Want to help kids write to learn? You need this Low-Stakes Writing Menu.

One of the things I love best about teaching is that my teaching practice evolves constantly as I learn what works best for kids. Teachers are always searching for education's holy grail -- the activity, the lesson, the strategy that will help students do their best work, their best thinking. In last week's post, I briefly touched on a video I recently came across. It focused on low-stakes writing (or writing to learn). If you haven't seen it, you can (and should!) watch it here. 

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I have always engaged my students in low-stakes writing (you probably have too) but I certainly didn't call it that and I also don't think I approached low-stakes writing in a very deliberate way. After seeing the work of teachers in the video, I want to change that. So now I am on another teacher quest -- searching for resources (and thinking of resources I already have) to up my low-stakes writing game. I decided that what I really needed was a one page menu of low-stakes writing activities that I could choose from at any given time. So with Gretchen's help (she missed her calling as a graphic designer), I made one (The Write to Learn Cafe Menu). I heart it....and plan to hang it by my laptop as a constant reminder to incorporate low-stakes writing into my lessons this year.

So I hope you'll use it, change it, share it, add to it. Make it yours. But most of all keep it handy so that you can refer to it easily and often. And I will be sure to check in with you once I have implemented more of these strategies to let you know how it works for my students.

​-Corey

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You might also like:

• Thesis Statements: Grab Students Attention with Fairy Tale Grab Bags (March 17, 2017)
• Tovani Truths: The Things I Learned from Being Cris Tovani's #TeacherFanGirl  (Feburary 20, 2018)

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