Dialogue Spring 2009

8/7/2019 Dialogue Spring 2009

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Inside...Teaching the Writer:Voices rom theSummer Ins ti tute 4-5Marla Williams

Rob Meza-Ehlert

Kindergarten:Not or Babies 6Jennier Moore

Recollection 7Dinah Smith

YWC 8-9Lauren CookLenni ElbeMaddy Horner

Grace McGuireEmily MendozaHannah Montante

Reading, Mathand Writing 10Lisa Harris

Where ICome From 12

MG Williams

In Your HouseI long to Be 13

Lisa Muoz

Also included:

Muse Box 14SDAWP Notes 14PublishingOpportunities 15DialogueCall For Manuscripts 15Calendar o Events 16

From Fear to Confidence

A Publication of the San Diego Area Writing Project Spring 2009DialogueAn essential component o SDAWPs mission statement is that knowledge about the teachingo writing comes rom those who teach, write, and research. Bob Inantino, SDAWP 1980, is

one such teacher. Hes recently completed a book, Tough Choices or Teachers, co-authoredwith Rebecca Wilke and published by Rowman & Littleeld Education. The book contains12 case studies and a role play about ethical challenges that could be aced by new teachers

or student teachers. Bob Inantino, now retired, spent 43 years in the classroom at variouslevels, 9-12, undergraduate, masters and doctoral. Hes served on 35 dissertation committees

as chair or member while at USD. He was co-director o SDAWP rom 1980-1991, havingattended 11 summer institutes and acilitating outreach programs or teachers o underrep-

resented students.

Frank Barone, SDAWP 1977, says o Bob Inantino, While I appreciated Bob's leadership

during my years at the Writing Project, the most memorable moments or me came at thosetimes when he invited me to present poetry to his university students to reacquaint them with

the pleasures and uses o metaphor across the curriculum. And I still remember that Bob

wrote with his students, o course, and always wrote well.

In this issue, it is with great pleasure that we share a recent interview with Bob Inantino, aellow whose extensive career and contributions to the eld o education exempliy the im-

portant role o teacher as researcher and writer.

The Dialogue: Tell us about your book.

Bob Infantino: The book my colleague Rebecca Wilke and I wrote has as its main pur-pose to assist new teachers in understanding that they may be aced with ethical decisionsthey were not and are not prepared or. To make good choices, they need to understandprocesses and principles that will enable them to choose wisely and well. So ater two in-troductory chapters, one on the purposes o the book and one on principles o ethical deci-sion making, the book presents a dirty dozen cases or scenarios involving new teachers

acing tough choices. Each case is based on events that happened in schools, althoughthe names and places are changed to protect the innocent (and the guilty). There are sev-eral levels o complexity in each o the cases, as there oten are in real lie. We urge theteachers in training or teachers in induction programs in schools to think not only aboutan immediate decision but also about the ways in which they go about making the eventualdecision. It is the latter which could have the most lasting impact on the lives o theseteachers and on their interactions.

The Dialogue: What is the role o ethics in education?

Bob Infantino: In 1980, USD received a substantial three-year grant rom the National En-dowment or the Humanities to develop interdisciplinary ethics courses which would meetour upper division ethics/philosophy requirement or undergraduate students. About 10

From Practice to Publishing:An Interview with

SDAWP Fellow Bob Infantino


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2

Dialogue

Spring 2009

Issue No. 22

From Fearto Confidence

Editors: Stacey Goldblatt

Jennifer MoorePage Design: Janis JonesWriting Angel: Susan Minnicks

Published by theSan Diego Area

Writing Project at UCSD

Directors:Makeba JonesKim Douillard

UC San DiegoSDAWP9500 Gilman DriveLa Jolla, CA 92093-0036(858) 534-2576http://create.ucsd.edu/sdawp/

Dialogue, Spring 2009

ing choices that teachers and admin-istrators are aced with regularly.

Our book points out to teachers thatgood decision-making comes romthe strong ethical character thateach teacher should possess. Butcharacter is developmental, as areteaching abilities and personalities.So understanding principles o ethics

and acing theoretical and practicaldecision making opportunities helpsdevelop the moral character to dothe right thing or the right reasons,as a philosopher might express it.

The Dialogue: How does think-ing about ethics trickle down romteacher to student?

Bob Infantino: As I said above, char-acter development is learned as wellas taught by all humans. Inuenceso other people, culture, social sta-tus, and education, to name a ew,

help us develop our ethical skills.So teachers who treat students withrespect, who model appropriate con-ict resolution skills, and who makegood choices in their interactions andcurricular choices can have great in-uence on how their pupils view the

world and on the present and uturechoices they make. O course it is nota one-shot deal. While we cant alterthe neighborhoods our students livein or the socio-economic status otheir amilies, we can and must oerthem the best o ourselves, and that

includes our moral selves. Thats why people are so dismayed whenteachers seem to stray rom theirbest behaviors and engage in inap-propriate behavior with students orall into drug or alcohol habits whichbecome evident in their classrooms.The book presents one such scenar-io, and even writing it was difcultor me because o the very natureo the ethical problem being mani-ested by the veteran teacher in thecase.

The Dialogue:What are the "toughchoices" teachers ace?

Bob Infantino: Teachers have tomake choices every day; somechoices are easier than others, orsure. More importantly, they haveto develop not only their teachingrepertoire but also their decision-making repertoire. How should Idecide whether to write a letter orecommendation or a student whois ailing my class (Case 1), or whyshould I not take supplies without

such courses were developed andtaught. Proessor Larry Hinman andI team taught the Ethics and Educa-tion class 9 times in the subsequent20 plus years. It is the longest last-ing o the original courses, though itscarcely resembles the frst course

we taught. We went rom a rathertheoretical, traditional ethics courseto a very balanced course integrat-

ing theory and practice, using tech-nology more and more as it becameavailable on our campus.

More than one student has told meand Proessor Hinman that our class

was their avorite o any they hadtaken at USDhigh praise or a re-quirement that students oten suerthrough toward the end o college.All o us in education know that weace decisions, large and small, ev-ery day in every possible confgura-tion. A human endeavor like teach-ing oten puts people in conictnotjust with their pupils but also witheach other, with parents, with schoolboard members and sometimes withthe public. In literacy education, weneed go no urther than the so-calledreading wars or the No Child LetBehind Act to see the decision mak-

permission (Case 7) are just two othe choices we write about. More

long-term issues o appropriate andinappropriate interpersonal rela-tionships are also examined (Cases12, 13). These cases get very murky

when the young teachers get released by the people with whom theywere in romantic relationship. There

are issues o curriculum choice, ohiring new teachers, o racism andsexism, and o grading complaintsby parents. We know these are reaethical choices and hope that newteachers (and even veteran teach-ers) will take seriously the decision-making processes we propose in thebook in order to resolve the dilem-mas presented. Ethics scenarios donot suppose one right answer to any

dilemma; just as in real dilemmasright answers oten prove elusiveBut there are always choices thatare better than others, and doing

what is right and just is always thebest choice.

The Dialogue:What is the practicalapplication o ethics or teachers?

