Convention Season: In Which I Learn to Use Red Ink (or Writing Four Kinds of Comments)

How to Mark a Student Paper Like a Pro (Only Better) - Brian Wasko

I got up bright and early on Saturday morning to make it to this 8:30 AM seminar by Brian Wasko of Write At Home which offers online writing classes. I've heard Brian speak before and enjoyed it very much. Since I teach writing classes, I thought I'd see if there were any tips or tricks Brian could share that would help me out, or at least this would let me know I'm doing things correctly.

The worst place to learn stuff is a school.
The average time to mark up an essay is 20 minutes. If a teacher has 150 students (as many teachers in schools do), that is 50 hours of grading time for just one essay. No wonder teachers don't assign enough writing!

Brian doesn't like the word "grade" as in "grading essays." He prefers to say "mark up" the essay since it has more of a connotation of helping kids with their writing.

Basic Paper-Marking Principles

• Ink color doesn't matter. 
• Use a pen, but talk too. (Mark it up first.)
• Think "process" (multi-step) Three drafts is often appropriate.
• First draft emphasis is on larger issues. What is the paper saying? Get the big picture.
• Read it through once without marking anything.
• Limit corrections. Pick your battles. Avoid the "it makes me nuts" attitude. Leave mistakes unmarked sometimes. We're only working on a few things at once.
• Good writing is more than grammar: Content, style, substance, mechanical
• There is no answer key for writing. 

Four Comment Types

1 - Positive Comments
Learn to find something positive.
Editing "hurts".
Students may not be conscious of the good things in their writing.
Sincerity matters.

2 - Corrective/Directive Comments
Watch out for just noting "vague".
Offer suggestions. Prefer two suggestions.
Use complete sentences. (He doesn't like the comment 'frag'.)

3 - Relational/Responsive Comments
Watch for tone.
Responding to content shows you care and you are "hearing" the student.
Interact!

4 - Summary Comments or Evaluation/Scores
"Sandwich" method (something positive, something directive, something positive)
Brief paragraph of comments.

Brian showed some student papers on the screen that he asked the audience to comment on which was a fun exercise. Then he opened up the floor for questions.

Q - Once the marking occurs, do you recommend a particular rubric?
A - Six Traits rubrics
Don't get bogged down in rubrics because of multiple items in the checklist.
Customize rubrics. Weight the categories according to what you are working on.

Q - What types of assignments does Write At Home give?
A - Four modes - Narrative, Descriptive, Expository, Persuasive

Q - What is important in a writing curriculum?
A - Two approaches: Copywork/Dictation model or "Get Creative" model

I was pleased with this workshop because it confirmed for me that I am doing many things correctly as I evaluate and assess my students' writing. I disagreed with Brian on a couple of points and was encouraged to try a couple of new things as I mark up student writing in the future.

Great seminar!

Convention Season: In Which I Learn to Ask Questions (or What are the Liberal Arts, Really?)

Why Writing is Not a Subject and Why Every Subject Needs Writing To Be Properly Taught - Andrew Kern

Last year was the first time I'd heard Andrew Kern speak. His seminar I heard then was called "How to Read a Good Book and a Hard One" which used Anna Karenina as an example. I'd never wanted to read Anna Karenina until hearing that talk and I was blown away by Kern's thoughts. So, I wanted to hear him again this year. When I saw he was speaking on writing integrated into the whole curriculum, I knew this was the seminar for me.

Andrew Kern is founder and president of the CiRCE Institute, the founding author of The Lost Tools of Writing, and a co-author of the best-selling book Classical Education: The Movement Sweeping America.

Andrew seems a bit scattered as a speaker, but really that is not the case. He just takes a while to tie everything together. Let's see if I can do any justice to the six pages of notes I took in this meaty seminar.

He began with the image of a tree with its branches broken on the ground. He then mentioned the tree of learning and asked what is the trunk of that tree.

