In order for students to write effective narratives, they need to read good narratives. In this practical book, you’ll find out how to use mentor texts to make narrative writing instruction more meaningful, authentic, and successful. Author Sean Ruday demonstrates how you can teach elementary and middle school students to analyze the qualities of effective narratives and then help them think of those qualities as tools to improve their own writing. You’ll learn how to: Introduce your students to the key features of a successful narrative, such as engaging the reader, organizing an event sequence, and crafting a strong conclusion. Assess students’ writing by evaluating the specific attributes of an effective narrative. Make narrative writing an interactive, student-driven exercise in which students pursue their own writing projects. Use mentor texts to help students learn the core concepts of narrative writing and apply those skills across the curriculum. Encourage students to incorporate technology and multimedia as they craft their narratives. The book is filled with examples and templates you can bring back to the classroom immediately, as well as an annotated bibliography with mentor text suggestions and links to the Common Core. You’ll also find a study guide that will help you use this book for professional development with colleagues. Bonus: Blank templates of the handouts are available as printable eResources on our website (http://www.routledge.com/9781138924390).

In order for students to write effective narratives, they need to read good narratives. In this practical book, you’ll find out how to use mentor texts to make narrative writing instruction more meaningful, authentic, and successful. Author Sean Ruday demonstrates how you can teach elementary and middle school students to analyze the qualities of effective narratives and then help them think of those qualities as tools to improve their own writing. You’ll learn how to: Introduce your students to the key features of a successful narrative, such as engaging the reader, organizing an event sequence, and crafting a strong conclusion. Assess students’ writing by evaluating the specific attributes of an effective narrative. Make narrative writing an interactive, student-driven exercise in which students pursue their own writing projects. Use mentor texts to help students learn the core concepts of narrative writing and apply those skills across the curriculum. Encourage students to incorporate technology and multimedia as they craft their narratives. The book is filled with examples and templates you can bring back to the classroom immediately, as well as an annotated bibliography with mentor text suggestions and links to the Common Core. You’ll also find a study guide that will help you use this book for professional development with colleagues. Bonus: Blank templates of the handouts are available as printable eResources on our website (http://www.routledge.com/9781138924390).

The Multimedia Writing Toolkit demonstrates how, by drawing on students’ interest in and familiarity with technology, you can integrate multimedia to maximize the potential of writing instruction. In eight concise chapters, author Sean Ruday identifies and describes simple, common forms of multimedia that upper-elementary and middle school students can use to improve their argument, informational, and narrative writing and critical thinking. You’ll learn how to: Incorporate multimedia into argument, informational, and narrative writing through students’ use of video topic trailers, online discussion boards, webpages, and more. Evaluate students on effective use of multimedia through easy-to-follow rubrics and explicitly articulated learning goals. Understand more fully the key forms of multimedia through user-friendly overviews and explanations; you don’t need to be a "techie" teacher to use these strategies! Overcome possible obstacles to the integration of multimedia in the classroom by learning from the author’s concrete, first-hand examples and instructional recommendations. This book is complete with resources designed to provide you with extra support, including reproducible classroom-appropriate charts and forms, links to key web-based content discussed in the book, and a guide for teachers and administrators interested in using the book for group-based professional development. With The Multimedia Writing Toolkit, you’ll have a clear game plan for encouraging your students to become more engaged, technologically savvy learners. Bonus: Blank templates of the handouts are available as printable eResources on our website (www.routledge.com/9781138200111).

The Author's Apprentice - a Narrative Writing Toolkit for Teachers, is a class photocopiable book designed to enhance student writing by guiding them through the tools authors use to write powerfully and effectively. This sort-after teacher resource is a must-have to enhance student understanding and outcomes with narrative writing.

Imagine a world without stories... Stories are vitally important to our way of life. Learn how to write like an author as you journey through the pages of The Author's Apprentice, unpacking the tools authors use to create narrative stories that leave a lasting impression.