Bob Infantino: In the structure othe text, Rebecca and I try to set upthe reader with a preview o the is-sues in the case. We ask the reader

to be aware o all o the stakehold-ers in the case, whether the readers

has aced a similar choice, and whatsel-application there might be orthis new educator. Within the cases

we present mostly inter-personaconicts, since the actions o moralagents (people) are most oten thecauses o the dilemmas and theirdecisions have eects not only onthemselves but also on others, otenmany others (stakeholders). Some-times new teachers dont think about

While we cant alter

the neighborhoods our

students live in

or the socio-economic

status of their

families, we can and

must offer them the

best of our selves,

and that includesour moral selves.


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3Dialogue, Spring 2009

such eects, only on the quick andimmediate solution to the problemat hand. They use a principle suchas, Well everybody does it this way

here, so I guess Ill to it too (likeskip out o a meeting to go to thebeach, or borrow supplies withoutpermission). Such a relativist stanceis a weak ethical way o thinking, yetsometimes predominates in certain

situations.

The Dialogue: Do you see the pos-sibility o ethical decisions and judg-ments we ace in education chang-ing in these times o rapidly evolvingtechnology? Or are ethics timeless?

Bob Infantino: Ethical decision-making is both timeless and ever-changing. We call on Aristotle toteach us about virtues, and uponCarol Gilligan (1982) to teach us

about the inuence o gender on themanly virtues posited by Aristotlethousands o year ago. We are be-ginning to understand better the di-erent ways that men and womengo about making tough choices. Wenow know more about the inuenc-es o culture since we are able to un-derstand cultures frst hand by traveland research rather than just rumor.Technology has certainly inuencedthe ways we act, but not always orthe better. Yet we know and under-stand more about each other because

o technology and thus are able tohave empathy and understanding orothers ways o doing things. Proes-sor Hinman suggests that we need touse our moral imaginations in orderto make as much moral progress astechnological progress, resulting ina better, more just society.

The Dialogue: Every book evolves,rom a germ o an idea, to its ullorm. Tell us about the process o

writing the book. How was this en-deavor dierent rom previous writ-

ing pursuits?

Bob Infantino: Most o my previouswriting eorts have been solo. I dida book in 1983, in collaboration withDr. Ed De Roche, called Real World Reading and Writing or Teachersand Students. Rebecca has writtentwo other books. But most o my arti-cles and poetry have been individual

eorts. Writing with a colleague hadtwo dierences: frst, we each hadto decide what parts o the book we

would produce; and second, decidewhen and how we would tie every-thing together. We both had lots o

years in classrooms and in teachereducation, so the cases were easyto outline. But dialogue among thecharacters to make them sound likereal 21st century people was not al-

ways easy. I had to change the nameo one o my characters, or example,rom Trudy to Kelsey when Rebeccasaid, Bob, nobody is named Trudyanymore. O course she was right.But I had started that case in 1998

when I presented it NCTE/CEL andpeople were still named Trudy, at

least so I thought. We spent a con-siderable amount o time looking atsimilar texts and at ways o makingours dierent. We settled on a or-mula or the end o each case that Iound years ago in an article by Kev-in Ryan, a well-known moral educa-tor rom Boston College. I wrote himto ask permission to use the 5 Es oMoral Education as a template or

our cases and he granted permis-sion with enthusiasm. I think he waspleased that someone rememberedan article rom 1986. We owe him asigned copy o the book soon.

The Dialogue: How did you grow asa learner, writer and teacher as a re-sult o writing this book?

Bob Infantino: Revision, Revision,Revision. I had to re-see parts o thebook in order to make it whole. I

had more cases to include, but have

rightly let them out (maybe theyllbe in the second edition). I learnedthat reviewers can be brutally hon-est, but also graciously helpul. I

learned that i you get your commasand quotes generally in the rightspots, the editors welcome yourmanuscript more readily. I learned toelaborate and condense in the sameparagraph. I learned that men and

women write dierently but can becomplementary and complimentaryto each other. Ater seven drats andnearly a year o writing, I share the

deep breaths o my doctoral students when they would exhale and stateusually in a loud voice, Man, am Iglad thats over. And I would replyNot until I get a bound copy.

The Dialogue: What is the mosimportant advice you would give ateacher just entering the proessionregarding ethics?

Bob Infantino: Be prepared to makedecisions as soon as you put your ooin the classroom. Your decisions wilnot always be right, but learn romthe wrong ones and dont repeathem. Your more experienced col

leagues my not be the best sourceto help you with important decisionssince they may not have made asmuch moral progress as you mighexpect. So use their advice as onepart o your total decision-makingprocess. You are being watchedevery day, all day, especially by thepupils in your care. What you do ioten more important than what yousay. So treat everyone with as muchrespect as you can muster, and insisthat your classroom be a place osaety and comort or each o yourpupils. Be careul o what you puon technological view or others tosee and read. Do the Would I wanmy mother to see or read this testDelete stu that does not pass. Use

your moral imagination to makmoral progress in both your career

and your lie.

(Tough Choices or Teachers:Ethical Challenges in Today's

Schools and Classrooms is availableon the publisher's website

at www.rowmaneducation.com.Use promo code 6S9WIL to receivethe discounted price o $21.20. Thebook can also be ound and ordered

through booksellers.)

Be prepared to make

decisions as soon

as you put your foot in

the classroom.

Your decisions will not

always be right,

but learn from

the wrong ones

and dont repeat them.


4/16


Dynamic Relationships:When the Visual Becomes the Rhetorical

By Marla WilliamsSDAWP 2008

Spring is a time o renewal and the 79 par-ticipants at SDAWPs second annual coner-

ence had many opportunities to experiencethe spirit o the season Held in UCSDs CrossCultural Center on March 7, the morningevent began with continental breakast andtime or socializing Ater an introduction byKim Douillard and a writing warm-up led bySusan Minnicks, our 2008 Summer InstituteTeacher Consultants presented in break-outsessions to audiences o SDAWP Fellows andriends Shannon Falkner explained how toengage students through basic literary theory,while Lisa Harris oered her approach to us-ing mentor texts or non-ction and research

writing PJ Jeery provided inspiration ordeveloping an inquiry approach to report oinormation, and Marla Williams demonstrat-ed how to use photography to help studentswrite meaningul compositions (see the articlesthat ollow) As one participant, who was at-tending an SDAWP program or the rst time,commented, "I was inspired and enlightenedby the presentations!" All who attended wereable to explore strategies and refect on writ-ing instruction with a community o educatorsthatlike the growth and newness o springalways leaves one eeling revitalized

As a lecturer at San Diego State Uni-versity in the Department o Rhetoricand Writing Studies I am constantlypushing my students to not onlyunderstand the rhetorical movesthey see other writers make, but tobecome aware o their own writ-ing choices and actually view their

writing task as a series o strategiesaimed at bringing their audienceinto a relationship with the author.During SI and or the spring coner-ence, I chronicled some o the prob-

lems I encounter in the classroommainly that students have difcultygenerating interest in their assign-ments; they write or the grade anddont actually think, engage, takerisks or truly own their own learn-ing. My students who have beenpushed by a rigorous departmental

curriculum aimed at analysis o ar-gument still dont ully understandtheir own use o rhetoric.

