to practice more patience. As I think back, my mom would have been at work for most or at least part of that day, she would have encouraged us to do homework and practice instruments (no easy feat), she would have prepared a meal for us, and she would have cleaned up after dinner. When I asked about polishing my nails that night, she would have probably been in the middle of getting everything ready for the babysitter. I am sure that she was exhausted before the babysitter even arrived. As a parent now, I completely understand why she told me “no” to polishing my nails. I can just imagine when my mom returned home from her meeting, noticed that I wasn’t sleeping as she expected, and then, to her horror, when she realized I had, indeed, polished my nails, leaving traces of bright polish everywhere. I am sure that scrubbing nail polish off of the carpeting and bathroom counter was the very last thing that she wanted to do that night.

Would I considered my mom’s perspective if I had not taken the time to write about it?

I am reminded that it would be wise to apologize to my mom for the nail polish incident the next time I see her. It’s over thirty years later, but I am positive that she would appreciate that I finally considered her perspective.

This is one of the many reasons I write - to help me uncover new perspectives. Here is a Haiku I wrote yesterday in reflection:

Thinking through fingers

Of childhood events cause me

To pause...wonder...change.

What perspectives have you considered when you have participated in “thinking with your fingers?”

February Reflections

Since I began blogging last summer, I started paying more attention to what other bloggers wrote about, noticing their content, how their information was shared, and how I could emulate that. Long before I tried blogging I followed blogger and author Ruth Ayres, who I have admired as a writer for some time now. Ruth Ayres has a lovely, exquisite writing voice, and I am always eager to read what she notices and shares. I am especially grateful that she invites other bloggers to celebrate, providing a space to share blog link ups. Sharing my writing continues to be uncomfortable and scary. I continue to find myself in a bit of a frazzle each time I publish my writing in a blog post.

Last month Ruth wrote a post about creating a Heart Map reflecting on her month of January. Of course her post is incredibly inviting and I adored her idea of reflecting on a whole month using a format of a Heart Map. I have been Heart Mapping in my notebook for a while now, but it was almost always based on one idea or after one day. Before Ruth's post, I had not considered Heart Mapping based on the reflection of a whole month (or extended period). As I paged through my journal, I noticed so many things that were worthy of celebrating.This is what February’s Heart Map looked like for me:

February Heart Map (apologies for the poor quality of this image)  

Based on my February Heart Map, there are two things that I wanted to especially celebrate this month:

1. Wisconsin State Reading Association (WSRA) Convention 2018

I had the honor to present twice at the WSRA Convention this year. For one of the presentations I was invited to present with Dr. Cathy Compton-Lilly on some of the work that I have been doing with Retrospective Miscue Analysis (RMA) with a few of my high school students. Although I have presented at state and local conferences before, I was really intimidated to lead a presentation with Dr. Compton-Lilly, especially since it was a packed conference room. It was humbling to share what I’ve learned about RMA with over one hundred educators and answer questions.

Our conference room sign 

I also presented with my dear friend and brilliant colleague, Abbie Blood. When I was in my role of a secondary district literacy coach in my district I worked with Abbie as often as I could. Abbie and I learned how to use effectively use mentor texts with high school juniors. Our presentation was a celebration of our process, our purpose, the excitement of the difference in quality of our student writers, and how this continues to be a journey of learning for us. Abbie and I presented to a small group of about thirty educators, but they were so engaged and eager to try some of the ideas that Abbie and I presented. After the presentation Abbie shared with me, “I felt so validated as a teacher. I love that there are other people who are interested in this kind of work.”

Our first presentation slide

2. Student Celebration
Recently, I was working on goal setting with my ninth and tenth grade classes using a strategy called WOOP, a strategy used for teaching students to better use self-regulation skills. I invited each student to select one academic goal to work on for Quarter 3. Many of my students set goals such as, “I will complete all of my homework on time in Science” or “I will use my time wisely in math class.” Two weeks later I conferred with each student about his or her goal. One of my sophomores, Nathan (a pseudonym), created a goal about reading. As we were conferring, Nathan quietly said to me, “I heard that you help kids read. Do you think that you could help me read better?” This blew me away. I have never had a student ask me this before. The next week I scheduled a time to meet with him, and we started working on RMA together. I did not expect that using a goal setting strategy and conferring would provide this opening with Nathan.

***************

As my daily writing practice usually includes a Haiku, here is a double Haiku about my February gratitude that I wrote after I completed my Heart Map :

Stuck in negative

Self-talk spooling in my mind,

Yet good surrounds me.

Celebrating joy -

A practice worthy of time

I must continue.

Taking Care of Myself: Challenging but Worthy Work

I was introduced (okay thrown) into the world of At-Risk Education this year. In my nearly eighteen years of teaching, I have always taught students who fall into the category of at-risk or what I like to call underserved students. However, I have never had such a high concentration of underserved students in one class (several classes a day) at once.

It has been really challenging work.

