Note to self: Never underestimate the power of fun in writer's

workshop.

With these words, Mary Lee Hahn begins her explanation of how she

transformed her fairly typical 4th grade letter-writing unit into a

rollicking good time through readings, discussions, and kids

touting in favorite letters from home.

If you're looking for a terrific way to break the routine of a

staff meeting, study group, or predictable opening activity in a college

course, consider letter writing. In all my years of teaching

adults, it was my favorite workshop activity - hands down. Nothing

brought out more congeniality and sense of community than writing

letters.

All you need is a nice selection of stationery, envelopes, stamps,

some elegant pens if you want to get fancy. The task is simple -

tell everyone they have 20 minutes to write a letter to a mentor

who influences their teaching to this day. You can even broaden

the activity to allow participants to write a letter to anyone

they've been meaning to catch up with (from family members to old

friends).

It's amazing how much it means to teachers to take the time to

remember who got us where we are (and why we were inspired to

teach in the first place). You'll be surprised at how many

participants will know the address of who is receiving the

letters off the top of their heads, since many of us came into

teaching through the influence of our parents or other close family

members. For those who need to look up addresses, leaving the

meeting with a stamped envelope insures the letters get sent.

In a world of twitters and texts, where even email is too slow for

many, there's something comforting, even instructive, about putting

pen to paper to express enduring truths and feelings. No matter

the recipient of your letter, it can't help but get you thinking

about the writing tasks we ask of students, as well as what will

endure from our teaching when they leave our classrooms.

This week, we've got Mary Lee's advice on how to energize a

letter-writing unit in your classroom or school, and much more as

always. Enjoy!

Brenda Power

Editor, Choice Literacy

Free for All

Mary Lee Hahn designs an integrated letter-writing unit that

captures her students' imaginations, and builds home-school

connections:

http://www.choiceliteracy.com/public/819.cfm

Start planning ahead for February literacy activities with

ReadWriteThink's literary calendar. The calendar includes lots of

author birthdays and national literacy events. ReadWriteThink is a

joint venture of IRA, NCTE, and Thinkfinity:

http://www.readwritethink.org/calendar/index.asp?date=2/1/2009

The Planet Esme blog has a terrific booklist of children's

literature with a snow theme, if you're in a part of the world that

is currently buried in drifts:

http://tinyurl.com/c3g7uk

Are transitions a little rough in your classroom? Here are some

tips from Responsive Classrooms for working with students to smooth

them out:

http://www.responsiveclassroom.org/newsletter/19_4nl_5.html

Our apologies to subscribers who had trouble in some browsers

opening the Data Charts link from the "The Sisters" (Gail Boushey

and Joan Moser) last week. You can access the video of this

assessment display system for grade-level teams at this link:

http://www.choiceliteracy.com/public/801.cfm

Registration for CAFE in the Classroom summer and fall workshops is

now open, with events scheduled in Oregon, Texas, Ohio, and Maine.

These popular workshops with The Sisters are designed to help

teachers integrate reading assessment and goal setting into their

student conferences and small groups. Participants each receive a

copy of the CAFE in the Classroom DVD/Workshop Kit, a $229 value.

You can access more details on the workshop and download a

registration form at this link:

http://www.choiceliteracy.com/public/600.cfm

We've also posted our first look at our full slate of Choice Literacy summer and fall events, including new offerings on middle school reading workshops, word work, nonfiction in the intermediate grades, and dealing with assessment data:

http://www.choiceliteracy.com/public/department22.cfm

For Members Only

[Not yet a member? Click here to learn more about our members-only content.]

In the primary grades, the emphasis in read alouds is often on

rhythm, rhyme, and engagement. Yet even young children can enjoy

books that make them ponder bigger themes. Franki Sibberson's new

booklist tackles read alouds that invite thoughtful conversation in

grades K-2:

http://www.choiceliteracy.com/members/820.cfm

If you're looking for a "taking stock" activity with good energy

that fosters lots of reflection, you may be interested in

Cindy Hatt's "What I Know Now" staff meeting or study group

icebreaker:

http://www.choiceliteracy.com/members/817.cfm

Andrea Smith confers with two girls who are working together over a

math word problem in this week's video. In the lesson sequence,

she helps her students think through the reading strategies they

will need to make sense of word problems on upcoming state tests.

This is the second of a three-part video series:

http://www.choiceliteracy.com/members/807.cfm

Finally, we've posted a new Choice Literacy Cluster with a focus on

improving your literature circles and book clubs. Contributors

include Jennifer Allen, Kathy Collins, Shari Frost, and Franki

Sibberson:

http://www.choiceliteracy.com/members/823.cfm

That's all for this week!

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