So last spring with my students, college juniors and seniors enrolled ina course vaguely named Writingin Various Settings, I set out to see

what would happen i I shited theirProfle essay, similar to basic ea-ture writing, to a Photo Essay andrequired that they include at leasone photo with their writing. I madeit clear that they had complete con-trol over their choice o photos. I didnot limit the maximum number ophotos. I oered no ormatting rulesand gave no penalty or composi-tion or image quality. They coulduse expensive sotware, or do it oldschool and cut and paste; they could

The amed theorist and writer SusanSontag once said, As photographsgive people an imaginary possessiono a past that is unreal, they also helppeople to take possession o a spacein which they are insecure. Havingtaught many students who wouldquickly identiy themselves as inse-

cure writers, I see this lovely senti-ment by Sontag as a banner o sortsover both my teaching demonstra-tion rom last summers InvitationalInstitute and urther developed orSDAWP 2nd Annual Spring Coner-ence: Voices rom the Summer In-stitute. When I initially decided toexplore the role that the image canplay in crating good writing, I hadno clue exactly how powerul thepossession o the photograph was tobecome.

SDAWP Spring Conference

Teaching the Writer:Voices from the Summer Institute

ppppppppppppp


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Dialogue, Spring 2009 5

use someone elses photo borrowedrom the Internet and add a workscited page, or they could snap a poorquality picture with a low-resolutioncamera phone.

My only requirement was that thestudents had to include a photo, be-cause the goal o the essay and thesel-created inspiration or writing

became the relationship betweenthe photos and their essays, the wordand the image; they had to fgure out

how to create a dominant impres-sion and a dynamic relationship ortheir audience. Simply put, they hadto think about their writing choicesby keeping in mind the overarchingquestion and directions, What do

you want your audience to think andeel as they gaze upon your photo?

Write in a way that will allow youreach them. Make it happen.

And that they did. Yen, a graduatingsenior who had already been accept-ed to medical school, used the a-mous photo rom the Vietnam War othe young girl eeing naked rom a

village bombed with napalm. For thefrst time Yen told the mothers storyas the daughter o the then-mayor oSaigon who had to ee rom a roo-top helicopter and immigrate to theU.S. Another student, Dev profled

his best riends ather who spent the60s hitchhiking around the country.Dev beautiully created the eelingo isolation, loneliness, ear and ad-

venture with sensory language andvoice with a photo o an empty road-side stool accompanied by a card-board sign scribbled with the nextdestination.

The stories go on and on, students who protested in Venezuela, in-

When I frst saw the photograph that my partner, Ed Gillet, selected or this activ-ity, my mind traveled back to a hike I took with riends along the Scottish coastline

where a wooden suspension bridge connects the mainland to a tiny crag o rock sur-

rounded by gray ocean waters. Ed's comments opened my eyes to a related, yet verydierent viewpoint rom mine. Ed spent a number o years as the owner o a kayakcompany and traveled to ar-o lands. He shared that viewing the picture broughtback memories o seeing such wonderul places while oating on the water; hereveled in the reedom o carving out his own path on the ocean, oten completelyalone. My initial writing ocused on the desire some people have to fnd solitude andpeace in nature, but ater listening to Eds perspective, I wrote the ollowing descrip-tion o the photo:

People long or a place o solitude; a rugged, windswept spot to step awayrom the automation o our existence and touch the vastness o the world. This lonerock, the rough remnant o some ancient volcanic explosion, is just such a place. I've

hiked to numerous spots like this, searching or signicance amidst the solitude. My

experiences, however, have always been hemmed in by paths, ences and guardrails.

Ed Gillet spent over twenty years o his lie looking at such idyllic settingsrom a ar dierent perspective: foating atop the surace o the deep in a kayak.Whether paddling along the coast o South America or spending weeks out in the

Pacic, Ed lived through the trials and joys o true solitude. His is a perspective that

ew o us land-lovers will ever experience.Now, at his current stage in lie, Ed is more likely to nd his solitude on

oot, sharing the same path with sojourners such as mysel who seek a more terres-trial orm o solitude. I can almost see him crossing that bridge and looking out at

the placid ocean. On the other side, I can hear him whisper an encouragement to a

ellow traveler, Go ahead. Get o the path and dive in. I think sometime, some-place, that I will.

As a teacher, I've developed the ability to stay calm and confdent in a variety osettings, with both young people and adults. Consequently, I was quite surprised a

how nervous I elt as I read my work or the group at the conerence. As I stood upront, my voice shook, and I fxed my eyes on the page because I elt overwhelmedin a way that I hadn't elt in years. Somehow writing about Ed's perspective reallystruck a chord and spoke to me about my own lie. Perhaps I've been living a liethat is altogether too sae, with plenty o guardrails and signs to keep me on thepath.

(Rob plans to take at least one step o that path when he attends

the 2009 SDAWP Invitational Institute this summer.)

My Refections on the Photoo Carrick-a-Rede Ropebridge

(inspired by Marla Williams and Ed Gilletduring the SDAWP Spring Conference)

Rob Meza-Ehlert

Photo of Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge in Northern Ireland taken by Marla Williams

Indeed, a simpleimage can bring to life

our memories and

experiences and can

offer us the possession

of a past. A lesson in

rhetoric and writing that

would not have been,

save the photograph.

(Dynamic Relationships continued on page 6)


6/16


This piece is a post from

Jenny Moore's Blog

(mywholelifeisonthetipofmy-

tongue.blogspot.com). Are you a

Fellow who blogs, either

personally or professionally?

Send us a sample post or

your URL for us to add

to an SDAWP "Blogroll."

And blog on!

The other night our fve-year-oldcame home with a workbook romStarall, which is a new curriculumI understand is being incorporatedinto her kindergarten class. First we

had to staple together a little storyabout a rat named Zac (who encoun-tered some ants, incidentally). Nextshe read the story aloud to me, andthen she was to complete some ex-ercises in her workbook.

One o the assignments was to exam-ine a picture and circle the objects

with short vowel sounds. Now, myhusband and I have had to learn thedistinction between short and long

vowel sounds, since it's obviouslynot intuitive (Me: "Honey, long vow-el sounds SOUND long, you know,

like treeeeeeeeeeeeee." Him: "Huh? What about baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat?We've since surmised that long vow-els say their name, a helpul way orat least the parents to remember)I watched our daughter circle antsand the rat and a bag and grass inthe illustration. Then she put a cir-cle on part o the tree.

"'Tree' has a long vowel sound, hon-ey," I oered helpully.

"I know, Mom," she concurred, cir-cling the ag and a mat.

"And 'lea' has a long vowel sound,too, right?"

"Yep," she agreed. "But that's abraaaaaaaaaaanch, Mom. Branch.

Short vowel or branch."

Duh. Thanks, kiddo.