Next, he discussed "subjects" which at present we usually describe as the things we study in school. Do we learn subjects though? Our educational vocabulary has been hijacked.

What we actually should be teaching is not random subjects, but the deliberate, imaginative, and patient teaching of the seven liberal arts. (Since he mentioned the list of seven a few times, but never gave the complete list, I looked it up. Here it is:  grammar, rhetoric, and logic (the trivium) and geometry, arithmetic, music, and astronomy (the quadrivium).)

Aspire to the truth, gaze upon the truth. The soul of your child needs to perceive the truth. You shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free.

Use logic well. Think coherent clear thoughts.
Rhetoric: push the argument and specify the disagreement, but be a harmonizing person.

A liberal art is different from a subject.
Science - is knowing ("to know") an area of knowledge. Branches of the tree, a domain of knowledge.
Art - a way of *making* something. Taking something abstract and making it visible.

The glory of humans is that we are made in the image of a God who creates. We have not instinct, but artistry. We are incarnating a Logos.

Homer described "winged words" flying between souls. Those words still have the power to change us 2700 years later.

Humans are imitators. We are all always artists. We are expressing something always.

The liberating arts make knowledge of the truth.

So, the trunk of the tree of learning is the seven liberal arts and writing (rhetoric) is the pith (the center of the trunk), Another definition of 'pith' is the essence of something.

Writing - if you can't write, you can't succeed. In modern society, you can't do anything if you can't write. "Writing is the life-giving core."

The most important thing you can teach children is to ask questions. The quality of your learning (and your life) is determined by the questions. The questions are simple, obvious, God-given.

• What is this I see?
• What is it for?
• How did it become what it is?
• How did we get here?
• How does it change?
• How is this like that? (comparison precedes thought!)
• How are things related?
• What was happening around it?
• Who has something to say about this?

Our souls are asking these questions before we think them.

Coaching may slow you down at first. You look at what you are doing. You over-think, repeat the behavior. In the long run, you get better.

Writing is thinking in Super-Slow Motion.
When you do it more slowly, you are thinking about what you are doing.

Write before bed.

Most writing is subconscious. When you write, in a way you are studying yourself.

CATEGORIES FOR ANY LESSON
The Five Topics of Invention aka The Common Topics
(a 'topic' is a place to go to get thoughts)

1 - Comparison
How is this alike/different from that?
Quantities, qualities

2 - Definition
Who or what is that?
What kind of thing is that?
What are its parts?

3 - Circumstances/Context
What was happening at the time?

4 - Relation
Cause/Effect
Why did you do that?
Why is that what it is?
What caused that to be?
What were the effects of that?

5 - Authority
What do the experts say about that?
What do the witnesses say about that?

These questions are the heart and soul of human thought. They are the life of every subject.

Learn to enjoy thinking.

Dante's Paradiso (written while he was in exile by the sea)
Much worse than uselessly he leaves the shore 
(more full of error than he was before) 
Who fishes for the truth but lacks the arts.

Every soul fishes for the truth and NEEDS THE TOOLS.

We owe this to our children.

Convention Season: In Which I Practice Discernment (or which seminar was the stinker)

Immediately after the successful first seminar on teaching the reluctant writer, I headed over to a seminar that was supposed to help both children and adult writers get published. My goal here was to find some information on writing that would help me personally. The three speakers were all published authors of Christian fiction. Since I was unhappy with the seminar in general, I am leaving off the names of the speakers and the title of the seminar.

Let me first say that, after this seminar, I searched out the booth and looked at the books of these authors and they seem like perfectly fine Christian literature. My problem with the seminar was not with their books or their methods specifically.

Making me uncomfortable was the definition given in this seminar of "good literature". Here is the list of items that characterize "good literature" according to the speaker.

