Writing Workshop Survival Kit: (166 J-B Ed: Survival Guides)

The second edition of the Writing Workshop Survival Kit offers English teachers and writing teachers in grades 5-12 a thoroughly updated and revised guide to teaching the writing process. This comprehensive, step-by-step resource is an invaluable aid for teachers who are conducting a writing workshop or managing a writing workshop in the classroom. Gary Robert Muschla explains the stages of the writing process and shows how to engage students in the dynamics of writing. The book includes activities, numerous reproducibles, and 100 mini-lessons that concentrate on various types of writing, writing techniques, and the mechanics of writing. In addition, the second edition contains new material on timely topics such as Enlisting Support for Your Writing Workshop, Using Search Engines to Find Information on the Internet, The Use of Computers in Revision, and How to Establish a Web Site to Display Student Writing.

Table of Contents:
About This Book v How to Use This Book vi About the Author vii Acknowledgments viii Part One:The Dynamics of the Writing Workshop Section 1: An Overview of the Writing Workshop 3 The Writing Process 4 Your New Role 5 The Teacher’s Role in the Writing Workshop 6 A Model of a Typical Writing Workshop 7 Scheduling Your Writing Workshop 8 Promoting Your Writing Workshop 8 Enlisting Support for Your Writing Workshop 10 Reproducible: Things Parents Can Do to Foster Good Writing Habits in Their Children Section 2: Managing Your Writing Workshop 13 Reproducible: Student Responsibilities in the Writing Workshop Creating and Maintaining a Writing Environment 15 The Writing Environment 17 Reproducible: Student Writers’ Tools of the Trade Reproducible: Rules for Working in Groups Planning Your Workshop Lessons 20 Managing Time in the Writing Workshop 21 Keeping Students Motivated 22 Time-Savers 23 When Discipline Is Necessary 24 Evaluation 28 Monitoring the Progress of Your Students 29 Reproducible: Daily Log Writing Across the Curriculum 32 Reproducible: Skills Analysis Sheet Reproducible: Checklist for Types of Writing Part Two:The Stages of the Writing Process Section 3: Prewriting 37 Prewriting Strategies 37 Freewriting 37 Activity 1: A Freewriting Exercise Reproducible: Freewriting Sample Clustering 38 Activity 2: Creating Clusters Reproducible: A Sample Cluster Idea Listing 41 Activity 3: Making an Idea List Reproducible: Sample Idea List Brainstorming 41 Activity 4: Brainstorming for Ideas Reproducible: Brainstorming Guide Rehearsing 45 Activity 5: Rehearsing for Ideas Reproducible: A Prewriting Warm-Up Role Playing 45 Activity 6: Role Playing to Find Ideas Reproducible: Choose a Role Researching 46 Activity 7: Using the Internet for Research Reproducible: Using Search Engines to Find Information on the Internet Organizing Writing 50 Reproducible: A Structure Form Drawing and Diagramming 52 Journals 52 Reproducible: Writing Journal Guidelines for Students Idea Folders 54 Personal Experience 54 Activity 8: Personal Experience and Ideas Reproducible: Inventory of Personal Experience Observation 56 Activity 9: Observation and Ideas Reproducible: What Do You See? Angles and Viewpoints 56 Activity 10: Viewing from All Points and Angles Reproducible: Seeing All Sides Using Questions to Explore Topics 58 Activity 11: Focusing Topics Reproducible: Exploring a Writing Topic Section 4: Drafting 63 Writing the Draft 63 Activity 12: Questions to Ask During Drafting The Foundations of Good Writing 64 Activity 13: The Elements of Good Writing Strategies to Aid Drafting 65 Section 5: Revision 69 Revision Mechanics 69 Teaching Revision 69 Revising for Unity 70 Revising for Order 70 Revising for Conciseness 70 Activity 14: Revision Strategies The Use of Computers in Revision 72 Reproducible: Computers and Writers Revision Pitfalls to Avoid 74 Activity 15: A Revision Plan Writing Conferences 75 Activity 16: A Role-Played Writing Conference