One of my own first
personal experiences with writing occurred in my second grade year. At this
point in life, I had little previous experience with writing. My experience
beforehand had been limited to small journal entries, the classics of
elementary writing; Explain what you did this weekend, Who is you best friend
and why?, etc. This assignment, however, differed from anything we had done
previously. This specific activity involved writing a short story surrounding
our topic of choice. There were very few limits to the activity, we simply had
to come up with an idea and write about it. We were encouraged to be creative with
our stories, coming up with our own characters, settings, and conflicts. As
this was only a grade 2 class, I believe the required length was approximately
one page hand-written, and you know how big a child’s writing can be at the
ripe young age of seven. Although this was many years ago, I can remember with
great detail the story I had written. This memory now stands out as one of the
moments in which I discovered my own passions for reading and writing. My story
began with a tale of three ducks. I remember describing each of their
characteristics and the nature of the relationships between the three. What
stood out most about this experience however, was the fact that I could not
stop writing. What was supposed to be a one page story ended up much longer. I
began dividing it into chapters after the ideas continued to spring forth in my
head. My finished product ended up being approximately five chapters and about
ten pages. Not long ago, I found this story, hidden away in an old basement
cupboard. I laughed when reading it, shaking my head at how eager I was as a
young child. Reading this story reminded me of the pleasure that comes from
writing. Our students, even at a young age, are incredibly capable of
creativity and worth. If we expose them to writing early on, we can instill a
passion for writing, literature, and create life-long learners.
"We are all apprentices in a craft where no one ever becomes a master."- Ernest Hemmingway
Welcome to my blog!
The following space is dedicated to the exploration of implementing writing across the curriculum. In the subsequent months I will be chronicling my experiences in PED 3148, Teaching Writing Across the Curriculum, a course dedicated to discovering strategies relevant to our future practice teaching writing. By exploring different strategies through research and collaboration, writing can be applied to a variety of subject matter; from a standard English classroom or a Math or Science course. Here’s to a journey dedicated to learning and discovery!
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I hope you will hold onto this story throughout your teaching career. As you note above, It is a real touchstone piece!
ReplyDeleteLoved your story about the three little ducks and how you made connections with how this activity inspired a love of writing for you. :)
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