-Spiritual content (meaning it is supposed to turn the person toward Jesus)

-The message (same thing, I suppose)

-Interesting

-Sparking good conversations

-Well-constructed plot

-Good character development (and this may not be what you are thinking it is)

- Proper grammar & punctuation

-Quality literary style

-Moral tone of Philippians 4:8 

-Incorporates a Christian worldview

-Stimulates thought

-Positive lessons

-True to the period

-Does it glorify sin or show its horrible consequences?

-Does it promote worldliness or godly character?

While I have nothing against stories that promote godly character or incorporate a Christian worldview, I do take offense to the idea that *all* "good literature" does so. I think that a discerning Christian reader can learn from many stories that fall outside of the Philippians 4:8 filter. In fact, that verse does not limit us to only things that are pure, noble, right, etc...; it merely instructs us to think about those things. If we were honestly to *only* think of those things, then why are stories such as Judges 19:22-29 or Judges 11:30-39 in the Bible?

The rest of this seminar was intended to encourage writers in their craft and help them get published. However it was quite general in tone and not very practical. Here are the remainder of the tips:

• Good readers make good writers. 
• Set the example. 
• Read as a family.
• Discover students' interests.
• Teach students to critique (other people's writing).
• Enter a contest.
• Generate creative ideas.
• Read in your genre. See what works, what doesn't work.
• Carve out space and time to write. Decide to write. No excuses. Take your laptop wherever you go.
• Continue your education. 
• Join a writer's group of like-minded writers. (With a warning to avoid writers who go against the "good lit" criteria above)
• Write for publication, such as a blog, letters to the editor, travel articles, Sunday School take-homes (suggested for teens to do this specifically).
• Check the Sally Stewart Christian Market.
• Prepare your manuscript. 
• Use beta readers (term was not explained). 
• Send to a paid editor. 
• Find an agent/publisher. Do your homework first.

So, there you have it - how to get published in the Christian fiction market.

Convention Season: In Which I Attend The First Writing Seminar

Getting Words on Paper: Strategies for Reluctant Writers -  Kathy Kuhl and Janice Campbell

We rolled into town mid-afternoon and got settled into our hotel room. I had to hustle to get to the first seminar by 3:30, Getting Words on Paper: Strategies for Reluctant Writers with Kathy Kuhl and Janice Campbell.

My goal for this convention was to find as many writing seminars as possible to help me in my job as a writing teacher to homeschooled students. Since I have a number of reluctant writers in my classes, the title of this seminar caught my eye.

Kathy and Janice alternated speaking, but I didn't note who said what. 

They began by asking why the task of writing is often so hard. Some of the reasons mentioned were:

• the physicality of the task
• uncertainty of the writer
• perfectionism
• memory issues

To overcome this reluctance, goals should be specific. 

• We want to teach students to communicate skillfully and clearly on paper. 
• We want them to be confident in various writing formats (essays, reports, etc.). 
• We want students to be able to self-edit.

Methods we can use to accomplish our goals could be the classic five-step writing process or the model-based writing process. In either case, not every piece of writing needs to go through every step of the writing process.

Five-step Writing Process

1 - Read and Research 

Keep reading aloud to students. Dyslexics usually have a smaller vocabulary than typical students, so combat that by pouring words into students. Learning Ally (formerly Recorded Books for the Blind) can be a resource.

2 - Thinking on Paper aka Brainstorming 

This process is like turning on a faucet. Sometimes the hot water takes a while to come through. Mind-mapping/webbing are good techniques. Try using a white board or large paper, so as not to limit ideas. Index cards work well for some thinkers. Dictation software can be helpful. They also mentioned a website called Coggle It, which I have not checked out. 

3 - Organize Ideas

Number your ideas in order of quality, best ideas first.

Think of vivid examples for supporting points.

Teach outline format.

Use graphic organizers, such as the fishbone map. 

4 - Writing the First Draft.

Teach patterns, such as the keyhole essay format. 

