Dialogue Spring 2009
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Inside...Teaching the Writer:Voices rom theSummer Ins ti tute 4-5Marla Williams
Rob Meza-Ehlert
Kindergarten:Not or Babies 6Jennier Moore
Recollection 7Dinah Smith
YWC 8-9Lauren CookLenni ElbeMaddy Horner
Grace McGuireEmily MendozaHannah Montante
Reading, Mathand Writing 10Lisa Harris
Where ICome From 12
MG Williams
In Your HouseI long to Be 13
Lisa Muoz
Also included:
Muse Box 14SDAWP Notes 14PublishingOpportunities 15DialogueCall For Manuscripts 15Calendar o Events 16
From Fear to Confidence
A Publication of the San Diego Area Writing Project Spring 2009DialogueAn essential component o SDAWPs mission statement is that knowledge about the teachingo writing comes rom those who teach, write, and research. Bob Inantino, SDAWP 1980, is
one such teacher. Hes recently completed a book, Tough Choices or Teachers, co-authoredwith Rebecca Wilke and published by Rowman & Littleeld Education. The book contains12 case studies and a role play about ethical challenges that could be aced by new teachers
or student teachers. Bob Inantino, now retired, spent 43 years in the classroom at variouslevels, 9-12, undergraduate, masters and doctoral. Hes served on 35 dissertation committees
as chair or member while at USD. He was co-director o SDAWP rom 1980-1991, havingattended 11 summer institutes and acilitating outreach programs or teachers o underrep-
resented students.
Frank Barone, SDAWP 1977, says o Bob Inantino, While I appreciated Bob's leadership
during my years at the Writing Project, the most memorable moments or me came at thosetimes when he invited me to present poetry to his university students to reacquaint them with
the pleasures and uses o metaphor across the curriculum. And I still remember that Bob
wrote with his students, o course, and always wrote well.
In this issue, it is with great pleasure that we share a recent interview with Bob Inantino, aellow whose extensive career and contributions to the eld o education exempliy the im-
portant role o teacher as researcher and writer.
The Dialogue: Tell us about your book.
Bob Infantino: The book my colleague Rebecca Wilke and I wrote has as its main pur-pose to assist new teachers in understanding that they may be aced with ethical decisionsthey were not and are not prepared or. To make good choices, they need to understandprocesses and principles that will enable them to choose wisely and well. So ater two in-troductory chapters, one on the purposes o the book and one on principles o ethical deci-sion making, the book presents a dirty dozen cases or scenarios involving new teachers
acing tough choices. Each case is based on events that happened in schools, althoughthe names and places are changed to protect the innocent (and the guilty). There are sev-eral levels o complexity in each o the cases, as there oten are in real lie. We urge theteachers in training or teachers in induction programs in schools to think not only aboutan immediate decision but also about the ways in which they go about making the eventualdecision. It is the latter which could have the most lasting impact on the lives o theseteachers and on their interactions.
The Dialogue: What is the role o ethics in education?
Bob Infantino: In 1980, USD received a substantial three-year grant rom the National En-dowment or the Humanities to develop interdisciplinary ethics courses which would meetour upper division ethics/philosophy requirement or undergraduate students. About 10
From Practice to Publishing:An Interview with
SDAWP Fellow Bob Infantino
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Dialogue
Spring 2009
Issue No. 22
From Fearto Confidence
Editors: Stacey Goldblatt
Jennifer MoorePage Design: Janis JonesWriting Angel: Susan Minnicks
Published by theSan Diego Area
Writing Project at UCSD
Directors:Makeba JonesKim Douillard
UC San DiegoSDAWP9500 Gilman DriveLa Jolla, CA 92093-0036(858) 534-2576http://create.ucsd.edu/sdawp/
Dialogue, Spring 2009
ing choices that teachers and admin-istrators are aced with regularly.
Our book points out to teachers thatgood decision-making comes romthe strong ethical character thateach teacher should possess. Butcharacter is developmental, as areteaching abilities and personalities.So understanding principles o ethics
and acing theoretical and practicaldecision making opportunities helpsdevelop the moral character to dothe right thing or the right reasons,as a philosopher might express it.
The Dialogue: How does think-ing about ethics trickle down romteacher to student?
Bob Infantino: As I said above, char-acter development is learned as wellas taught by all humans. Inuenceso other people, culture, social sta-tus, and education, to name a ew,
help us develop our ethical skills.So teachers who treat students withrespect, who model appropriate con-ict resolution skills, and who makegood choices in their interactions andcurricular choices can have great in-uence on how their pupils view the
world and on the present and uturechoices they make. O course it is nota one-shot deal. While we cant alterthe neighborhoods our students livein or the socio-economic status otheir amilies, we can and must oerthem the best o ourselves, and that
includes our moral selves. Thats why people are so dismayed whenteachers seem to stray rom theirbest behaviors and engage in inap-propriate behavior with students orall into drug or alcohol habits whichbecome evident in their classrooms.The book presents one such scenar-io, and even writing it was difcultor me because o the very natureo the ethical problem being mani-ested by the veteran teacher in thecase.
The Dialogue:What are the "toughchoices" teachers ace?
Bob Infantino: Teachers have tomake choices every day; somechoices are easier than others, orsure. More importantly, they haveto develop not only their teachingrepertoire but also their decision-making repertoire. How should Idecide whether to write a letter orecommendation or a student whois ailing my class (Case 1), or whyshould I not take supplies without
such courses were developed andtaught. Proessor Larry Hinman andI team taught the Ethics and Educa-tion class 9 times in the subsequent20 plus years. It is the longest last-ing o the original courses, though itscarcely resembles the frst course
we taught. We went rom a rathertheoretical, traditional ethics courseto a very balanced course integrat-
ing theory and practice, using tech-nology more and more as it becameavailable on our campus.
More than one student has told meand Proessor Hinman that our class
was their avorite o any they hadtaken at USDhigh praise or a re-quirement that students oten suerthrough toward the end o college.All o us in education know that weace decisions, large and small, ev-ery day in every possible confgura-tion. A human endeavor like teach-ing oten puts people in conictnotjust with their pupils but also witheach other, with parents, with schoolboard members and sometimes withthe public. In literacy education, weneed go no urther than the so-calledreading wars or the No Child LetBehind Act to see the decision mak-
permission (Case 7) are just two othe choices we write about. More
long-term issues o appropriate andinappropriate interpersonal rela-tionships are also examined (Cases12, 13). These cases get very murky
when the young teachers get released by the people with whom theywere in romantic relationship. There
are issues o curriculum choice, ohiring new teachers, o racism andsexism, and o grading complaintsby parents. We know these are reaethical choices and hope that newteachers (and even veteran teach-ers) will take seriously the decision-making processes we propose in thebook in order to resolve the dilem-mas presented. Ethics scenarios donot suppose one right answer to any
dilemma; just as in real dilemmasright answers oten prove elusiveBut there are always choices thatare better than others, and doing
what is right and just is always thebest choice.