Many (actually, most) of my underserved high school students are incredible human beings. Yet many of them have not yet experienced success in our traditional school system. I assume that for many of my underserved students it is easier to say, “I don’t care” or not show up (mentally and or physically) because it feels safer than trying and taking the risk of feeling like a failure. Again.

I especially yearn for each of my underserved students to find success in school, as I know that the more education he or she receives, it is more likely that he or she will experience a better overall standard of living as adults.

It has been really challenging work.

I often take my role as a teacher and mentor so personally, especially when one of my students does not make good academic or behavioral choices. As many of my colleagues, I carry my students’ stories, their comments, and their conversations far beyond the traditional classroom walls. I’ve thought a lot about some of the heart-wrenching experiences my students have shared with me. I’ve privately written about many of my students. I’ve prayed for my students. I’ve wondered and worried about my students when they don’t show up for school or permanently leave our school community. It is painful.

It has been really challenging work.

This past Wednesday I had the opportunity to learn from Lucas Jadin, educator and team member of Train2BeClutch. Lucas was powerful and engaging as a speaker, and I especially appreciated how he was vulnerable with our staff. He reminded me that so many people fear failure or not being enough of who we feel that we need to be. (Trust me, I certainly struggle with this.) Later I emailed him to thank him for what his work taught me and also as a plea for more suggestions of how I could better meet the needs of my underserved students. One of the responses Lucas shared with me was this:

Take care of yourself. Most of those kids do not even have close to a stable adult in their life. Just being the best version of yourself is a huge win for the kids.

Lucas’s response has lingered with me all week. As a mom, wife, friend, Girl Scout co-leader, and teacher, I often put myself last. Dead last.

But I realized that I am already doing worthy things to take care of myself. These things all help me to take care of myself and show up as a better human being, even when I am having a bad day.

For me, each day I strive to do these four things:

• I write. Every day. My writing is usually not worth publicly sharing, but it helps me to get the yuck out of my day. It is a space only for me. When I started making daily writing a priority, I realized that I became more reflective and responsive to my family and students and to myself. Writing is often how I wrestle with what bothers me the most. 

• 

  A glimpse of this morning's writing

• I read. Stories often help me escape and distract my busy mind. Reading was what often got me through hard times in adolescence and as an adult. I need escape in a safe and healthy way. This past January and part of February I read Cutting for Stone, a book that was on my to-read list for years. As my friend Sam once shared with me, it would be a story that would suck me in. It did, and it even helped me consider medicine and healing and surgery in a radically different way.

• I walk. Although I often walk to get more exercise for myself and my dogs, it is an easy way to clear my head. I often enjoy the quiet and peace I experience on walks. Sometimes walking is the only time I can find time without anyone else with me. 

Here is one of my walking buddies

• I meditate. Okay, I’m working on meditating. When I find time to meditate, my body feels more relaxed. I show up as a better human being to my family and friends and students. I recently started using an App called Headspace to help get into the practice of meditating more.

None of these four practices cost me any money. They take little stretches of time, something that is more manageable for me to accomplish.

Whether I am in the role as a mom, wife, teacher, or leader, I am constantly working on being a better human being. It has been really challenging work. But worthy work.

Ultimately, I need to make sure that I take care of myself.

What do you do to take care of yourself?

Essential Writing Tools: Heart Maps, Gratitude, and Haiku

Although I haven't kept up with blogging as regularly as I wanted to, I have maintained my daily personal writing habit, handwriting my thoughts in a thick, weathered notebook. Unfortunately, I often find myself tangled in the day-to-day bustle of life, so writing helps me remember and leaves me with meaningful breadcrumbs. Every few weeks, I take the time to reread my loopy, messy words, and I almost always find myself in awe of what I took the time to notice and record.

Yesterday marked the last day of finals week at my high school. Although I consider myself a "seasoned" teacher, I haven't formally taught in a high school position since my student teaching days. After four years of literacy coaching and my return to the classroom this year, I continue to be humbled at the subtle and blatant lessons my high school students have taught me about what it means to be an effective teacher. Each time I think that I am better at meeting my students' needs, I realize that I need to learn more about my who my students are and how I can adjust my teaching so that I can be more of who I need to be as a teacher for them. I frequently write about my teaching and what I learn from my students. Daily writing helps me achieve this.

I believe that daily reflection through writing is an underutilized tool for many teachers.

If you peeked into my notebook, you would notice that I regularly use three main writing tools: 1) Georgia Heard's Heart Maps, 2) daily gratitude lists, and 3) Haiku. These are my favorite ways to notice what's going on in my life. I have found each tool to be a simple, yet worthy way to write. 