Reluctant writers may simplify their first draft due to lack of spelling ability, dread of penmanship, etc... Anticipate this and counteract these problems. 

Try having the student dictate or record the first draft.

Use systematic instruction to provide a foundation.

THE MORE YOU WRITE, THE BETTER YOU GET.

Try techniques such as free writing or copywork.

5 - Revise (Learn to Self-Edit)

Use a rubric (scoring sheet).

Janice Campbell has a book called Evaluate Writing the Easy Way.

Model-based Writing Process

1 - Absorb

Read deeply, both silently and aloud.

Copy writing. (Have them begin by copying a line you have written as a model.)

Annotate.

Give pens and paper. They suggest a Jetstream pen. 

Experiment to counteract sensory issues.

2 - Consider (the piece of writing)

What kind of writing is this?

Who is it written for?

What does it mean?

What if....?

Be sure to engage students in the piece of writing before moving on to #3.

3 - Transform

Change THIS to THAT.

Change poetry to prose. Change Ancient to Modern. Change Essay to Letter to the Editor. Etc....

4 - Create

Write something in the same form as the original.

Adapt for reluctant writers. 

Audio, play, interview, graphic novels.

Special Tools and Strategies

William VanCleave - Writing Matters

Diana Hanbury King's book A Guide to Helping Your Child at Home: Developing Foundational Skills in Reading & Writing

tablet apps

Explicitly teach sentence skills.

Focus on process more than product.

Words at Work

Card games

Perfect Reading, Beautiful Handwriting (for lefties)

Short, sweet daily lessons

TIPS:

Use the "Triage" concept. Don't try to fix everything in a student's writing all at once. 

Rank substance in writing before style and mechanics.

Encourage! Always find something to praise!

Encourage! Always find something to praise!

Janice Campbell's Pinterest has a graphic organizer board.

Although there was no "new" concept to me in this seminar, I loved hearing the contrast between the two writing processes. I also liked hearing the titles of books and resources that can be helpful.

RECOMMENDED - Especially for parents of reluctant writers in upper elementary through high school

The Eve of NaNoWriMo

National Novel Writing Month starts tomorrow! Every year since 2009, which was my second year of participating, my kids have written novels during November.

When I talk about NaNoWriMo, I encourage EVERYONE to participate. You may have a novel inside you and not even know it. And don't even try to tell me that you don't have time. We can compare schedules. ::::grins::::

If your CHILD will be participating:

You, the parent, will sign up your child at http://ywp.nanowrimo.org/.  If you, for whatever reason, don't want to affiliate with NaNo's YWP, that's ok; you can be local participants only. Students choose their own word count goals on the YWP site. Here's a handy chart to help you choose: http://ywp.nanowrimo.org/wordcount I actually recommend higher numbers than these, starting with 1000 words per grade level. So a 7th grader could aim for 7,000. 

This year, my kids have these word count goals

Emily (12th grade) - 50,000 - that's 1667 words per day

James (9th grade) - 25,000 - that's 834 words per day

Suzy (7th grade) - 7,000 - that's 233 words per day

ADULTS can write too!
Moms and Dads, you can sign up too. Go to the main NaNoWriMo website at www.nanowrimo.org and sign yourselves up!  Adults all aim for the 50K word count goal.

So, my own word count goal is 50,000. I will be writing a middle grades novel entitled Ebenezer McCracken and the Saga of the Sphinx.

Come on! You'll be really glad you did!

Many resources exist on the website. They have written novel-writing lesson plans and FREE workbooks for your students (and they are EXCELLENT) as free downloads. Very cool! http://ywp.nanowrimo.org/resources

What is NaNoWriMo?

National Novel Writing Month happens every November!

It is a fun, seat-of-your-pants novel writing event where the challenge is to write an entire novel in just 30 days. That means participants begin writing November 1 and must finish by midnight, November 30. The word-count goal for our adult program is 50,000 words, but our Young Writers Program allows participants who are 17 years old and younger to set reasonable, yet challenging, word-count goals.