The Dialogue:What is the practicalapplication o ethics or teachers?
Bob Infantino: In the structure othe text, Rebecca and I try to set upthe reader with a preview o the is-sues in the case. We ask the reader
to be aware o all o the stakehold-ers in the case, whether the readers
has aced a similar choice, and whatsel-application there might be orthis new educator. Within the cases
we present mostly inter-personaconicts, since the actions o moralagents (people) are most oten thecauses o the dilemmas and theirdecisions have eects not only onthemselves but also on others, otenmany others (stakeholders). Some-times new teachers dont think about
While we cant alter
the neighborhoods our
students live in
or the socio-economic
status of their
families, we can and
must offer them the
best of our selves,
and that includesour moral selves.
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such eects, only on the quick andimmediate solution to the problemat hand. They use a principle suchas, Well everybody does it this way
here, so I guess Ill to it too (likeskip out o a meeting to go to thebeach, or borrow supplies withoutpermission). Such a relativist stanceis a weak ethical way o thinking, yetsometimes predominates in certain
situations.
The Dialogue: Do you see the pos-sibility o ethical decisions and judg-ments we ace in education chang-ing in these times o rapidly evolvingtechnology? Or are ethics timeless?
Bob Infantino: Ethical decision-making is both timeless and ever-changing. We call on Aristotle toteach us about virtues, and uponCarol Gilligan (1982) to teach us
about the inuence o gender on themanly virtues posited by Aristotlethousands o year ago. We are be-ginning to understand better the di-erent ways that men and womengo about making tough choices. Wenow know more about the inuenc-es o culture since we are able to un-derstand cultures frst hand by traveland research rather than just rumor.Technology has certainly inuencedthe ways we act, but not always orthe better. Yet we know and under-stand more about each other because
o technology and thus are able tohave empathy and understanding orothers ways o doing things. Proes-sor Hinman suggests that we need touse our moral imaginations in orderto make as much moral progress astechnological progress, resulting ina better, more just society.
The Dialogue: Every book evolves,rom a germ o an idea, to its ullorm. Tell us about the process o
writing the book. How was this en-deavor dierent rom previous writ-
ing pursuits?
Bob Infantino: Most o my previouswriting eorts have been solo. I dida book in 1983, in collaboration withDr. Ed De Roche, called Real World Reading and Writing or Teachersand Students. Rebecca has writtentwo other books. But most o my arti-cles and poetry have been individual
eorts. Writing with a colleague hadtwo dierences: frst, we each hadto decide what parts o the book we
would produce; and second, decidewhen and how we would tie every-thing together. We both had lots o
years in classrooms and in teachereducation, so the cases were easyto outline. But dialogue among thecharacters to make them sound likereal 21st century people was not al-
ways easy. I had to change the nameo one o my characters, or example,rom Trudy to Kelsey when Rebeccasaid, Bob, nobody is named Trudyanymore. O course she was right.But I had started that case in 1998
when I presented it NCTE/CEL andpeople were still named Trudy, at
least so I thought. We spent a con-siderable amount o time looking atsimilar texts and at ways o makingours dierent. We settled on a or-mula or the end o each case that Iound years ago in an article by Kev-in Ryan, a well-known moral educa-tor rom Boston College. I wrote himto ask permission to use the 5 Es oMoral Education as a template or
our cases and he granted permis-sion with enthusiasm. I think he waspleased that someone rememberedan article rom 1986. We owe him asigned copy o the book soon.
The Dialogue: How did you grow asa learner, writer and teacher as a re-sult o writing this book?
Bob Infantino: Revision, Revision,Revision. I had to re-see parts o thebook in order to make it whole. I
had more cases to include, but have
rightly let them out (maybe theyllbe in the second edition). I learnedthat reviewers can be brutally hon-est, but also graciously helpul. I
learned that i you get your commasand quotes generally in the rightspots, the editors welcome yourmanuscript more readily. I learned toelaborate and condense in the sameparagraph. I learned that men and
women write dierently but can becomplementary and complimentaryto each other. Ater seven drats andnearly a year o writing, I share the
deep breaths o my doctoral students when they would exhale and stateusually in a loud voice, Man, am Iglad thats over. And I would replyNot until I get a bound copy.
The Dialogue: What is the mosimportant advice you would give ateacher just entering the proessionregarding ethics?
Bob Infantino: Be prepared to makedecisions as soon as you put your ooin the classroom. Your decisions wilnot always be right, but learn romthe wrong ones and dont repeathem. Your more experienced col
leagues my not be the best sourceto help you with important decisionssince they may not have made asmuch moral progress as you mighexpect. So use their advice as onepart o your total decision-makingprocess. You are being watchedevery day, all day, especially by thepupils in your care. What you do ioten more important than what yousay. So treat everyone with as muchrespect as you can muster, and insisthat your classroom be a place osaety and comort or each o yourpupils. Be careul o what you puon technological view or others tosee and read. Do the Would I wanmy mother to see or read this testDelete stu that does not pass. Use
your moral imagination to makmoral progress in both your career
and your lie.
(Tough Choices or Teachers:Ethical Challenges in Today's
Schools and Classrooms is availableon the publisher's website
at www.rowmaneducation.com.Use promo code 6S9WIL to receivethe discounted price o $21.20. Thebook can also be ound and ordered
through booksellers.)
Be prepared to make
decisions as soon
as you put your foot in
the classroom.
Your decisions will not
always be right,
but learn from
the wrong ones
and dont repeat them.
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Dialogue, Spring 20094
Dynamic Relationships:When the Visual Becomes the Rhetorical
By Marla WilliamsSDAWP 2008
Spring is a time o renewal and the 79 par-ticipants at SDAWPs second annual coner-
ence had many opportunities to experiencethe spirit o the season Held in UCSDs CrossCultural Center on March 7, the morningevent began with continental breakast andtime or socializing Ater an introduction byKim Douillard and a writing warm-up led bySusan Minnicks, our 2008 Summer InstituteTeacher Consultants presented in break-outsessions to audiences o SDAWP Fellows andriends Shannon Falkner explained how toengage students through basic literary theory,while Lisa Harris oered her approach to us-ing mentor texts or non-ction and research
writing PJ Jeery provided inspiration ordeveloping an inquiry approach to report oinormation, and Marla Williams demonstrat-ed how to use photography to help studentswrite meaningul compositions (see the articlesthat ollow) As one participant, who was at-tending an SDAWP program or the rst time,commented, "I was inspired and enlightenedby the presentations!" All who attended wereable to explore strategies and refect on writ-ing instruction with a community o educatorsthatlike the growth and newness o springalways leaves one eeling revitalized
As a lecturer at San Diego State Uni-versity in the Department o Rhetoricand Writing Studies I am constantlypushing my students to not onlyunderstand the rhetorical movesthey see other writers make, but tobecome aware o their own writ-ing choices and actually view their
writing task as a series o strategiesaimed at bringing their audienceinto a relationship with the author.During SI and or the spring coner-ence, I chronicled some o the prob-
lems I encounter in the classroommainly that students have difcultygenerating interest in their assign-ments; they write or the grade anddont actually think, engage, takerisks or truly own their own learn-ing. My students who have beenpushed by a rigorous departmental
curriculum aimed at analysis o ar-gument still dont ully understandtheir own use o rhetoric.