Reproducible: A Writing Conference Started by the Teacher Reproducible: A Writing Conference Started by a Student Some Conference Strategies 79 Peer Conferences 80 Reproducible: Peer Conference Questions Activity 17: Strategies for Effective Peer Conferences Reproducible: Peer Group Guidelines Reproducible: Revision Checklist Section 6: Editing 85 Strategies for Teaching Editing Skills 85 Activity 18: Using a Dictionary Reproducible: Editing Reminders Activity 19: Using a Thesaurus Activity 20: Using an Author’s Stylebook Editing Partners 89 Editing Groups 89 Reproducible: Editor’s Checklist Activity 21: Using Editor’s Marks Proofreading 92 Section 7: Publishing 93 The Author’s Chair 93 Peer Group Sharing 94 Computers and Publishing in the Writing Workshop 94 A Word on Copiers 95 E-Mail as a Means of Sharing and Publishing 95 Reproducible: A Model Release Form Reproducible: E-Mail Etiquette for Writers Producing Class Magazines 98 Tips for Producing Class Magazines 100 Producing Books Written by Students 101 Web Sites for Sharing Writing 101 Web Sites That Publish the Writing of Students 102 How to Establish a Web Site to Display Student Writing 103 Still More Ways to Share 104 Submitting Student Writing to Magazines 104 Activity 22: Submitting Writing to Magazines Reproducible: Tips for Submitting to Magazines Activity 23: Writing a Query Letter Reproducible: Sample Query Letter Reproducible: Print Markets for Student Writers Part Three:Using Mini-Lessons in the Writing Workshop Section 8: Mini-Lessons for Types of Writing 113 1. Writing Personal Narratives 114 Reproducible: A Big Splash 2. Writing Essays 116 Reproducible: Slowing Global Warming by Saving Energy 3. Strategies for Answering Essay Test Questions 118 Reproducible: Essay Test-Taking Tips 4. Writing How-to Articles 120 Reproducible: How to Make a Budget 5. Writing Straight News Articles 122 Reproducible: Bat Attacks Alarm Town Reproducible: Taking Apart a Newspaper Article 6. Persuasive Writing 125 Reproducible: Save Trees and the Environment by Recycling Newspapers Reproducible: Analyzing a Persuasive Essay 7. Writing Friendly Letters 128 Reproducible: Sample Friendly Letter 8. Writing Business Letters 130 Reproducible: Sample Business Letters 9. Writing Book Reviews 132 Reproducible: A Sample Book Review: A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle 10. Writing Movie Reviews 134 Reproducible: A Sample Movie Review: The Babe 11. Writing Fiction 136 Reproducible: The Valentine’s Day Dance 12. Writing Advertising 138 Reproducible: Advertising Fundamentals Reproducible: Advertisement Review 13. Writing Nonrhyming Poems 141 Reproducible: Nonrhyming Poems 14. Writing Rhyming Poems 143 Reproducible: “Eldorado” by Edgar Allan Poe 15. Writing Plays 145 Reproducible: The Parts of a Play Reproducible: Ghost Hunt 16. Writing Screenplays 148 Reproducible: The Test Reproducible: Screenplay Vocabulary Section 9: Mini-Lessons for the Art of Writing 151 17. Writing Effective Leads 152 Reproducible: Leads Reproducible: Sample Leads 18. Organization for Nonfiction Writing 155 Reproducible: Vanishing Rain Forests 19. Writing Conclusions for Nonfiction Pieces 157 20. Conciseness 158 Reproducible: Cutting Clutter 21. Avoiding Intensifiers and Qualifiers 160 22. Active and Passive Constructions 161 23. Choosing Strong Verbs for Writing 162 24. Writing Effective Transitions 163 Reproducible: Nonverbal Communication 25. Developing Imagery 165 Reproducible: Returning to the Beach Reproducible: Sense and Image 26. Tone 168 Reproducible: How You Say It 27. Comparing and Contrasting 170 Reproducible: Comparing and Contrasting—Nonfiction Reproducible: Comparing and Contrasting—Fiction 28. Avoiding Clichés 173 Reproducible: Clichés 29. Conducting Interviews 175 Reproducible: Guide to Great Interviews 30. Using Figures of Speech: Similes, Metaphors, and Personification 177 Reproducible: Figures of Speech 31. Using Onomatopoeia 179 Reproducible: Onomatopoeic Words 32. Using