Writing A Novel is not a set of rules and regulations. It is an atlas, a guide to finding your own way over the treacherous passes of your first novel. Pulling together his years of experience as a novelist and a teacher, Richard Skinner covers the basics of writing great fiction - narrators, characters, settings - with charm and rigour. But more than that, he argues that the journey towards a final manuscript is as important as the finished article itself.His approach works: many of Richard's students have gone on to secure publishing deals and many more have left his courses with work to be proud of. With its balance of warmth and wisdom, Writing a Novel will give any aspiring writer the confidence to face the blank page -- and to fill it.

The Author's Apprentice Stories are vitally important to our way of life. Learn how to write like an author as you journey through the pages of 'The Author's Apprentice', unpacking the tools authors use to create stories that leave a lasting impression. Ideal as a student workbook, or for anyone who would like to know the author code of writing a book. The Author's Apprentice includes: The Author's Secret Weapon; The Story Recipe; To Plan or Not to Plan; Creating an Imaginary World; Character Profile; The Heart of Writing; A Story Plan; An Illustrated Story Plan; Show, Don't Tell; Writing Checklist; Frequently Asked Questions; Author Bingo; Author Wordsearch; Author Toolkit and background about story telling. Aspiring Writers - Use this narrative writing toolkit as you need, moving through the pages as it suits you and the stage of your writing and your experience. Some pages may reinforce what you already know, or remind you of a strategy to use in your writing. Some pages may give you an 'a-ha' moment, giving you that edge that your writing needs to make your story complete. Teachers - This narrative writing toolkit is designed to assist student writing by guiding them through the tools narrative authors use to write powerfully and effectively. You can either go in order of the pages, or choose the pages you would like to focus on for particular lessons. When using this workbook, if you start at the front of the book, when you arrive at page 9, you will need to go to the back of the book - for the students' amusement.

Interactive Writing is specifically focused on the early phases of writing, and has special relevance to prekindergarten, kindergarten, grade 1 and 2 teachers.

Proven methods for teaching reading comprehension to all students The Literacy Cookbook is filled with classroom-tested techniques for teaching reading comprehension to even the most hard-to-reach students. The book offers a review of approaches that are targeted for teaching reading, writing, speaking and listening skills. The book also includes information on how to connect reading, writing, and test prep. Contains accessible and easy-to-adopt recipes for strengthening comprehension, reading, writing, and oral fluency. Terrific resources are ready for download on the companion website. The materials in this book are aligned with the English Language Arts Common Core Standards The website includes an ELA Common Core Tracking Sheet, a handy resource when writing or evaluating curriculum.

The Multimedia Writing Toolkit demonstrates how, by drawing on students interest in and familiarity with technology, you can integrate multimedia to maximize the potential of writing instruction. In eight concise chapters, author Sean Ruday identifies and describes simple, common forms of multimedia that upper-elementary and middle school students can use to improve their argument, informational, and narrative writing and critical thinking. You ll learn how to: Incorporate multimedia into argument, informational, and narrative writing through students use of video topic trailers, online discussion boards, webpages, and more Evaluate students on effective use of multimedia through easy-to-follow rubrics and explicitly articulated learning goals Understand more fully the key forms of multimedia through user-friendly overviews and explanations; you don t need to be a "techie" teacher to use these strategies! Overcome possible obstacles to the integration of multimedia in the classroom by learning from the author s concrete, first-hand examples and instructional recommendations This book is complete with resources designed to provide you with extra support, including reproducible classroom-appropriate charts and forms, links to key web-based content discussed in the book, and a guide for teachers and administrators interested in using the book for group-based professional development. With" The Multimedia Writing Toolkit, "you ll have" "a clear game plan for encouraging your students to become more engaged, technologically-savvy learners. Bonus: Blank templates of the handouts are available as printable eResources on our website (http: //www.routledge.com/9781138200111)."