So last spring with my students, college juniors and seniors enrolled ina course vaguely named Writingin Various Settings, I set out to see
what would happen i I shited theirProfle essay, similar to basic ea-ture writing, to a Photo Essay andrequired that they include at leasone photo with their writing. I madeit clear that they had complete con-trol over their choice o photos. I didnot limit the maximum number ophotos. I oered no ormatting rulesand gave no penalty or composi-tion or image quality. They coulduse expensive sotware, or do it oldschool and cut and paste; they could
The amed theorist and writer SusanSontag once said, As photographsgive people an imaginary possessiono a past that is unreal, they also helppeople to take possession o a spacein which they are insecure. Havingtaught many students who wouldquickly identiy themselves as inse-
cure writers, I see this lovely senti-ment by Sontag as a banner o sortsover both my teaching demonstra-tion rom last summers InvitationalInstitute and urther developed orSDAWP 2nd Annual Spring Coner-ence: Voices rom the Summer In-stitute. When I initially decided toexplore the role that the image canplay in crating good writing, I hadno clue exactly how powerul thepossession o the photograph was tobecome.
SDAWP Spring Conference
Teaching the Writer:Voices from the Summer Institute
ppppppppppppp
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Dialogue, Spring 2009 5
use someone elses photo borrowedrom the Internet and add a workscited page, or they could snap a poorquality picture with a low-resolutioncamera phone.
My only requirement was that thestudents had to include a photo, be-cause the goal o the essay and thesel-created inspiration or writing
became the relationship betweenthe photos and their essays, the wordand the image; they had to fgure out
how to create a dominant impres-sion and a dynamic relationship ortheir audience. Simply put, they hadto think about their writing choicesby keeping in mind the overarchingquestion and directions, What do
you want your audience to think andeel as they gaze upon your photo?
Write in a way that will allow youreach them. Make it happen.
And that they did. Yen, a graduatingsenior who had already been accept-ed to medical school, used the a-mous photo rom the Vietnam War othe young girl eeing naked rom a
village bombed with napalm. For thefrst time Yen told the mothers storyas the daughter o the then-mayor oSaigon who had to ee rom a roo-top helicopter and immigrate to theU.S. Another student, Dev profled
his best riends ather who spent the60s hitchhiking around the country.Dev beautiully created the eelingo isolation, loneliness, ear and ad-
venture with sensory language andvoice with a photo o an empty road-side stool accompanied by a card-board sign scribbled with the nextdestination.
The stories go on and on, students who protested in Venezuela, in-
When I frst saw the photograph that my partner, Ed Gillet, selected or this activ-ity, my mind traveled back to a hike I took with riends along the Scottish coastline
where a wooden suspension bridge connects the mainland to a tiny crag o rock sur-
rounded by gray ocean waters. Ed's comments opened my eyes to a related, yet verydierent viewpoint rom mine. Ed spent a number o years as the owner o a kayakcompany and traveled to ar-o lands. He shared that viewing the picture broughtback memories o seeing such wonderul places while oating on the water; hereveled in the reedom o carving out his own path on the ocean, oten completelyalone. My initial writing ocused on the desire some people have to fnd solitude andpeace in nature, but ater listening to Eds perspective, I wrote the ollowing descrip-tion o the photo:
People long or a place o solitude; a rugged, windswept spot to step awayrom the automation o our existence and touch the vastness o the world. This lonerock, the rough remnant o some ancient volcanic explosion, is just such a place. I've
hiked to numerous spots like this, searching or signicance amidst the solitude. My
experiences, however, have always been hemmed in by paths, ences and guardrails.
Ed Gillet spent over twenty years o his lie looking at such idyllic settingsrom a ar dierent perspective: foating atop the surace o the deep in a kayak.Whether paddling along the coast o South America or spending weeks out in the
Pacic, Ed lived through the trials and joys o true solitude. His is a perspective that
ew o us land-lovers will ever experience.Now, at his current stage in lie, Ed is more likely to nd his solitude on
oot, sharing the same path with sojourners such as mysel who seek a more terres-trial orm o solitude. I can almost see him crossing that bridge and looking out at
the placid ocean. On the other side, I can hear him whisper an encouragement to a
ellow traveler, Go ahead. Get o the path and dive in. I think sometime, some-place, that I will.
As a teacher, I've developed the ability to stay calm and confdent in a variety osettings, with both young people and adults. Consequently, I was quite surprised a
how nervous I elt as I read my work or the group at the conerence. As I stood upront, my voice shook, and I fxed my eyes on the page because I elt overwhelmedin a way that I hadn't elt in years. Somehow writing about Ed's perspective reallystruck a chord and spoke to me about my own lie. Perhaps I've been living a liethat is altogether too sae, with plenty o guardrails and signs to keep me on thepath.
(Rob plans to take at least one step o that path when he attends
the 2009 SDAWP Invitational Institute this summer.)
My Refections on the Photoo Carrick-a-Rede Ropebridge
(inspired by Marla Williams and Ed Gilletduring the SDAWP Spring Conference)
Rob Meza-Ehlert
Photo of Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge in Northern Ireland taken by Marla Williams
Indeed, a simpleimage can bring to life
our memories and
experiences and can
offer us the possession
of a past. A lesson in
rhetoric and writing that
would not have been,
save the photograph.
(Dynamic Relationships continued on page 6)
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Dialogue, Spring 20096
This piece is a post from
Jenny Moore's Blog
(mywholelifeisonthetipofmy-
tongue.blogspot.com). Are you a
Fellow who blogs, either
personally or professionally?
Send us a sample post or
your URL for us to add
to an SDAWP "Blogroll."
And blog on!
The other night our fve-year-oldcame home with a workbook romStarall, which is a new curriculumI understand is being incorporatedinto her kindergarten class. First we
had to staple together a little storyabout a rat named Zac (who encoun-tered some ants, incidentally). Nextshe read the story aloud to me, andthen she was to complete some ex-ercises in her workbook.
One o the assignments was to exam-ine a picture and circle the objects
with short vowel sounds. Now, myhusband and I have had to learn thedistinction between short and long
vowel sounds, since it's obviouslynot intuitive (Me: "Honey, long vow-el sounds SOUND long, you know,
like treeeeeeeeeeeeee." Him: "Huh? What about baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat?We've since surmised that long vow-els say their name, a helpul way orat least the parents to remember)I watched our daughter circle antsand the rat and a bag and grass inthe illustration. Then she put a cir-cle on part o the tree.