The last activity was to write a nar-rative based on a picture relatedto the little stapled story starring

hapless Zac. The workbook helpully provided a Word Bank (I hadnever heard o one until I becamea teacher) or this writing ventureso that one didn't need to worry somuch about spelling and could alsopractice writing and using all those

Friday, February 6, 2009

MyWholeLifeisontheTipofMyTongue.blogspot.com

Kindergarten:

Not for BabiesJennifer MooreSDAWP 1999

I worry that No Child

Left Behind makes

assumptions based on

every child's

ability to learn that

are spot-on and im-

portantbut that

don't account for the

magic and beauty of a

child's spirit...

terviewing the photographer andcommenting upon liberty and op-pression, students investigating thecontroversial Trestles toll road proj-ect by actually surfng the spot orthe frst time and interviewing andphotographing the die hard, beardedsurers who sur it daily, student vet-erans o Iraq, profling the lives oorgotten and wounded soldiers atthe VA rom wars past. All o a sud-den, this little essay became a grandproject, but it was still only when myafliation with SDAWP began that I

heard or the frst time the phrasestudent buy-in. And here it was.

For the SDAWP conerence, I cre-ated an activity in which teacherparticipants selected a photographthey connected to, and I asked themto talk reely to a partner about whatthey saw in it. Then I asked them

to switch photos with their part-ner whose photo, experience andconnection to it was to become thesubject o a mini photo essay. Par-ticipants were asked to take time todescribe the scene in the photo us-ing vivid language and to develop acouple o interview questions so thatthey could consider what else read-ers might want to know and howthey might capture their subjects

voice to bring human interest to thepiece. Ater this brie writing activ-ity, participants had only three min-

utes each to conduct an interview,and then it was time to decide on adominant impression, Each had tobecome the manipulator. They hadto decide how they would representthe specifc content o the photo-graph, the importance o the phototo their partner, and fnally their ex-perience and perspective o both.

During this activity, Rob Meza-Ehlert, a social studies teacher atKearney High partnered with EdGillet who chose a photo o Carrick-

a-Rede rope bridge that I took inNorthern Ireland overlooking Scot-tish Isles. To Ed this photograph be-came symbolic o a quiet moment,one o which he rarely speaks.

Indeed, a simple image can bring to lie our memories and experiencesand can oer us the possession o apast. A lesson in rhetoric and writ-ing that would not have been, savethe photograph.

Photo o Jenny's daughter as posted on her blog atmywholelieisonthetipomytongue.blogspot.com

(Dynamic Relationships continued rom page 5.)


7/16


words with short vowel sounds.

But o course, my daughter didn't want to write about ags and matsand ants and bags and grass. So sheignored the Word Bank and used herown invented spelling to write aboutthe playground and swingswhich,to be air, were present in the pic-ture, so who can blame her? O she

went writing whatever the heck she wanted, basically, and I didn't eel like stiing her long-vowel narra-tive. And when she wanted to writethe word "were," she sounded it out:"w," "e," "r"...pause. "Oh yeah," shenodded. "There's a silent 'e' at theend o it." Her tongue popped out othe side o her mouth as she addedthat "e" on to the end o "wer."

Meanwhile, I was shaking my head like a dog does when it's about toshake water rom its entire body.

Like, "Silent WHAT?"

So my daughter knows what "SilentE"s are and the dierence betweenShort Vowels and Long Ones. Whatthe heck are they teaching in kinder-garten these days, anyway? It turnsout I don't even know what my kidknows. I don't know what she knows,and I don't know whatshe knows, i

you know what I mean. It's crazy.

I'm pretty sure this kindergarten isnot my kindergarten. It's both heart-breaking and reassuring.

Here's what's reassuring: all this o-cus on No Child Let Behind meanssomeone has to be paying attentionto every child's ability to learn. Con-ceivably, gone are the days whennice children who try hard can slipthrough the cracks and make itthrough 12th grade without know-ing or showing much. According

to NCLB tenets, each child will beachieving at grade level standardsby 2013, or ELSE. Educators all overour state are working hard to makethis happen. Children are learningabout things and using terminol-ogy invented since our grade-school

years. What's more: they're learningabout their learning. It's impressive.

But it's heartbreaking. As a schooladministrator, I have sat in manymeetings about Accountability andAchievement and Mastery o Skills,and the theme is always We MustGet Every Kid There. It sounds real-

ly noble but also simple: We Can DoThis! However, any ONE o us who

has sat with ONE kindergartener atthe kitchen table doing homeworkor ONE evening has to wonder howONE kindergarten teacher gets 20kids through ONE activity success-ully in ONE day, while identiying

who needs extra help and then pro-viding it. And here we are the ortu-nate parents o a well-prepared kin-dergartener with no special needs.She is well prepared because we

have books and read to her but alsobecause she is just That Kind o Kid

who wakes up in the morning andwants to go write stu.

Frankly, she's the kind o kid whodelights so much in the structure oschool that she almost needs breaksrom it. Which is not to say that the

children who struggle with the struc-ture o schoolor or whom struc-ture is a oreign concept in and oitseldon't need those breaks too.I worry that No Child Let Behindmakes assumptions based on everychild's ability to learn that are spot-on and importantbut that don'taccount or the magic and beautyo a child's spirit, which can get lostsomewhere in that shue o stan-dards and vowel sounds. A spiritedteacher can help make sense o stan-dards, and put them in their place.

Our daughter is ortunate to havesuch a teacher.

Every so oten, we've got to back oZac the Rat and the Word Bank andjust laugh at how silly is his picnic atthe playground. We've got to searchor the meaningand the joyinshort and long vowel sounds. We'vegot to continue to challenge children,showing them and ourselves just

how much is possible, but we alsomust allow them to show us what is

We've got to continue

to challenge

children, showing

them and ourselves

just how much is

possible, but we also

must allow them to

show us what

is relevant.

relevant. Every child can learn; ev-ery child can achieve at standard

We are banking on that. But I am notsure every child's talents and gits

will properly emerge and ourish inthis institution o schooling as it iscurrently designed.

We all know people who sucked aschool and who thrive at lie.

The question is, are we properlyprepared to listen and respond to theChildren Let Silenced?

Recollection

Dinah SmithSDAWP 2008

Always prepared or inspection,

Presenting calmly a ne complexion,

Turning away rom any objection,

Rejecting emphatically imperection,

Unaware o the subtle infection,

That might have led

to another selection

Missing opportunity or connection,

To see my own refection,

Already whole and pure perection.

For my protection,

And to ensure no rejection,

I always chose the direction

Oering the most aection,

So I'd eel no dejection

Or, God orbid, experience

Correction

Because I missed my own election.

How could I have missed

the interjection:

Needing approval is deep inection.


8/16

ColorsBy Lauren Cook

If a color could represent me,

it would be,

The green of the grass, the green of the trees,

the blue of the breeze,

Orange representing creativity, pink and red for energy,

Yellow: the sun shining for me!

Brown for the tree trunks,

Brown for traveling trunks,

White for the clean sheet of paper

representing my life.

Grey for the pencil, constantly writing.

And grey for the mistakes that everyone makes,Purple for my grapes, and

Turquoise for the shallow waters of the ocean.

But black for trouble I get into

And innocent white, again, saying,

I didnt do it.