The only thing that matters in NaNoWriMo is output. It's all about quantity, not quality. The kamikaze approach forces you to lower your expectations, take risks, and write on the fly.

Make no mistake: you will be writing a lot of strange stuff, and some of it will be just plain bad. But that's a good thing! For 30 days, you get to lock that inner editor in the basement, let your imagination take over, and just create!

As you spend November writing, you can draw comfort from the fact that, all around the world, other National Novel Writing Month participants of all ages are going through the same joys and sorrows of producing the Great Frantic Novel.

In 2013, over 300,000 adults participated through our main site, and nearly 90,000 young writers participated through the YWP.

www.nanowrimo.org

http://ywp.nanowrimo.org/

Let me know if you have any questions!

The Best Writing Curriculum Ever!

I've done a lot of research into language arts and writing curricula and the best I've found is IEW. I tried substitutes and I've tested other approaches, but I return to IEW over and over.

Why did I choose IEW curriculum? IEW, or Institute for Excellence in Writing, is a very thorough and effective program that yields excellent measurable results. However, the learning curve for the instructor is steep so many homeschool moms find it difficult to integrate into their homeschool routines. 

This year I am again teaching composition classes for high school and middle school and I am using IEW curriculum. (Sadly, there doesn't seem to be local interest in an elementary level class.) Offering these classes to homeschoolers means that I can provide quality writing instruction to students in a group setting. Parents can be assured they will progress steadily toward excellence in writing without the pressure of learning how to teach this system.

When you have this, you can learn from the master himself - Andrew Pudewa. Prepare yourself to be overwhelmed and confused at first. I viewed the TWSS twice and taught David and Emily the SWI-B (Student Writing Intensive) before I felt really confident about teaching these concepts.

However, some moms don't have the advantage of a local class. So, what do they need to do? Well, if you're serious about teaching writing with this method, I'd suggest getting the Teaching Writing with Structure and Style (TWSS) DVD set from IEW. Yes, it's expensive. I went in with a group of friends and we purchased it together. 

My classes are using the Thematic books from IEW this year. The middle schoolers will be using the Ancient History-based theme book and the high school group will be working through the Character-based theme book. Last year my middle school group completed the Following Narnia theme book which turned out to be a valuable experience. These books are only suitable for use by instructors who already know the IEW system well. 

Parents can skip the learning curve by choosing the SWI courses. These DVD-based courses allow your children to learn from Andrew Pudewa and work through exercises in the corresponding work binder. I would recommend watching the DVD along with your children so you understand how to complete the assignments.

If you want help choosing IEW curriculum for your family, IEW has a helpful tool on their website HERE.

Students who learn to write with IEW gain confidence and skill and become excellent writers. I recommend starting now!

Basic Essay Writing Intensive

My Writing Process Blog Tour

"You're writing a book? How cool!"

That's what people often say when they find out (usually during National Novel Writing Month) that I am working on a novel. Then they often ask something about how it's done.

"When do you find the time?"

"How long does it take?"

"Where do you get your ideas?"

"Isn't it hard?"

When I was invited to participate in the #mywritingprocess blog tour by my friend Kaye Sims at Wondering as I Wander, I thought it was a valuable opportunity for me to sit down and think through some of those questions. During NaNoWriMo, I'm usually too busy frantically typing to make my word count to give the process much thought. By the way, I met Kaye via mutual friends on facebook when I noticed she also was writing for NaNoWriMo. She inspires me with her commitment to writing and simplicity as well as her willingness to go deeper spiritually. Thank you, Kaye, for this opportunity for some self-reflection and connection to the community of writers. 

So, Question #1 - What am I working on?

The bulk of my writing is done during the month of November, the aforementioned National Novel Writing Month. During the rest of the year, I blog, sometimes regularly, sometimes occasionally, and think hard about finding time to edit. 

