Oh, The Things You Can Write!

In his book, Assessing Writers, Carl Anderson says, "If we let our kids leave our classrooms without believing they can use writing in all areas of their lives, we have failed them."  It is very important that you expose your children to the many types of writing they will be facing every day in the real world.

Sometimes it is easy to forget how many different types of writing we are exposed to on a daily basis.  We brainstormed a list to refer back to when teaching the many possibilities...

 

These anchor charts are great to keep posted in your classroom so that your students can refer back to them when thinking about what they would like to write.  Some of my favorites on the list are comics, product labels, and text messages!  Have your kids make a product label advertising their favorite book or describing themselves!  Document your history lessons in comic strips.  Write out and then send text messages to pen pals (their teacher).  Our technology teacher taught our students how to use proper etiquette in e-mails this year.  The students wrote an e-mail to another teacher in the building and couldn't wait to hear back from the teachers!  How fun!  If you have any more great ideas for exploring different genres or modes with your students, add a comment!