All together, Im a rainbow,

Colors.

8 Dialogue, Spring 2009

Summer VacationBy Lenni Elbe

Summer a hall of fun

world of poems

butteries ying

the chorus of the

wind in my ears

the sun setsI jump into the pool

the cold water

hitting my face.

oung

riters

amp

S

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2

0

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8

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TheAuthorByGraceMcGuire

TheAuthorisbornWhenwords

integrate.Tocreate.Yourrstpoem.

Yourrstpairowings.Asuperhero.

Itcanfy.Poetry.

Ithassuperstrength.Observatio

n.TheAuthorisborn.


9/16


SummerBy Hannah Montante

Summer brings memories and reedom rom school

Summer takes away rusty, dusty school days

And brings cannonballs at the poolOr jumping in eet frst

Summer brings giggles and joyul laughter

Summer brings mischie and crazy antics

Allowing daydreams to race across your head

Summer lasts long enough

For everyone to rustle and squish at the pool

And at least have un

Where Im FromBy Maddy Horner

Im rom the washed-up seaweed,

the salty rocks in a wide expanse o water,

the melty, gooey chocolate in the

bottom o your Christmas stocking.

Im rom the splattered paint o your anger,

The soothing voice that sings you

Good Night Irene.

Im rom a person who escaped misery.

Im rom a single piece o cotton candy

melting and bringing joy

to the taste buds at the tip

o your tongue.

Im rom the seed you planted last year.

Im rom the beautiul rose

that brings you happiness.

Im rom the threadbare blanket

that loves you so much.

Im rom your heart.

MyCirclePoemByEmilyMendoza

Iamlivinglikethereisnotomorrow.

Tomorrowstartsanewbeginningevery

day.

Everydaybringsnewstoriesandnewm

emories.

Memoriesneverforgotten,caneitherbebadorgood.

Goodfriendsleavefootprintsinyourh

eartforever.

Foreverchanging,whileslowlytakingy

ourtime.

Timebeingeverlastingneverstopping.

Stoppingtoenjoyyourlastmoments.

Momentscanchangesomeoneinanins

tant.

Instantlypeoplecanchange.

Changingmythoughts,butneverchan

gingme.


10/16


mark writing assessments and read-ing grades, the obvious progressencourages me. I am amazed atthe perseverance of my studentsto produce a book of poetry and aresearch book about a habitat oftheir choice, both of which tookover two months to complete. Ialso observe how confident theyare when asked to write in differentsubject areas such as math or social

studies. How did we get there? Itcertainly didnt happen by filling outblanks on worksheets.

I realize it entailed the consistent

time spent teaching and writingdaily in Writers Workshop, andstudying writing craft during ourRead Aloud (Story time). How trueit is as Lucy Calkins, author of The

Art of Teaching Writingsays, They will learn to write by writing, andby living with the sense of I am onewho writes(1994).

As a teacher of young childrenin kindergarten and first grade, Ihave a unique opportunity and animportant obligation to teach writ-ing as a separate school subject, just like reading and math. LucyCalkins writes, In some districtsit is acceptable for teachers to say,I teach writing across the curricu-

lum and for those teachers to thennot regard writing as a subject inthe school day. I regard this asa problem. She further states,Childrens success in many dis-ciplines is utterly reliant on theirabilities to write; children deservewriting to be a subject that is taughtand studied just like reading andmath (2006). With lower class sizeand less demanding content stan-

dards in the primary elementarygrades, I believe we can teach writ-ing first while embedding and sup-porting it with science, social stud-ies, and health concepts. Too often writing is merely assigned and/osprinkled throughout the instruc-tional day.

Purposefully, four days a week, Icarve out a forty-five-minute periodof the school day and label it Writers Workshop. Along with ReadinRotations and Math, this teaching

block constitutes a cornerstoneof my instructional day. A typicaworkshop starts with a mini-lessonten to fifteen minutes long, where Iengage in direct writing instructionwith the entire class. Following themini-lesson the students then writefor twenty minutes. During thistime I facilitate by helping students

choose a topic, inviting students toshare to get others started, helpingstudents sound out words or com-pose sentences, and assisting withrevision. Writing time isnt alwayssilent. In fact you may hear the fol-lowing chorus throughout the timeperiod, What topic are you writingabout?

With a furtive glance towards thedoor, I hurriedly yank the plasti-cized covers off the phonics booksand toss the worksheets into therecycle pile. You know, the pageswith the word box at the top and thedirections that state, Please choosethe correct word from the box thatcompletes the sentences below, oryou might have a reading responseas a prompt which almost always

initiates this question from yourstudents, How many sentences doI have to write? Hardly authentic

writing. Once again I realize as the

year concludes that the studentsonly used five to ten pages out ofthese thick, tree-killing books. Asthe guilt mounts I wonder, Will I bediscovered and castigated? Why

do I let the office continue to orderthese books for me when they are

hardly used?

Then I reflect and ask myself,Why dont I use these books more?Instantly I know the answer. Thesebooks, in my experience, do nothelp students become better read-

ers and writers. They lack contextand meaning, so the blanks arefilled in and quickly the conceptsare forgotten. In fact, the few pagesthe students did only helped themlearn how to read directions andbecome familiar with the languageand format used on standardizedtests. This knowledge only takesfive to ten pages to attain.

What didhelp my students becomebetter readers and writers this year?As I analyzed the students bench-

Lisa Harris

SDAWP 2008

With a furtive glance towards the door,I hurriedly yank the plasticized covers off

the phonics books and tossthe worksheets into the recycle pile.

Purposefully, four days a week,I carve out a forty-five-minute period

of the school dayand label it Writers Workshop.


11/16


Aliens!

Aliens again?

Yeah, I just love writing aboutspace. You may hear me ask, Who wants to share their lead? Ofcourse Miras hand will shoot upand she will give all of us an excel-lent example. Zap, crack, pop!

Watch out, the lightning just splitthe tree in half! The last ten min-utes of the workshop is reserved forstudent sharing, the highlight forstudents. This activity motivatesstudents to write and is absolutelyessential to the workshop model.During sharing, students are taughtto listen carefully and commentspecifically on student writing inthe form of compliments and ques-tions. For example, students mightoffer the following, It made melaugh when you had the cereal talkto the boy. Or you might hear, Youused a lot of color and detail in yourillustrations. It makes your bookexciting! Of course students areanxious for their turn to share andare notoriously impatient, so it isimperative that Writers Workshopis taught consistently, at least fourdays a week. Then most children will have a chance to share andreceive feedback on their writingonce a week.

Various mini-lessons taughtthroughout the year may include:developing writing fluency, organi-zation, focusing on one topic, mak-ing books complete with cover, titlepage, and dedication, writing in

different genres such as narrativeand nonfiction, using vivid verbsand specific nouns, identifying andutilizing writing craft such as allit-eration, personification, simile, andtext manipulation.One might wonder how I can hon-estly say that my students reallyunderstood and internalized theseconcepts. After all, they are onlykindergartners and 1st graders. I would answer: in addition to the

evidence I saw in their writing, Iheard it in their language. Mom,look at this poemI used alliterationhere. You see how each word startswith the same sound? or Dad, doyou like the way I started my habi-tat book? I borrowed the idea fromanother author and changed it to fitmy habitat. It brought tears to myeyes and a lump to my throat as my

students excitedly shared their writ-ing at Open House.