My book club guide to the works of Jane Austen is in the editing stage and that's the project that is most likely to surface first from the murky recesses of my computer files. I'd also love to find some time to finish the weird sci-fi novel I attempted during NaNoWriMo 2013. 

Question #2 is 'How does my work differ from others of its genre?'

Focusing specifically on my Austen book club guide, my goal was to give the reader the sense of actually being at our book club. Since most of you have not been there, you wouldn't know that it's slightly irreverent, yet serious in our discussion of the classic books we read. 

We are not the kind of book club that just meets to drink wine and giggle, though we often do both of those things. We nearly always choose books that have modern film adaptations because we are very visual and we watch the films together. However, we chat through every movie, commenting on everything that strikes us funny or philosophical. 

So, I wanted to give my book club guide that same lighthearted feel but still be able to discuss the deeper questions that Austen's books raise in the modern reader. I haven't found any other discussion guide with the same goal.

My fiction work is much more earnest, I think. I'm not a dystopian or ironic sort of author. I don't think my fiction differs much from other books in the genre, but that's not necessarily a disadvantage. Readers who choose a genre often do so for some commonality between authors and works.

The #3 question asks, "Why do I write what I do?"

I'd like to give some really artsy answer here about how the story would burn in my soul if I didn't tell it. The truth is much more practical though. I'm not artsy. I don't have a story burning a hole in my soul.

I would like to make a living as an author. If that's too prosaic and practical for you, I guess I'm not your kind of writer. However, I think there is room in the world for writers of all proclivities and preferences, and I tend to be more common sense than romantic. 

But I have found that I absolutely adore creating a fictional world. The characters come alive, though they do not always do what I tell them. The story leads somewhere and I'm not always leading it! 

And I am in love with words. Selecting the perfect word is a process I enjoy. My weighty Roget's thesaurus containing 330,000+ words is my trusty companion.

The last question for this tour is #4 - How does my writing process work? Since NaNoWriMo is my normal writing environment, VOLUME is the key. 50,000 words in a month boils down to 1667 words per day. My process in November is to write as many words as I can in a sitting. I write fast and don't let the blank page bother me. At least not bother me much.

I like to do a lot of research, but NaNoWriMo isn't very conducive to that, at least not while I'm working a job other than my writing. So, either I try to do some research before the writing begins, or I write about something that doesn't require much research - a modern-day story or, as I tried this year for the first time ever, a science-fiction story.

Planning or outlining the story ahead of time is something I've done on a couple of occasions, but more often I've flown by the seat of my pants. Since my days are full without even considering any writing time, planning is a luxury that I haven't allowed myself to indulge in much. Perhaps my writing would improve or my stories would be easier to finish if I did more of it. Something to experiment with, I suppose!

Maybe you are wishing for many more details about how I actually write. But I doubt it. I will attempt to do more blog posts in the future about the nitty-gritty, but for now, I'll bring that to a close.

And now I would like to introduce three of my writing friends, C. Gockel, Andrea Miles, and Gina Lawton. Within the next few days, each will be posting their answers to the writing process questions. I can't wait to hear what each has to share! 

C. Gockel writes a series of books that I've much enjoyed and I'm so thrilled she's agreed to participate in this blog tour. I found her books due to my not-so-hidden Loki obsession and have enjoyed each one thoroughly. I highly recommend you download I Bring The Fire: Part I Wolves and immerse yourself in her mix of modern Earth and Asgard. (I see that Part 1 is free to download on Kindle today, so you've got nothing to lose!)

C. Gockel got her start writing fanfiction, and she is not ashamed! Much. She received emails, messages and reviews from her fans telling her she should 'do this professionally'. She didn't; because she is a coward and life as a digital designer, copywriter and coder is more dependable. But in the end, her husband's nagging wore her down: "You could be the next '50 Shades of Gray' and I could retire!" Unfortunately, the author isn't much for writing smut. She is sad about this; she'd love for her husband to be able to retire and just work for her so she could nag him.