"'Tree' has a long vowel sound, hon-ey," I oered helpully.
"I know, Mom," she concurred, cir-cling the ag and a mat.
"And 'lea' has a long vowel sound,too, right?"
"Yep," she agreed. "But that's abraaaaaaaaaaanch, Mom. Branch.
Short vowel or branch."
Duh. Thanks, kiddo.
The last activity was to write a nar-rative based on a picture relatedto the little stapled story starring
hapless Zac. The workbook helpully provided a Word Bank (I hadnever heard o one until I becamea teacher) or this writing ventureso that one didn't need to worry somuch about spelling and could alsopractice writing and using all those
Friday, February 6, 2009
MyWholeLifeisontheTipofMyTongue.blogspot.com
Kindergarten:
Not for BabiesJennifer MooreSDAWP 1999
I worry that No Child
Left Behind makes
assumptions based on
every child's
ability to learn that
are spot-on and im-
portantbut that
don't account for the
magic and beauty of a
child's spirit...
terviewing the photographer andcommenting upon liberty and op-pression, students investigating thecontroversial Trestles toll road proj-ect by actually surfng the spot orthe frst time and interviewing andphotographing the die hard, beardedsurers who sur it daily, student vet-erans o Iraq, profling the lives oorgotten and wounded soldiers atthe VA rom wars past. All o a sud-den, this little essay became a grandproject, but it was still only when myafliation with SDAWP began that I
heard or the frst time the phrasestudent buy-in. And here it was.
For the SDAWP conerence, I cre-ated an activity in which teacherparticipants selected a photographthey connected to, and I asked themto talk reely to a partner about whatthey saw in it. Then I asked them
to switch photos with their part-ner whose photo, experience andconnection to it was to become thesubject o a mini photo essay. Par-ticipants were asked to take time todescribe the scene in the photo us-ing vivid language and to develop acouple o interview questions so thatthey could consider what else read-ers might want to know and howthey might capture their subjects
voice to bring human interest to thepiece. Ater this brie writing activ-ity, participants had only three min-
utes each to conduct an interview,and then it was time to decide on adominant impression, Each had tobecome the manipulator. They hadto decide how they would representthe specifc content o the photo-graph, the importance o the phototo their partner, and fnally their ex-perience and perspective o both.
During this activity, Rob Meza-Ehlert, a social studies teacher atKearney High partnered with EdGillet who chose a photo o Carrick-
a-Rede rope bridge that I took inNorthern Ireland overlooking Scot-tish Isles. To Ed this photograph be-came symbolic o a quiet moment,one o which he rarely speaks.
Indeed, a simple image can bring to lie our memories and experiencesand can oer us the possession o apast. A lesson in rhetoric and writ-ing that would not have been, savethe photograph.
Photo o Jenny's daughter as posted on her blog atmywholelieisonthetipomytongue.blogspot.com
(Dynamic Relationships continued rom page 5.)
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Dialogue, Spring 2009 7
words with short vowel sounds.
But o course, my daughter didn't want to write about ags and matsand ants and bags and grass. So sheignored the Word Bank and used herown invented spelling to write aboutthe playground and swingswhich,to be air, were present in the pic-ture, so who can blame her? O she
went writing whatever the heck she wanted, basically, and I didn't eel like stiing her long-vowel narra-tive. And when she wanted to writethe word "were," she sounded it out:"w," "e," "r"...pause. "Oh yeah," shenodded. "There's a silent 'e' at theend o it." Her tongue popped out othe side o her mouth as she addedthat "e" on to the end o "wer."
Meanwhile, I was shaking my head like a dog does when it's about toshake water rom its entire body.
Like, "Silent WHAT?"
So my daughter knows what "SilentE"s are and the dierence betweenShort Vowels and Long Ones. Whatthe heck are they teaching in kinder-garten these days, anyway? It turnsout I don't even know what my kidknows. I don't know what she knows,and I don't know whatshe knows, i
you know what I mean. It's crazy.
I'm pretty sure this kindergarten isnot my kindergarten. It's both heart-breaking and reassuring.
Here's what's reassuring: all this o-cus on No Child Let Behind meanssomeone has to be paying attentionto every child's ability to learn. Con-ceivably, gone are the days whennice children who try hard can slipthrough the cracks and make itthrough 12th grade without know-ing or showing much. According
to NCLB tenets, each child will beachieving at grade level standardsby 2013, or ELSE. Educators all overour state are working hard to makethis happen. Children are learningabout things and using terminol-ogy invented since our grade-school
years. What's more: they're learningabout their learning. It's impressive.
But it's heartbreaking. As a schooladministrator, I have sat in manymeetings about Accountability andAchievement and Mastery o Skills,and the theme is always We MustGet Every Kid There. It sounds real-
ly noble but also simple: We Can DoThis! However, any ONE o us who
has sat with ONE kindergartener atthe kitchen table doing homeworkor ONE evening has to wonder howONE kindergarten teacher gets 20kids through ONE activity success-ully in ONE day, while identiying
who needs extra help and then pro-viding it. And here we are the ortu-nate parents o a well-prepared kin-dergartener with no special needs.She is well prepared because we
have books and read to her but alsobecause she is just That Kind o Kid
who wakes up in the morning andwants to go write stu.
Frankly, she's the kind o kid whodelights so much in the structure oschool that she almost needs breaksrom it. Which is not to say that the
children who struggle with the struc-ture o schoolor or whom struc-ture is a oreign concept in and oitseldon't need those breaks too.I worry that No Child Let Behindmakes assumptions based on everychild's ability to learn that are spot-on and importantbut that don'taccount or the magic and beautyo a child's spirit, which can get lostsomewhere in that shue o stan-dards and vowel sounds. A spiritedteacher can help make sense o stan-dards, and put them in their place.
Our daughter is ortunate to havesuch a teacher.
Every so oten, we've got to back oZac the Rat and the Word Bank andjust laugh at how silly is his picnic atthe playground. We've got to searchor the meaningand the joyinshort and long vowel sounds. We'vegot to continue to challenge children,showing them and ourselves just
how much is possible, but we alsomust allow them to show us what is
We've got to continue
to challenge
children, showing
them and ourselves
just how much is
possible, but we also
must allow them to
show us what
is relevant.
relevant. Every child can learn; ev-ery child can achieve at standard
We are banking on that. But I am notsure every child's talents and gits
will properly emerge and ourish inthis institution o schooling as it iscurrently designed.
We all know people who sucked aschool and who thrive at lie.
The question is, are we properlyprepared to listen and respond to theChildren Let Silenced?