Alliteration 181 Reproducible: A Sample of Alliteration 33. Conflict 183 Reproducible: The Runaway 34. Characterization 185 Reproducible: Revealing Character Reproducible: Character Chart 35. Writing Dialogue 189 Reproducible: Dialogue Samples 36. Developing Settings 191 Reproducible: Setting Samples 37. Using Flashbacks 193 Reproducible: The Party 38. Foreshadowing 195 Reproducible: The Ranch 39. Constructing Effective Climaxes 197 40. The First-Person Point of View 198 Reproducible: First-Person Point of View Fact Sheet 41. The Third-Person Point of View 200 Reproducible: Third-Person Point of View Fact Sheet 42. The Limited Point of View 202 Reproducible: Example of Limited Point of View: Final Batter 43. Multiple Point of View 204 Reproducible: Example of Multiple Points of View: Final Batter 44. Avoiding Plagiarism 206 Reproducible: Citing Sources 45. Choosing Titles 208 Reproducible: Titles Section 10: Mini-Lessons for the Mechanics of Writing 211 46. Types of Sentences 212 Reproducible: Sentences 47. Sentence Patterns 214 Reproducible: Examples of Sentence Patterns 48. Subject and Verb Agreement 216 49. Compound Subject and Verb Agreement 217 50. Subject and Verb Agreement with Intervening Phrases 218 51. Subject and Verb Agreement: Doesn’t or Don’t 219 52. Subject and Verb Agreement: There’s, Here’s, and Where’s 220 53. Subject and Verb Agreement: Indefinite Pronouns 221 54. Subject (Pronoun) and Verb Agreement 222 55. Agreement of Pronouns and Antecedents 223 56. Possessive Nouns 224 57. Paragraphing 225 Reproducible: Developing Paragraphs, Sample 1 Reproducible: Developing Paragraphs, Sample 2 58. Varying Sentences to Make Writing Interesting 228 59. Combining Sentences for Variation 229 Reproducible: Example of Combining Sentences 60. Sentence Fragments 231 Reproducible: Find the Fragments 61. Run-On Sentences 233 Reproducible: Finding and Fixing Run-Ons 62. Avoiding Misplaced Modifiers 235 63. Tenses: Choosing the Present or the Past 236 64. The Past Perfect Tense: Showing Previous Past Action 237 65. Using Did or Done Correctly 238 66. Writing with Sounds That Are Not Words 239 67. Avoiding Double Negatives 240 68. Using Italics for Titles and Names 241 69. Using Italics for Emphasis 242 70. Using Quotation Marks for Titles 243 71. Using Quotation Marks for Emphasis 244 72. Using Parentheses 245 73. Using the Dash 246 74. Using Hyphens with Compound Words and Numbers 247 75. Writing Lists with Colons and Commas 248 76. Spelling Strategy 1: Dictionaries and Spell Checkers 249 77. Spelling Strategy 2: Proper Pronunciation 250 78. Spelling Strategy 3: Spelling Confusions 251 Reproducible: Spelling Confusions 79. Spelling Strategy 4: Personal Spelling Lists 253 80. Overusing So and Then 254 81. Using Affect and Effect Correctly 255 82. Using All Right and (Not) Alright 256 83. Using Among and Between Correctly 257 84. Using Bad and Badly Correctly 258 85. Avoiding Could Of and Similar Constructions 259 86. Using Farther and Further Correctly 260 87. Using Fewer and Less Correctly 261 88. Using Good and Well Correctly 262 89. Using In and Into Correctly 263 90. Using It’s and Its Correctly 264 91. Using There, Their, and They’re Correctly 265 92. Using Who’s and Whose Correctly 266 93. Using Your and You’re Correctly 267 94. Using Lay and Lie Correctly 268 95. Using Lose and Loose Correctly 269 96. Using Off Rather Than Off Of 270 97. Using Sit and Set Correctly 271 98. Using Than and Then Correctly 272 99. Using To, Too, and Two Correctly 273 100. Using Who and Whom Correctly 274 Resources 275

About the Author :
THE AUTHOR Gary Robert Muschla, prolific author and classroom teacher, taught reading and writing for more than twenty-five years in Spotswood, New Jersey. He is the author of many books including Reading Workshop Survival Kit, Ready-to-Use Reading Proficiency Lessons & Activities, and The Writing Teacher's Book of Lists with Ready-to-Use Activities and Worksheets, all from Jossey-Bass.