Georgia Heard's Heart Maps are sprinkled throughout my notebook. Heart Mapping is my go-to when I am having a challenging day, not sure how to move forward, or when I am unsure of what to write about. Below is my Heart Map from early this morning, reflecting on this past week of finals at my high school: 

My Heart Map this morning 

At the conclusion of each day, I create a list of bullet points of what I was most grateful for. After regularly writing lists for the past two years, I have found that this simple task often adjusts my mindset and helps me release tension or toxicity. I need this release to show up as a better human. This was last night's list (yes reader, again, it's about finals!):

Last night's gratitude list

I often gush about my love of Haiku. I try to write at least one Haiku a day. Most of my Haiku are not worthy of publishing or even sharing, but I have found that it is an effective way to think more deeply about one thing. I think Haiku is attainable as a daily writing practice because it is only three lines. In addition, I am drawn to the rhythm and predictability of Haiku. Here are a few of my Haiku that I have written this week:

(from 1/15/18)

Tension builds. Endless

Grading. Overwhelmed. Behind.

Semester finals. 

(Triple Haiku from 1/12/18)

Painful moments can

Teach powerful lessons, if

One reflects on it.

How can I apply

Lessons instead of holding 

Onto resentment?

I want to show up...

As one who applies insights

Instead of grudges. 

Heart Maps, lists of gratitude, and Haiku are three simple ways that I navigate my life through writing. Each tool has helped me to notice more, reflect, and to show up more as the person I need to be. Yes, it takes some discipline to carve out time to write every day, but for me, writing has brought me unexpected gifts of insight and reflection. As a bonus, each of these writing tools are some of the cheapest ways I know to release stress and find peace when it seems unattainable. 

On Writing Essays: Part 2

“I work not by writing but by rewriting. Each sentence has many drafts. Eventually there is a paragraph. This gets many drafts. Eventually there is a page. This gets many drafts.”

William Gass, from Don Murray’s Shoptalk: Learning to Write with Writers

(Boynton/Cook Publishers Inc., 1990)  

I’ve spent a lot of time writing during this holiday break. I’ve kept up with my daily Haiku writing and my Morning Pages, but mostly I have been diligently working on the essays I referenced here. Although I am sure that I’ll revise each essay at least one more time before submission, I paused to reflect on my process of writing.

This morning I felt stuck, particularly with one of the essays that I have been working on. Below are a few things I did as a writer to keep moving forward on my writing:

• I studied published examples of essays. I had these two books at home: Small Wonder by Barbara Kingsolver (Harper Perennial, 2002) and The Wrong Way to Save Your Life by Megan Stielstra (Harper Perennial, 2017). These are not books that have anything to do with education or even close to the topics that I am writing about, but that doesn’t matter to me. I just needed to see some samples of how the authors began and ended their essays.

Mentor texts I had handy at home

• It was helpful for me to read my writing out loud. My family was still sleeping (and truthfully probably would not have been patient to give me good feedback anyhow), so I ended up reading one of my essays to my puppy, Hondo. Okay, so Hondo fell asleep as I was reading my work to him, but the important part was that I listened to how my writing sounded. I changed sentences that I didn’t like and ended up changing the order of a few paragraphs.  

My dog Hondo as I read to him

• In writing all three of my essays, I am certain that I spent more time rereading, rewriting, and simply playing with the order of my paragraphs and word choice than I spent on actually writing each piece. I tend to do most of my editing and revising on the computer, but when I print it off, it is not pretty. I write messy notes in the margins, I often have sticky notes peeking out from drafts, and sometimes I write myself questions and reminders.

See all of my messy notes? 

• Sometimes writing the beginning of a piece of writing is where I get stuck, as if the beginning magically determines the effectiveness of the whole piece. The essay that I was working on this morning was no exception. I wrote the body of the essay first and determined the heart of what I wanted to say before I wrote the beginning. When I got to the beginning, I wrote three different openings and selected the best one that I liked.  
• I cringe when I think that I used to require that my students follow the steps in the writing process (in order!): prewriting/brainstorming, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing. I had beautiful, laminated posters that hung in my classroom. I thought that I was SO smart about teaching students the process of writing (and how these linear steps could be helpful to them), but I was incredibly misguided about this. As a writer, my process isn’t linear at all. It is all so tangled - a giant mess.
• When I feel hopelessly stumped, I stop writing and take one of my dogs for a walk. (Both my dogs love this the best.) As I walk, I think about what I am trying to do as a writer. This doesn’t always work, but often I think of different ideas/insights to weave into my writing. Today is incredibly cold in Wisconsin (think -5 degrees Fahrenheit when I awoke), but even a walk around the block helped me today. 

Typically, many of my students believe that writing is a oneanddone affair, almost like on-demand writing. At times, I confess, I am guilty of showing my students how I begin a piece of writing, I lead a few mini lessons, and then present the polished result, but I am not sure that I always provide an accurate portrayal of the mess that going into my writing. The moves I made as a writer (yes, the messy ones) are the ones that I want to remember to share with my students the next time we are working on any kind of writing.

Again, I am reminded how challenging writing can be, especially when it is for something important. I've felt insecure in my writing and wanted to give up so many times in the last few days. I don't think that I talk about this part enough with my students.