Recollection
Dinah SmithSDAWP 2008
Always prepared or inspection,
Presenting calmly a ne complexion,
Turning away rom any objection,
Rejecting emphatically imperection,
Unaware o the subtle infection,
That might have led
to another selection
Missing opportunity or connection,
To see my own refection,
Already whole and pure perection.
For my protection,
And to ensure no rejection,
I always chose the direction
Oering the most aection,
So I'd eel no dejection
Or, God orbid, experience
Correction
Because I missed my own election.
How could I have missed
the interjection:
Needing approval is deep inection.
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ColorsBy Lauren Cook
If a color could represent me,
it would be,
The green of the grass, the green of the trees,
the blue of the breeze,
Orange representing creativity, pink and red for energy,
Yellow: the sun shining for me!
Brown for the tree trunks,
Brown for traveling trunks,
White for the clean sheet of paper
representing my life.
Grey for the pencil, constantly writing.
And grey for the mistakes that everyone makes,Purple for my grapes, and
Turquoise for the shallow waters of the ocean.
But black for trouble I get into
And innocent white, again, saying,
I didnt do it.
All together, Im a rainbow,
Colors.
8 Dialogue, Spring 2009
Summer VacationBy Lenni Elbe
Summer a hall of fun
world of poems
butteries ying
the chorus of the
wind in my ears
the sun setsI jump into the pool
the cold water
hitting my face.
oung
riters
amp
S
U
M
M
ER
2
0
0
8
Y
WC
TheAuthorByGraceMcGuire
TheAuthorisbornWhenwords
integrate.Tocreate.Yourrstpoem.
Yourrstpairowings.Asuperhero.
Itcanfy.Poetry.
Ithassuperstrength.Observatio
n.TheAuthorisborn.
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Dialogue, Spring 2009 9
SummerBy Hannah Montante
Summer brings memories and reedom rom school
Summer takes away rusty, dusty school days
And brings cannonballs at the poolOr jumping in eet frst
Summer brings giggles and joyul laughter
Summer brings mischie and crazy antics
Allowing daydreams to race across your head
Summer lasts long enough
For everyone to rustle and squish at the pool
And at least have un
Where Im FromBy Maddy Horner
Im rom the washed-up seaweed,
the salty rocks in a wide expanse o water,
the melty, gooey chocolate in the
bottom o your Christmas stocking.
Im rom the splattered paint o your anger,
The soothing voice that sings you
Good Night Irene.
Im rom a person who escaped misery.
Im rom a single piece o cotton candy
melting and bringing joy
to the taste buds at the tip
o your tongue.
Im rom the seed you planted last year.
Im rom the beautiul rose
that brings you happiness.
Im rom the threadbare blanket
that loves you so much.
Im rom your heart.
MyCirclePoemByEmilyMendoza
Iamlivinglikethereisnotomorrow.
Tomorrowstartsanewbeginningevery
day.
Everydaybringsnewstoriesandnewm
emories.
Memoriesneverforgotten,caneitherbebadorgood.
Goodfriendsleavefootprintsinyourh
eartforever.
Foreverchanging,whileslowlytakingy
ourtime.
Timebeingeverlastingneverstopping.
Stoppingtoenjoyyourlastmoments.
Momentscanchangesomeoneinanins
tant.
Instantlypeoplecanchange.
Changingmythoughts,butneverchan
gingme.
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10 Dialogue, Spring 2009
mark writing assessments and read-ing grades, the obvious progressencourages me. I am amazed atthe perseverance of my studentsto produce a book of poetry and aresearch book about a habitat oftheir choice, both of which tookover two months to complete. Ialso observe how confident theyare when asked to write in differentsubject areas such as math or social
studies. How did we get there? Itcertainly didnt happen by filling outblanks on worksheets.
I realize it entailed the consistent
time spent teaching and writingdaily in Writers Workshop, andstudying writing craft during ourRead Aloud (Story time). How trueit is as Lucy Calkins, author of The
Art of Teaching Writingsays, They will learn to write by writing, andby living with the sense of I am onewho writes(1994).
As a teacher of young childrenin kindergarten and first grade, Ihave a unique opportunity and animportant obligation to teach writ-ing as a separate school subject, just like reading and math. LucyCalkins writes, In some districtsit is acceptable for teachers to say,I teach writing across the curricu-
lum and for those teachers to thennot regard writing as a subject inthe school day. I regard this asa problem. She further states,Childrens success in many dis-ciplines is utterly reliant on theirabilities to write; children deservewriting to be a subject that is taughtand studied just like reading andmath (2006). With lower class sizeand less demanding content stan-
dards in the primary elementarygrades, I believe we can teach writ-ing first while embedding and sup-porting it with science, social stud-ies, and health concepts. Too often writing is merely assigned and/osprinkled throughout the instruc-tional day.
Purposefully, four days a week, Icarve out a forty-five-minute periodof the school day and label it Writers Workshop. Along with ReadinRotations and Math, this teaching
block constitutes a cornerstoneof my instructional day. A typicaworkshop starts with a mini-lessonten to fifteen minutes long, where Iengage in direct writing instructionwith the entire class. Following themini-lesson the students then writefor twenty minutes. During thistime I facilitate by helping students
choose a topic, inviting students toshare to get others started, helpingstudents sound out words or com-pose sentences, and assisting withrevision. Writing time isnt alwayssilent. In fact you may hear the fol-lowing chorus throughout the timeperiod, What topic are you writingabout?
With a furtive glance towards thedoor, I hurriedly yank the plasti-cized covers off the phonics booksand toss the worksheets into therecycle pile. You know, the pageswith the word box at the top and thedirections that state, Please choosethe correct word from the box thatcompletes the sentences below, oryou might have a reading responseas a prompt which almost always
initiates this question from yourstudents, How many sentences doI have to write? Hardly authentic
writing. Once again I realize as the
year concludes that the studentsonly used five to ten pages out ofthese thick, tree-killing books. Asthe guilt mounts I wonder, Will I bediscovered and castigated? Why
do I let the office continue to orderthese books for me when they are
hardly used?
Then I reflect and ask myself,Why dont I use these books more?Instantly I know the answer. Thesebooks, in my experience, do nothelp students become better read-
ers and writers. They lack contextand meaning, so the blanks arefilled in and quickly the conceptsare forgotten. In fact, the few pagesthe students did only helped themlearn how to read directions andbecome familiar with the languageand format used on standardizedtests. This knowledge only takesfive to ten pages to attain.
What didhelp my students becomebetter readers and writers this year?As I analyzed the students bench-
Lisa Harris
SDAWP 2008
With a furtive glance towards the door,I hurriedly yank the plasticized covers off
the phonics books and tossthe worksheets into the recycle pile.
Purposefully, four days a week,I carve out a forty-five-minute period
of the school dayand label it Writers Workshop.
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Dialogue, Spring 2009 11
Aliens!
Aliens again?