At the moment, Ms. Gockel is working on the next installment of "I Bring the Fire".

Ms. Gockel loves to hear from readers. She can be reached by email at: cgockel -dot- publishing -at - gmail -dot- com
Her Facebook page is: https://www.facebook.com/CGockelWrites

Blog link: http://ibringthefireodin.tumblr.com/

My next writing friend, Andrea Miles, is a fellow homeschooling mom whose first book, Trespassers, is coming out later this year. I look forward to reading it! I found Andrea on Twitter (or maybe she found me?) and have enjoyed her tweets. https://twitter.com/THEandreamiles

Andrea Miles earned her Masters of Professional Writing from the University of Southern California. Originally from Pocomoke, Maryland, she currently lives in Birmingham, Alabama with her husband and three children. Her first novel, Trespassers, is forthcoming this October from She Writes Press. Visit her website (www.andreamiles.com) or find her on FB (https://www.facebook.com/THEandreamiles)

Gina Lawton has been my friend in real life for many years and she always inspires me - in writing, in education, in learning, in food (!), and in following Christ with a whole heart. Her blog is always thoughtful and sincere, going deeper than the shallow obscurity of so many blogs that I've clicked through.

Gina Lawton is a Mom, wife, wanderer, connoisseur of the "finer" things in life, writer, photographer and always looking for what comes next ...You can find her blog here: www.hobobone.wordpress.com

I'd also like to give a shout out to a writer I follow on Twitter who has been very inspiring to me - Nat Russo. His tweets pour forth every day bringing writing tips, ideas, and practical information. His first book is Necromancer Awakening: Book One of The Mukhtaar Chronicles. I saw that Nat had also participated in this blog tour so here is a link to his post: HERE

http://www.nat-russo.com/

Thank you for reading, everyone! Please visit my friends' blogs. 

My Writing Process - Blog Tour Coming Up!

I've been asked to participate in a blog tour detailing the writing process from the perspectives of many different authors. So, be on the lookout this week for a post from me with all my writing secrets!

OK, maybe not "secrets". Ha!

I also will be announcing several writers who will be also be posting on their blogs to give you even more insight into how authors work. What fun!

#mywritingprocess

Tweets from Day Three of Convention

I wonder if the construction workers are getting time and a half to work before 7 am on a Saturday. #Cincinnati #homeschool #convention
— LisaQuing (@lisaquing) April 26, 2014

Two great workshops so far this morning! Waiting now for Kirk Martin to talk about social media.
— LisaQuing (@lisaquing) April 26, 2014

First seminar: @WriteAtHome 10 Dumb Things Teen Writers Do. Really valuable list. Thanks, Brian!
— LisaQuing (@lisaquing) April 26, 2014

.@CelebrateCalm Thanks for a helpful and encouraging presentation on social media. Practical tools. #Cincinnati #homeschool #convention
— LisaQuing (@lisaquing) April 26, 2014

.@HomeSchoolAdven Thanks for a thoughtful and interesting presentation on C. S. Lewis today. #Cincinnati #homeschool #convention
— LisaQuing (@lisaquing) April 26, 2014

The conference is over! Thanks to @HSConvention for an encouraging experience with many nuggets of wisdom and humor. Can't wait for 2015!
— LisaQuing (@lisaquing) April 26, 2014

November = NaNoWriMo

The calendar says November and in the Wagner house that has meant NaNoWriMo for the past few years.

What is NaNoWriMo? NAtional NOvel WRiting MOnth, of course, when you attempt to write 50,000 words in 30 days!

This is my 7th year writing a novel in November and my kids have participated for the past five years. My 11th grader, Emily, wrote the full 50K last year and plans to do so again this year. My younger two (ages 11 and 13) are participating in the NaNoWriMo Young Writers Program (YWP) which allows you to set your own goals. My oldest wrote novels in November for six years, but this year is his first in college and he cannot make time for it.