Toward the end of the year, ourschool had its annual CommunityRead-in. This is a day desig-nated to invite professionals fromthe community to read in all theclassrooms and share how readingimpacts their lives. When our rep-resentative, a former space shuttleengineer, read to our class, shebegan to question the children asto their favorite part of the storyand why. Immediately the handsshot up and Jack offered, I likedthe way the author used personifi-cation to give the story voice. She

is having the animals talk and act just like people. Elizabeth added,She also used sound effects words(onomatopoeia) to make the storycome alive. This commentary,totally unprompted, placed a look

of incredulous shock and joy onthe face of our volunteer. She thenasked the children to define per-sonification and alliteration for her,and confidently and succinctly, thechildren did so. When this musicreached my ears I knew, without adoubt, the students really did get it!They had internalized these con-cepts and knew them well.

How did we get there? Im firmlyconvinced the answer is consistent

time spent teaching and writing inWriters Workshop.

Many teachers balk at this pointstating many barriers such as, Whohas time to grade all those paperor to give feedback consistently toso many students? Other barrierteachers mention include: we donhave time to teach writing separate

ly and still cover all the curriculumstandards: the district hasnt sup

plied a systematic writing programfor us to follow: we lack commonunderstanding of what writing iand what it should look like at eachgrade level: or, we dont even havconfidence in our own writing abilities.

When I contemplated these barrierI was hit with the realization that thproblems didnt center on the students: instead, it rested uncomfortably on the shoulders of the teacherand school district. What can bdone to rectify this situation? It simply cannot be ignored any longerAs Kelly Gallagher states, If Langeand Applebee are correctthat goo writing develops careful thinkinand that writing is the cornerstone oproducing literate human beingsthen dont we have the responsibilitythat reaches far beyond simply covering our courses content? (2006)Yes, we do have an awesome, oftenoverwhelming responsibility tteach our students how to write anthink.

As I consider my own journey anevolution as a writing teacher I real

ize how complex and time consuming it is. There just isnt a onesize-fits-all writing program a schoodistrict can purchase. It takes lot of professional development anpersonal commitment to become aneffective writing teacher. Attendin writing seminars, reading profesional works, and joining a writincohort in our school district withother writing teachers willing tshare their successes and frustrations have all helped me down thi

...students are anxious for their turn toshare and are notoriously impatient, so it isimperative that Writers Workshop is taught

consistently, at least four days a week.

When this music reached my ears I knew,without a doubt, the students really did

get it! They had internalized theseconcepts and knew them well.


12/16

Where I Come FromM.G. WilliamsSDAWP 2008

Because I never know where to tell people Im rom,

they always want to know

I tell them Im rom Stockton,

But in my heart I know Im rom New OrleansWhere Im rom, Im not allowed to be rom

I wasnt born or raised there,

A hurricane interrupted my chance to earn my birthright

Where I come rom they eat red beans and rice on Mondays

We watch parades rom the neutral ground on Napoleon

And I make groceries at the A & P

Would you believe me i you knew, I bleed purple and gold?

Where Im rom is the corner o Fourth and Camp,

And where South Scott meets Canal

I did grow up in New OrleansI saw humidity soaked fowers bloom

and drench the air with the sweet scent o magnolias and honeysuckle,

And I saw riends get lost in the democratic, always open, well-accept-anyone

bars on the cocaine-laden dark side o Decatur

Where Im rom, you walk down the street, you look people in the eye and smile

In the beginning, you smile in gracious acknowledgement

and say Morning to your elders

Then you learn to purse your lips, open your eyes wide with power

And oer up the head nod in eigned respect as you pass the company o men

Where Im rom, you have to tell people you wont be a victim

Where Im rom we eat at Theos Pizza, Juans Flying Burrito and Dantes Kitchen

Where Im rom we eat whatever we want, drink more than we should

And then drive home through narrow, pothole-spotted streets lined with oak trees,

shotguns and run-down camel-back houses

Where Im rom porch sittin is an art and excess is still not enough

Where Im rom there are natives and then theres everyone else

There are transients and gutter punks, west bankers and blind tourists

Where Im rom there are kings o krewes and widows o the projects

Where Im rom darkness lasts longer than decades

The battles o ne cultures, greedy nations and blended races emerge in the

jazz-lit smoky nightclub, on the iron-laced balconies

And rom the tears o those whose heart the city devours

Where Im rom is haunted by its opulent past and bleak uture

Where Im rom will quietly suocate your soul

And i, when, you leave her

You leave a broken child, orever unaware o all you let behind

But acutely aware o that which you will never regain

path. At individual school sites per-haps grade-level planning, teachermentoring, or departmentalizationcan help instruct students in a moreeffective and efficient manner. Iknow we all cant be experts inevery subject; therefore, elementaryteachers who teach multiple sub-jects must depend on each other forassistance and support. Next year a

fellow first-grade teacher and I willteam teach. I will teach Writers Workshop to both our classes andshe will teach math. We hope shar-ing our expertise with more childrenand the opportunity to concentrateon one academic subject versus two will raise the quality of instructionfor all our students. The first stepsin achieving excellent writing in theclassrooms are teachers willing tobe interdependent, willing to changeand challenge ourselves, and willingto carve out that precious time eachday to teach writing.

Primary students have so muchpotential. It is imperative that theybegin to see themselves as writers,experience success, and build uponthat writing foundation as they prog-ress through the elementary grades.As theologian and author CharlesSwindoll writes, Works follow faith.Behavior follows belief. Fruit comesafter the tree is well-rooted(1990).My hope and desire is to see othercolleagues join me in this essentialendeavor of teaching writing as a

school subject, and instead of recy-cling so many unused worksheets, we will use paper productively forstudents journals, reports, and stu-dent-made books.

Works Cited:Calkins, Lucy. (1994) The Art ofTeaching Writing. Portsmouth, NH:Heineman

Calkins, Lucy. (2006) Units of Study for Teaching Writing. Portsmouth,

NH: Heineman

Gallagher, Kelly. (2006) TeachingAdolescent Writers. Portland, Maine:Stenhouse Publishers

Swindoll, Charles R. (1990) TheGrace Awakening. Dallas, TX: WordPress



13/16

13Dialogue, Spring 2009

breaking down or ending early, soin that sense, I prevailed. But whenI got home, I fumed, complainedand dawdled. One incident allowedme to waste precious hours thatcould have been spent cuddlingwith my husband, or, more realisti-cally, grading papers.

Thus, I realized I am nowhere

near a superwoman. I wont evenbecome Batgirl at this rate.