Yeah, I just love writing aboutspace. You may hear me ask, Who wants to share their lead? Ofcourse Miras hand will shoot upand she will give all of us an excel-lent example. Zap, crack, pop!
Watch out, the lightning just splitthe tree in half! The last ten min-utes of the workshop is reserved forstudent sharing, the highlight forstudents. This activity motivatesstudents to write and is absolutelyessential to the workshop model.During sharing, students are taughtto listen carefully and commentspecifically on student writing inthe form of compliments and ques-tions. For example, students mightoffer the following, It made melaugh when you had the cereal talkto the boy. Or you might hear, Youused a lot of color and detail in yourillustrations. It makes your bookexciting! Of course students areanxious for their turn to share andare notoriously impatient, so it isimperative that Writers Workshopis taught consistently, at least fourdays a week. Then most children will have a chance to share andreceive feedback on their writingonce a week.
Various mini-lessons taughtthroughout the year may include:developing writing fluency, organi-zation, focusing on one topic, mak-ing books complete with cover, titlepage, and dedication, writing in
different genres such as narrativeand nonfiction, using vivid verbsand specific nouns, identifying andutilizing writing craft such as allit-eration, personification, simile, andtext manipulation.One might wonder how I can hon-estly say that my students reallyunderstood and internalized theseconcepts. After all, they are onlykindergartners and 1st graders. I would answer: in addition to the
evidence I saw in their writing, Iheard it in their language. Mom,look at this poemI used alliterationhere. You see how each word startswith the same sound? or Dad, doyou like the way I started my habi-tat book? I borrowed the idea fromanother author and changed it to fitmy habitat. It brought tears to myeyes and a lump to my throat as my
students excitedly shared their writ-ing at Open House.
Toward the end of the year, ourschool had its annual CommunityRead-in. This is a day desig-nated to invite professionals fromthe community to read in all theclassrooms and share how readingimpacts their lives. When our rep-resentative, a former space shuttleengineer, read to our class, shebegan to question the children asto their favorite part of the storyand why. Immediately the handsshot up and Jack offered, I likedthe way the author used personifi-cation to give the story voice. She
is having the animals talk and act just like people. Elizabeth added,She also used sound effects words(onomatopoeia) to make the storycome alive. This commentary,totally unprompted, placed a look
of incredulous shock and joy onthe face of our volunteer. She thenasked the children to define per-sonification and alliteration for her,and confidently and succinctly, thechildren did so. When this musicreached my ears I knew, without adoubt, the students really did get it!They had internalized these con-cepts and knew them well.
How did we get there? Im firmlyconvinced the answer is consistent
time spent teaching and writing inWriters Workshop.
Many teachers balk at this pointstating many barriers such as, Whohas time to grade all those paperor to give feedback consistently toso many students? Other barrierteachers mention include: we donhave time to teach writing separate
ly and still cover all the curriculumstandards: the district hasnt sup
plied a systematic writing programfor us to follow: we lack commonunderstanding of what writing iand what it should look like at eachgrade level: or, we dont even havconfidence in our own writing abilities.
When I contemplated these barrierI was hit with the realization that thproblems didnt center on the students: instead, it rested uncomfortably on the shoulders of the teacherand school district. What can bdone to rectify this situation? It simply cannot be ignored any longerAs Kelly Gallagher states, If Langeand Applebee are correctthat goo writing develops careful thinkinand that writing is the cornerstone oproducing literate human beingsthen dont we have the responsibilitythat reaches far beyond simply covering our courses content? (2006)Yes, we do have an awesome, oftenoverwhelming responsibility tteach our students how to write anthink.
As I consider my own journey anevolution as a writing teacher I real
ize how complex and time consuming it is. There just isnt a onesize-fits-all writing program a schoodistrict can purchase. It takes lot of professional development anpersonal commitment to become aneffective writing teacher. Attendin writing seminars, reading profesional works, and joining a writincohort in our school district withother writing teachers willing tshare their successes and frustrations have all helped me down thi
...students are anxious for their turn toshare and are notoriously impatient, so it isimperative that Writers Workshop is taught
consistently, at least four days a week.
When this music reached my ears I knew,without a doubt, the students really did
get it! They had internalized theseconcepts and knew them well.
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Where I Come FromM.G. WilliamsSDAWP 2008
Because I never know where to tell people Im rom,
they always want to know
I tell them Im rom Stockton,
But in my heart I know Im rom New OrleansWhere Im rom, Im not allowed to be rom
I wasnt born or raised there,
A hurricane interrupted my chance to earn my birthright
Where I come rom they eat red beans and rice on Mondays
We watch parades rom the neutral ground on Napoleon
And I make groceries at the A & P
Would you believe me i you knew, I bleed purple and gold?
Where Im rom is the corner o Fourth and Camp,
And where South Scott meets Canal
I did grow up in New OrleansI saw humidity soaked fowers bloom
and drench the air with the sweet scent o magnolias and honeysuckle,
And I saw riends get lost in the democratic, always open, well-accept-anyone
bars on the cocaine-laden dark side o Decatur
Where Im rom, you walk down the street, you look people in the eye and smile
In the beginning, you smile in gracious acknowledgement
and say Morning to your elders
Then you learn to purse your lips, open your eyes wide with power
And oer up the head nod in eigned respect as you pass the company o men
Where Im rom, you have to tell people you wont be a victim
Where Im rom we eat at Theos Pizza, Juans Flying Burrito and Dantes Kitchen
Where Im rom we eat whatever we want, drink more than we should
And then drive home through narrow, pothole-spotted streets lined with oak trees,
shotguns and run-down camel-back houses
Where Im rom porch sittin is an art and excess is still not enough
Where Im rom there are natives and then theres everyone else
There are transients and gutter punks, west bankers and blind tourists
Where Im rom there are kings o krewes and widows o the projects
Where Im rom darkness lasts longer than decades
The battles o ne cultures, greedy nations and blended races emerge in the
jazz-lit smoky nightclub, on the iron-laced balconies
And rom the tears o those whose heart the city devours
Where Im rom is haunted by its opulent past and bleak uture
Where Im rom will quietly suocate your soul
And i, when, you leave her
You leave a broken child, orever unaware o all you let behind
But acutely aware o that which you will never regain
path. At individual school sites per-haps grade-level planning, teachermentoring, or departmentalizationcan help instruct students in a moreeffective and efficient manner. Iknow we all cant be experts inevery subject; therefore, elementaryteachers who teach multiple sub-jects must depend on each other forassistance and support. Next year a
fellow first-grade teacher and I willteam teach. I will teach Writers Workshop to both our classes andshe will teach math. We hope shar-ing our expertise with more childrenand the opportunity to concentrateon one academic subject versus two will raise the quality of instructionfor all our students. The first stepsin achieving excellent writing in theclassrooms are teachers willing tobe interdependent, willing to changeand challenge ourselves, and willingto carve out that precious time eachday to teach writing.