Why do we write? That's a fair question and I will attempt to answer it over the next four weeks as we explore new worlds through writing. 

It's not too late for your family to participate! Give it a try. I think you'll like it!

 (Click my signature to visit my NaNoWriMo participant page.)

Homeschool Connections Seminars on Writing

Yesterday I had the privilege of speaking to a couple groups of people about writing. I love speaking to groups (which amazes me since I hated it in school).

The first group of about ten homeschooling moms showed up for my morning talk on Evaluating Your Child's Writing. Most of the moms had elementary and junior high students. We settled in for a cozy chat on how to instruct their children in writing and assess the progress.

Later I spoke to a larger group of about 25-30 people, including some dads and teens, about writing a high scoring ACT essay. This information was distilled from my six-hour essay writing workshop, so I talked fast in order to include everything I wanted to say. I finished with one minute for questions. :-)

I felt really encouraged after speaking to these eager and diligent homeschool parents. I am confident that they left with more tools in their writing toolbox.

If you came here looking for the handouts to these seminars, here's a dropbox link.

NaNoWriMo 2012 Report

Things I learned from NaNoWriMo this year
1 - I should have a plot outline before November 1st.
2 - I work better under pressure.
3 - I can write 10,000 words in one day.
4 - I should really try harder to let other commitments go during November.
5 - I love write-ins but they are often more social than productive. 

November 30, 2012 marks my sixth win for National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo). My oldest child, a high school senior, has participated for five years and my other three children have four years under their belts. 

Children can participate in the Young Writer's Program which allows them to set their own goals. My two youngest did that this year. My ten-year-old wrote 5,000 words - maybe about 2/3 of that was on her own and maybe 1/3 of it was dictated - a HUGE accomplishment for her! My twelve-year-old (who turned 13 the day after NaNo ended) wrote 20,000 words. The two oldest, both in high school, managed the entire 50,000 to win as adults.

To make that happen, I make novel-writing the bulk of their language arts curriculum during November. I did assign more language arts this year than I have in the past for various reasons. Prizes measure the progress for the kids, ranging from candy to a large prize for "winning".

No Words

OK, I'll admit it. I haven't written 1000 words a day at all this week. Or most of last week. Too busy with Christmas stuff and working.

1002 words in 30 minutes

1001 words in 33 minutes

NaNoWriMo Final Report

Final NaNoWriMo report:
We all finished and surpassed our goals! Cue the wild cheering and throwing of multi-colored confetti!!!!

Lisa - 50,009 (ok, so I only went 9 words over! lol)
David - 50,497 (goal 50,000 - 1st year for the whole enchilada)
Emily - 15,438 (goal 10,000)
James - 10,001 (goal 5,000)
Suzy - 3,569 (goal 3,000)

We all printed out our cheerful NaNoWriMo winner's certificates and today we attended a wrap party. It was really intended to be a write-in, but just about everyone there had already finished, so we just partied instead. A lot of friends did NaNo this year and quite a few of them finished - so CONGRATS to all you 50K achievers! And if you tried and didn't hit the 50K mark, there's always next year!

We will edit in January and I've set a goal of completing the editing this year instead of letting it fall by the wayside. From looking at their rough drafts, I can see what each child needs to work on (ie. paragraphing, quotation marks, capitalization, etc...). So we'll set aside some time for grammar, spelling, and punctuation editing and some separate times for content editing.

Suzy won't be editing for grammar and punctuation since I typed hers. She can use her time better working on her phonics to increase her literacy. Next year, she can type her own book maybe!

I won't be editing mine anytime soon (or ever?). However, I plan to pull out the 2008 NaNoNovel I wrote and finish editing that one. I've also already started writing a new novel as part of Inkygirl's 1000 words a day challenge. Click the badge or check the sidebar for more info.