Basically, according to NietzscheI need to be above all that taintsand clouds my path and goals. Notthere yet. On the other hand, Idont teach because of some vague,impersonal sense of duty, whichis a step in the right direction. InMorality as Anti-Nature Nietzschewrote, What could destroy us morequickly than working, thinking, andfeeling without any inner necessitywithout any deeply personal choice,without pleasureas an automaton

of duty? He promoted intrinsicdesires and motivations rather thanextrinsic ones. I teach becauseI am compelled by forces deeperthan any monetary or social gain. When I was around five, I used toteach my dolls letters and numbersI would prop them up and writeon my little chalkboard. I wouldencourage my stuffed pug and plas-tic Shamu to finish their homeworkand would tell them they were onthe right track.

As with writing, I cant imagine notteaching. Maria Montessori, echoed

this sentiment by saying, Everyonehas a special tendency, a specialvocation, modest perhaps, but cer-tainly useful. While I know Ivefound mine, I dont think it hasnecessarily made life easier. But what a life. I have an opportunityto work with at least 140 students asemester. Imagine the potential.

Last night, I shared this with Alexby emailing it, and he spent aboutan hour writing non-stop while I

Ok, so Im listening to Audioslave(hence the title) as Im gradingpapers and Im distracted. Not justby the music, but by my thoughts.My husband, Alex, wrote this hugeHumanities paper on Nietzschesideologies and how they relate tothe decadence of society today. Igave Alex ideas and resources, andhe honestly did me a favor by let-ting me teach him what I know. When I start reading and thinkingabout various perspectives I get soimmersed that its all I do. This pastweekend, my family and friends lis-tened to me prattle on and on about

seven or eight different philosophi-cal concepts and how they pertainto society, life, religionthe wholeworldfor, I dont know, every wak-ing second of every hour. Oh, did Itell you Im going to be a renownedphilosopher someday? Yeah, I dontexactly have philosophical theoriesper se, but I read a bunch and talka lot, so Im sure Ill be able to firmup ideas soon.

Anyway, Nietzsche wrote aboutthis concept of the Superman,

and I very much would like toknow how to become supermanum superwoman. By the end ofthe weekend, I decided I wouldbecome the rare, extraordinaryhuman he writes about. He beganThe Antichrist (by the way, ImChristian, so go work out that para-dox) with This book belongs to aselect few. Perhaps none of them yet live. Then he described thissuper human: (s)he is truly honestin all intellectual matters (Im stillworking out what that means) and

must be accustomed to living awayfrom civilization, above the gossipof politics and national egotism (Ithink Ive failed on both counts).

But! His main argument was thatpeople should think for themselves,rather than follow herd mentality(aka mankind). Well, Im all aboutmy own ideas. I mean, Ive accept-ed years ago that I dont think likemost people. Im okay with that.

So, I decided on Monday that I

would be amazing, but by TuesdayI was exhausted with the task andhad nearly given up. Heres thedeal: teaching sometimes is theequivalent of being in an abusiverelationship. Youre told youre notgood enough, even when youvestayed up till three the night before,making sure lesson plans were per-fect and all essays were graded.Youre told to do and be more, even when you regularly work sevendays a week, missing birthdays andSunday family lunches. You get to your class, ready to expand mindsand change lives (or at least get

them to grasp the concept of the

comma) and only three students

show up. And, you get the randomstudent who verbally abuses, dis-regards, and patronizes you, eventhough youve shown that studentthe utmost respect. For these rea-sons, the job can feel pretty emo-tionally and physically draining.Yet, you keep coming back, like theinjured, jaded soul that you are, tostart up another semi-dysfunctionalrelationship the following semes-ter.

On Tuesday night I had directed an

especially insightful class discus-sion, followed by an unpleasant(and highly inappropriate) outburstfrom one student. Im usually allabout specifics in my writing, butthey just arent important in thiscase.

What is relevant is the fact that Ilet a student throw me off track forthe rest of the night. I did man-age to compose myself in aroundthirty seconds to make it throughmy three-hour night class without

Basically, according to Nietzsche,I need to be above all that taints and clouds

my path and goals. Not there yet.On the other hand, I dont teach because of some

vague, impersonal sense of duty,which is a step in the right direction.

In YourHouseI Long To Be Lisa Muoz, SDAWP 2008


14/16

was sleeping. This is a big deal, asIve always wanted him to write mesomething. So this would have beenhis first time. Anyway, this morning,as I woke up, he said he loved read-ing about my ideas so much (youdthink that hed get enough of it liv-ing with me!) that he felt compelledto write back his own views. By theway, today he will present his huge

final project in order to graduate, yethe sacrificed an extra hour of sleepto write me back. Just as he wasabout the hit send, he accidentallydeleted it all.

Ironically, he was writing about theabsurdity of life and the philosophyof absurdism. He questioned hisown purpose in life and asked me(and himself) why hes even tryingto find meaning. He said he didnthave the energy to write me again,so he emailed me a quote from the

Myth of Sisyphus by Camus: If thereis no meaning in life, why live? Ifyou feel as though there is no mean-ing in life, is it worth suicide? No. Ihave the freedom to choose what Iwant to do. Life doesn't make sense,but death doesn't either. I decide notto kill myself. I decide to live my lifeknowing that life has no meaning.I will live my life as if it has mean-ing.

He then wrote, I'm tired and sadthat I wrote so much to you, only tomake such a stupid mistake. It reallyshows how absurd life can be.

And yet, we will continue to look forpurpose in our daily lives, even ifit is all an illusion. Even if we arestuck in the cave that Plato wroteabout, looking straight ahead andadmiring mere shadows, I will con-tinue to make my life worthwhile.A student once told me (after I wasparticularly animated about sea lifeand my desire to learn more aboutthe depths of the ocean) that I needfive lives to live out the passions I

have (if you knew how many inter-ests I have, you'd think so, too). Butwhy not this life?

Quite importantly, Plato said that weare all-knowing souls before birth.Then, as we live this illusory life, weforget everything and have to "re-learn" it, or as I like to say, remem-ber it. I want to remember it all. Isthat so much to ask?

14

c MUSE BOX Stacey Goldblatt, SDAWP 1999In his book The Courage to Write: How Writers Transcend Fear, author Ralph Keyes

asserts:

Considering directly how scary writing can be, and why, can do more to facilitatewriting than a dozen classes on technique...Finding the courage to write does

not involve erasing or conquering ones fears. Working writers arent those who

have eliminated their anxiety. They are the ones who keep scribbling while their

heart races and their stomach churns and who mail manuscripts with trembling

fingers. The key difference between writers who are paralyzed by fear and those

who are merely terrified is that...the latter come to terms with their anxieties. They

learn how to keep writing even as fear tries to yank their hand from the page.

They find the courage to write.

We all want to write We believe in it We know that when we write with our stu-

dents, we model the joys and obstacles we as writers ace But whats getting in the

way o your own writing? What stops you rom sending out your manuscript? Write

about what ears cause roadblocks in your writing What prevents you rom pub-

lishing that piece you have tucked away in your mind or even your iling cabinet?