Primary students have so muchpotential. It is imperative that theybegin to see themselves as writers,experience success, and build uponthat writing foundation as they prog-ress through the elementary grades.As theologian and author CharlesSwindoll writes, Works follow faith.Behavior follows belief. Fruit comesafter the tree is well-rooted(1990).My hope and desire is to see othercolleagues join me in this essentialendeavor of teaching writing as a
school subject, and instead of recy-cling so many unused worksheets, we will use paper productively forstudents journals, reports, and stu-dent-made books.
Works Cited:Calkins, Lucy. (1994) The Art ofTeaching Writing. Portsmouth, NH:Heineman
Calkins, Lucy. (2006) Units of Study for Teaching Writing. Portsmouth,
NH: Heineman
Gallagher, Kelly. (2006) TeachingAdolescent Writers. Portland, Maine:Stenhouse Publishers
Swindoll, Charles R. (1990) TheGrace Awakening. Dallas, TX: WordPress
12 Dialogue, Spring 2009
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13Dialogue, Spring 2009
breaking down or ending early, soin that sense, I prevailed. But whenI got home, I fumed, complainedand dawdled. One incident allowedme to waste precious hours thatcould have been spent cuddlingwith my husband, or, more realisti-cally, grading papers.
Thus, I realized I am nowhere
near a superwoman. I wont evenbecome Batgirl at this rate.
Basically, according to NietzscheI need to be above all that taintsand clouds my path and goals. Notthere yet. On the other hand, Idont teach because of some vague,impersonal sense of duty, whichis a step in the right direction. InMorality as Anti-Nature Nietzschewrote, What could destroy us morequickly than working, thinking, andfeeling without any inner necessitywithout any deeply personal choice,without pleasureas an automaton
of duty? He promoted intrinsicdesires and motivations rather thanextrinsic ones. I teach becauseI am compelled by forces deeperthan any monetary or social gain. When I was around five, I used toteach my dolls letters and numbersI would prop them up and writeon my little chalkboard. I wouldencourage my stuffed pug and plas-tic Shamu to finish their homeworkand would tell them they were onthe right track.
As with writing, I cant imagine notteaching. Maria Montessori, echoed
this sentiment by saying, Everyonehas a special tendency, a specialvocation, modest perhaps, but cer-tainly useful. While I know Ivefound mine, I dont think it hasnecessarily made life easier. But what a life. I have an opportunityto work with at least 140 students asemester. Imagine the potential.
Last night, I shared this with Alexby emailing it, and he spent aboutan hour writing non-stop while I
Ok, so Im listening to Audioslave(hence the title) as Im gradingpapers and Im distracted. Not justby the music, but by my thoughts.My husband, Alex, wrote this hugeHumanities paper on Nietzschesideologies and how they relate tothe decadence of society today. Igave Alex ideas and resources, andhe honestly did me a favor by let-ting me teach him what I know. When I start reading and thinkingabout various perspectives I get soimmersed that its all I do. This pastweekend, my family and friends lis-tened to me prattle on and on about
seven or eight different philosophi-cal concepts and how they pertainto society, life, religionthe wholeworldfor, I dont know, every wak-ing second of every hour. Oh, did Itell you Im going to be a renownedphilosopher someday? Yeah, I dontexactly have philosophical theoriesper se, but I read a bunch and talka lot, so Im sure Ill be able to firmup ideas soon.
Anyway, Nietzsche wrote aboutthis concept of the Superman,
and I very much would like toknow how to become supermanum superwoman. By the end ofthe weekend, I decided I wouldbecome the rare, extraordinaryhuman he writes about. He beganThe Antichrist (by the way, ImChristian, so go work out that para-dox) with This book belongs to aselect few. Perhaps none of them yet live. Then he described thissuper human: (s)he is truly honestin all intellectual matters (Im stillworking out what that means) and
must be accustomed to living awayfrom civilization, above the gossipof politics and national egotism (Ithink Ive failed on both counts).
But! His main argument was thatpeople should think for themselves,rather than follow herd mentality(aka mankind). Well, Im all aboutmy own ideas. I mean, Ive accept-ed years ago that I dont think likemost people. Im okay with that.
So, I decided on Monday that I
would be amazing, but by TuesdayI was exhausted with the task andhad nearly given up. Heres thedeal: teaching sometimes is theequivalent of being in an abusiverelationship. Youre told youre notgood enough, even when youvestayed up till three the night before,making sure lesson plans were per-fect and all essays were graded.Youre told to do and be more, even when you regularly work sevendays a week, missing birthdays andSunday family lunches. You get to your class, ready to expand mindsand change lives (or at least get
them to grasp the concept of the
comma) and only three students
show up. And, you get the randomstudent who verbally abuses, dis-regards, and patronizes you, eventhough youve shown that studentthe utmost respect. For these rea-sons, the job can feel pretty emo-tionally and physically draining.Yet, you keep coming back, like theinjured, jaded soul that you are, tostart up another semi-dysfunctionalrelationship the following semes-ter.
On Tuesday night I had directed an
especially insightful class discus-sion, followed by an unpleasant(and highly inappropriate) outburstfrom one student. Im usually allabout specifics in my writing, butthey just arent important in thiscase.
What is relevant is the fact that Ilet a student throw me off track forthe rest of the night. I did man-age to compose myself in aroundthirty seconds to make it throughmy three-hour night class without
Basically, according to Nietzsche,I need to be above all that taints and clouds
my path and goals. Not there yet.On the other hand, I dont teach because of some
vague, impersonal sense of duty,which is a step in the right direction.
In YourHouseI Long To Be Lisa Muoz, SDAWP 2008
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was sleeping. This is a big deal, asIve always wanted him to write mesomething. So this would have beenhis first time. Anyway, this morning,as I woke up, he said he loved read-ing about my ideas so much (youdthink that hed get enough of it liv-ing with me!) that he felt compelledto write back his own views. By theway, today he will present his huge
final project in order to graduate, yethe sacrificed an extra hour of sleepto write me back. Just as he wasabout the hit send, he accidentallydeleted it all.
Ironically, he was writing about theabsurdity of life and the philosophyof absurdism. He questioned hisown purpose in life and asked me(and himself) why hes even tryingto find meaning. He said he didnthave the energy to write me again,so he emailed me a quote from the
Myth of Sisyphus by Camus: If thereis no meaning in life, why live? Ifyou feel as though there is no mean-ing in life, is it worth suicide? No. Ihave the freedom to choose what Iwant to do. Life doesn't make sense,but death doesn't either. I decide notto kill myself. I decide to live my lifeknowing that life has no meaning.I will live my life as if it has mean-ing.
He then wrote, I'm tired and sadthat I wrote so much to you, only tomake such a stupid mistake. It reallyshows how absurd life can be.
