Wednesday, July 11, 2007

Reading Response for July 11

I love writing and I do it professionally, but even I sometimes find it difficult to get started. Where does one begin. I agree with Tim G. that regular writing keeps you "in tune," and makes it easier to write. When I haven't written in a while, the blank computer screen stares at me and my mind is blank. It takes time to organize my thoughts and actually begin. However, I find that if I just put something up there, the thoughts begin to flow. Sometimes my opening is terrible, but it is a way to begin and I can go back later to make improvements. This year I will write with my students. I haven't done that before, and I think it will make a huge difference in the way I teach writing.

The article on writing by very young students reminded me of my own daughters and their writing. Often the early attempts were not readable in the traditional sense, but if you just read them phonetically and looked for other clues, they were wonderful, individual pieces. The child who write the most as a small child is now a humanities major in college who loves to write.


For someone who is computer "illiterate" like me, this look at the future is a bit intimidating. However, just from our work this week, I can see how blogs and wikis and other things I don't even know about yet, may help my students. I want them to have the best possible opportunities to learn, to think critically and to write effectively. If computers and technology can help with that process, and I know they can, then I want to know how to use them in my classroom.

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