Re: Atwell's _The Reading Zone_

[SommerWind410@aol.com]

Jenny,
Thanks so much for these links and suggestions.  Keeping Nancy's  unique 
situation in mind certainly helps put it in perspective. 
 
I will check into Laminack's and Reif's titles but will probably have  to be 
selective. Would you believe I have already spent $450 on  books/school 
supplies for next year?!  (And I thought the rampant  spending ceased after year 
three!)  After reading your review,  I peeked at _Writing on Demand_ over at 
Heinemann and plan to  order that one, for sure.  Looks good.
 
Thanks again!
Cathy :-)
 
In a message dated 7/6/2007 12:33:56 PM Eastern Daylight Time,  
judgejenny@hotmail.com writes:

Just a  couple of comments.  As far as the test driven portions of your  
curriculum, check out a book called "Writing on Demand" published by  
Heinemann.  I wrote a book review of this in our Indiana Writing  Project 
Spring 2007 newsletter.  You can read it at the following  link: 
http://iwp.iweb.bsu.edu/    (click on Spring 2007  Newsletter pdf).

I also keep in mind every time I read a book by Nancie  Atwell that she only 
has 14 students in a private school where she is also  the principal.  She 
lives in a reality of her own making.  Her  students have been doing reading 
and writing workshop for years before she  has them in 8th grade.  I don't in 
any way discount what she  advocates because I find huge success in using her 
ideas with my college  freshman, but for a more practical approach to reading 
and writing  workshop in a public school, check out Linda Reif's books 
instead.   She does advocate shared and whole class reading, but agrees with 
Atwell  in many other ways.  I myself use a whole class novel which we read  
like a reader first--all the way through without interruption except at  
natural breaks (chapter breaks) for questions and some thinking  aloud.  Then 
we go back and read the novel again (reading like a  writer) and talk about 
the author's craft in certain excerpts and the  other skills kids need like 
skimming text for information and rereading  for deeper analysis.

I found this link also:  
http://teacher.scholastic.com/products/scholasticprofessional/authors/talkabou
ts.htm
Many  of you may be interesting in hearing what these authors have to say 
about  their work.
Both Nancie Atwell and Linda Reif are on this page.  I  highly recommend the 
Lester Lamanick book on this page as  well.


Jenny Smithson









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