Challenge yoursel to write with a racing heart and mail your manuscript o despite

trembling ingers

For inspiration, take a peek at the National Writing Project website or some possible

places to send your work:

http://wwwnwporg/cs/public/print/resource_topic/being_a_writer


SDAWP NOTES

Congratulations to Divona Roy, SDAWP 1996, whose ninth grade student, ErinSinger, won rst place in the CATE writing contest This years contest topic was change

Erin wrote about her experience in the ourth grade when she couldnt run, and she was

made un o or it Her teacher helped her overcome her insecurity Her personal narrative

was published in the February edition o the California English Journal.

Kudos to Patricia Jeery, SDAWP 2008 Eleven o her students were selected as sweep-stakes winners in this years San Diego City Schools History Day competition The kids were

required to make a poster describing a person in history and his/her legacy (using only 350

words) They competed at the county level on March 14th

Congratulations toKaren Wroblewski, SDAWP 1989 As principal o San DiegoHigh School o International Studies, she has been named the Magnet Schools o America

National Principal o the Year This award recognizes an outstanding school leader who has

succeeded in providing innovative programs that promote equity, diversity, and academic

excellence or students in magnet schools Karen's award was announced during the Magnet

Schools o America conerence held in Charlotte, North Carolina, April 27-29, 2009


15/16

Classroom NotesPlus NCTE

We also invite articles rom Ameri-can teachers and researchers thataddress the ollowing questions:

What literacy projects have youand your students engaged in thatinvolve other countries? How has

current technology opened the doorto international literacy practices? What projects have your studentsbeen involved in that support the

literacy development o studentsin underdeveloped countries? Are

you involved in other international literacy practices, projects, initia-tives, and issues that would be ointerest to VM readers?

For guidelines, please visit: www.dev.ncte.org/journals/vm/write


DIALOGUE

Call forManuscripts

Fall 2009 IssueSubmission Deadline:

July 30, 2009

Choices in theClassroom:

The EverydayJudgmentsof Teachers

"Teachers make hundreds of deci-

sions every day about how to

allocate their time, express ideas

to pupils, introduce new concepts,and teach fresh skills. They have

to decide when to assist pupils and

when to leave them alone...which

teaching strategies to employ, how

to handle a recalcitrant child, and

so on. Other decisions involve

judgments about allocations of

grades, classroom management,

curriculum implementation, task

differenitiation and pupil assess-

ment." Denis Hayes, PrimaryEducation: The Key Concepts.

Relate a decision or judgment call you have madeor have beenforced to makein your career asan educator. Describe the context. What was at stake? Which resourc-es, values, and beliefs guided yourdecision making? What were theimplications for your relationships with students, parents, and/or col-leagues? How did your decisioninfluence your feelings about your-self as an educator or professional,and about being a teacher?

Dialogue would like to receive your work or the work of your students.Submit a story of student success,a strategy for implementation, ora personal essay on your teachingexperience.

Email all manuscript submissions,suggestions, letters to the editor andProject Notes [email protected] [email protected]

PUBLISHING OPPORTUNITIES

FacultyShackstarted by teachersfor teachersis an online publi-cation, providing educators witha thoughtful and often humorouslook at the realities we face. Forthe past seven years FacultyShackhas served as an alternative to tra-ditional, scholarly, education jour-nals. We offer interesting looks atteaching life written in non-edese;if you want to laugh at the crazi-ness of the world that we deal witheveryday, then FacultyShack is theplace for you. We have no strictparameters for article topics (mul-let haircuts and multicultural liter-

aturedo you see a theme here?).We are looking for thoughtful and/or funny articles about new teach-ing ideas, the state of education,specific curriculum area concerns,or observations on students, teach-ers or administrators.

The journal serves as a clearing-house for new approaches to class-room challenges and provides aforum for ongoing discussion ofcomplex educational questions. If you have an article idea that you

would like to share, please sub-mit it to us. Published first-timeauthors get a free (and fine look-ing) FacultyShack T-shirt. Now,what academic journal offers that?For more information, please visit:www.facultyshack.org/

FacultyShackCall or Submissions

In each issue, we will feature a finalpage called In Closing . . . . This isa one-page format (750-word maxi-mum) that could take the form of apoem, essay, conversation, journalentry, short story, or visual art withcaption. The focus is on the voicesof educators who have recognized ashift in perspective, perception, orpracticein their school, their dis-

trict, or themselves. We hope thatreaders will look forward to thisfeature because it prompts them toremember and rethink. For submis-sion guidelines visit: www.ncte.org/pubs/journals/la/write/109012.htm

Language ArtsNCTE

Classroom Notes Plus, NCTEs quar-terly newsletter of practical teach-ing ideas for the middle and second-ary school level, invites descriptionsof teaching practices for consider-ation. We ask that submissions beoriginal and previously unpublishedand, in the case of an adapted idea,that you clearly identify any sourc-es that deserve mention. Please beaware that any student work needsto be accompanied by statements ofconsent by the student and his or herparents. For submission guidelinesvisit: www.ncte.org/pubs/publish/journals/109277.htm

Voices from theMiddle

International LiteracyDeadline: September 1, 2009

The world is shrinking as global-ization brings us closer to peoplearound the world. We want to widenthe ocus o this call to include theollowing: What kinds o literacyprojects are happening in countriesaround the world? What aspects o

literacy are currently drawing at-tention in your country? What can

we learn rom your best literacypractices? How do literacy practicescompare across dierent countries?


16/16

Non-Proit OrgUS Postage

PAIDSan Diego, CA

Permit No 1909

San Diego Area Writing ProjectUniversity o Caliornia, San Diego9500 Gilman Drive, Dept 0036La Jolla, CA 92093-0036

Opportunities forEducators:

Reading LikeA WriterGrades K-12

June 22 - June 26, 20098:00 am - 3:00 pmRegistration $37500

ImprovingStudents'

Academic WritingGrades 2-16

July 20 - July 24, 20098:00 am - 3:00 pmRegistration $49500(Includes 4 ollow-up

hal-days duringthe 2009-2010 school year)

Calendar of Events

Opportunities forStudents:

ImprovingStudents'

Academic WritingGrades 11-12

July 13 - July 17, 20098:30 am - 11:30 amRegistration $29500

The CollegeAdmission and

Application EssayHigh School Seniors

and Community CollegeTransfer Students

July 20 - July 24, 20098:30 am - 11:30 amRegistration $29500

San Diego AreaWriting Project

Directors:Makeba Jones

m3jones@ucsdeduKim Douillard

teachr0602@aolcom

Associate Directors:Karen Wroblewskikwroblewski@coxnet

Gilbert Mendez (Imperial Valley)gmendez2@yahoocom

Young WritersPrograms Coordinators:

Divona Roymrsroy@hotmailcom

Janis Jonesaboriginals@coxnet

NWP Technology Liaison:

Kendra Madden Redernkmadden1@sandinetChristine Kan

kealoha2006@yahoocom

Senior Program Associate:Carol Schrammel

To contact the SDAWP oice,call (858) 534-2576

or email sdawp@ucsdedu

Visit our website athttp://createucsdedu/sdawp/

For registration materialsand inormation regarding these programs,

please contact the SDAWP ofceat 858-534-2576 or sdawp@ucsd edu

Dialogue Spring 2009

Documents

Transcript of Dialogue Spring 2009