National Writing Day

Today we celebrated National Writing Day!  There are student writings posted on the walls and throughout the classrooms for you to come in and read.  Each of the classroom teachers wrote a short article for the second edition of our National Writing Day newsletter telling about what is happening in their classroom or at their grade level in writing.

            The writing workshop is used through out the school.  While it may look different at the various grade levels, the process remains similar.  The student decides on a topic to write about and may organize the storyline in some way, gets writing on the first draft, and rereads the story often to make changes or add details.  This process of making changes and additions is the most important part... it lets the writer develop the meaning in the story through details.

It’s the details that give the reader the images that they can connect with through the writing.  In some classes, they may call this a ‘small moment.’ In a 'small moment', the writer gives enough detail so that it captures a moment in time – stretched out by the author’s tiny details of the important moment. 

So whether it’s in poetry, a story about your child's life, or the non-fiction information of a favorite topic, look for the small details that capture your attention!

Keep your eyes open for the National Writing Day Newsletter that went home with your child today.  It is filled with information about the writing that is happening throughout our school.

Fact or Fiction?

So what have you read today?  Chances are that most of the reading you have done today was non-fiction reading.  My non-fiction reading for today included maps, newspapers, magazines, e-mails, recipes, lists, order forms and pamphlets to name a few.  The list of non-fiction reading is extensive and my list just touches upon the variety of texts we read on a daily basis.

Non-fiction

Fiction

In school, your child is reading both fiction and non-fiction books.  In kindergarten and first grade, the conversation about whether a book is fact or fiction begins.  Most students in the primary grades will be able to tell you if the story is true (non-fiction) or make-believe (fiction).  A good way to talk about the difference between fiction and non-fiction with your child is to start with fiction because children hears many stories.  You tell them family stories or read stories to your child and all fiction – oral or written - have a beginning, middle, and ending.  While the individual stories may be different, they will all have the quality or structure of having a beginning, middle and an ending.

At the primary level, the non-fiction conversation asks if the book is true or has information but does not tell a story.  I am always amazed at how quickly these young readers can figure out the type of book they are reading!  At the upper elementary grades, the non-fiction books are identified with specific categories such as biographies, procedural or instructional, explanatory, persuasive, or descriptive.  Your child learns what features are important in each of the different non-fiction text structures so they can navigate through the information confidently.  By fourth grade, your child should be reading a mix of 50% fiction and 50% non-fiction books and the amount of non-fiction reading increases through adulthood.

So what did you read today? When your child brings home his or her book tonight, ask them if they are reading fiction or non-fiction!