And yet, we will continue to look forpurpose in our daily lives, even ifit is all an illusion. Even if we arestuck in the cave that Plato wroteabout, looking straight ahead andadmiring mere shadows, I will con-tinue to make my life worthwhile.A student once told me (after I wasparticularly animated about sea lifeand my desire to learn more aboutthe depths of the ocean) that I needfive lives to live out the passions I
have (if you knew how many inter-ests I have, you'd think so, too). Butwhy not this life?
Quite importantly, Plato said that weare all-knowing souls before birth.Then, as we live this illusory life, weforget everything and have to "re-learn" it, or as I like to say, remem-ber it. I want to remember it all. Isthat so much to ask?
14
c MUSE BOX Stacey Goldblatt, SDAWP 1999In his book The Courage to Write: How Writers Transcend Fear, author Ralph Keyes
asserts:
Considering directly how scary writing can be, and why, can do more to facilitatewriting than a dozen classes on technique...Finding the courage to write does
not involve erasing or conquering ones fears. Working writers arent those who
have eliminated their anxiety. They are the ones who keep scribbling while their
heart races and their stomach churns and who mail manuscripts with trembling
fingers. The key difference between writers who are paralyzed by fear and those
who are merely terrified is that...the latter come to terms with their anxieties. They
learn how to keep writing even as fear tries to yank their hand from the page.
They find the courage to write.
We all want to write We believe in it We know that when we write with our stu-
dents, we model the joys and obstacles we as writers ace But whats getting in the
way o your own writing? What stops you rom sending out your manuscript? Write
about what ears cause roadblocks in your writing What prevents you rom pub-
lishing that piece you have tucked away in your mind or even your iling cabinet?
Challenge yoursel to write with a racing heart and mail your manuscript o despite
trembling ingers
For inspiration, take a peek at the National Writing Project website or some possible
places to send your work:
http://wwwnwporg/cs/public/print/resource_topic/being_a_writer
Dialogue, Spring 2009
SDAWP NOTES
Congratulations to Divona Roy, SDAWP 1996, whose ninth grade student, ErinSinger, won rst place in the CATE writing contest This years contest topic was change
Erin wrote about her experience in the ourth grade when she couldnt run, and she was
made un o or it Her teacher helped her overcome her insecurity Her personal narrative
was published in the February edition o the California English Journal.
Kudos to Patricia Jeery, SDAWP 2008 Eleven o her students were selected as sweep-stakes winners in this years San Diego City Schools History Day competition The kids were
required to make a poster describing a person in history and his/her legacy (using only 350
words) They competed at the county level on March 14th
Congratulations toKaren Wroblewski, SDAWP 1989 As principal o San DiegoHigh School o International Studies, she has been named the Magnet Schools o America
National Principal o the Year This award recognizes an outstanding school leader who has
succeeded in providing innovative programs that promote equity, diversity, and academic
excellence or students in magnet schools Karen's award was announced during the Magnet
Schools o America conerence held in Charlotte, North Carolina, April 27-29, 2009
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Classroom NotesPlus NCTE
We also invite articles rom Ameri-can teachers and researchers thataddress the ollowing questions:
What literacy projects have youand your students engaged in thatinvolve other countries? How has
current technology opened the doorto international literacy practices? What projects have your studentsbeen involved in that support the
literacy development o studentsin underdeveloped countries? Are
you involved in other international literacy practices, projects, initia-tives, and issues that would be ointerest to VM readers?
For guidelines, please visit: www.dev.ncte.org/journals/vm/write
Dialogue, Spring 2009 15
DIALOGUE
Call forManuscripts
Fall 2009 IssueSubmission Deadline:
July 30, 2009
Choices in theClassroom:
The EverydayJudgmentsof Teachers
"Teachers make hundreds of deci-
sions every day about how to
allocate their time, express ideas
to pupils, introduce new concepts,and teach fresh skills. They have
to decide when to assist pupils and
when to leave them alone...which
teaching strategies to employ, how
to handle a recalcitrant child, and
so on. Other decisions involve
judgments about allocations of
grades, classroom management,
curriculum implementation, task
differenitiation and pupil assess-
ment." Denis Hayes, PrimaryEducation: The Key Concepts.
Relate a decision or judgment call you have madeor have beenforced to makein your career asan educator. Describe the context. What was at stake? Which resourc-es, values, and beliefs guided yourdecision making? What were theimplications for your relationships with students, parents, and/or col-leagues? How did your decisioninfluence your feelings about your-self as an educator or professional,and about being a teacher?
Dialogue would like to receive your work or the work of your students.Submit a story of student success,a strategy for implementation, ora personal essay on your teachingexperience.
Email all manuscript submissions,suggestions, letters to the editor andProject Notes [email protected] [email protected]
PUBLISHING OPPORTUNITIES
FacultyShackstarted by teachersfor teachersis an online publi-cation, providing educators witha thoughtful and often humorouslook at the realities we face. Forthe past seven years FacultyShackhas served as an alternative to tra-ditional, scholarly, education jour-nals. We offer interesting looks atteaching life written in non-edese;if you want to laugh at the crazi-ness of the world that we deal witheveryday, then FacultyShack is theplace for you. We have no strictparameters for article topics (mul-let haircuts and multicultural liter-
aturedo you see a theme here?).We are looking for thoughtful and/or funny articles about new teach-ing ideas, the state of education,specific curriculum area concerns,or observations on students, teach-ers or administrators.
The journal serves as a clearing-house for new approaches to class-room challenges and provides aforum for ongoing discussion ofcomplex educational questions. If you have an article idea that you
would like to share, please sub-mit it to us. Published first-timeauthors get a free (and fine look-ing) FacultyShack T-shirt. Now,what academic journal offers that?For more information, please visit:www.facultyshack.org/
FacultyShackCall or Submissions
In each issue, we will feature a finalpage called In Closing . . . . This isa one-page format (750-word maxi-mum) that could take the form of apoem, essay, conversation, journalentry, short story, or visual art withcaption. The focus is on the voicesof educators who have recognized ashift in perspective, perception, orpracticein their school, their dis-
trict, or themselves. We hope thatreaders will look forward to thisfeature because it prompts them toremember and rethink. For submis-sion guidelines visit: www.ncte.org/pubs/journals/la/write/109012.htm
Language ArtsNCTE
Classroom Notes Plus, NCTEs quar-terly newsletter of practical teach-ing ideas for the middle and second-ary school level, invites descriptionsof teaching practices for consider-ation. We ask that submissions beoriginal and previously unpublishedand, in the case of an adapted idea,that you clearly identify any sourc-es that deserve mention. Please beaware that any student work needsto be accompanied by statements ofconsent by the student and his or herparents. For submission guidelinesvisit: www.ncte.org/pubs/publish/journals/109277.htm
Voices from theMiddle
International LiteracyDeadline: September 1, 2009
The world is shrinking as global-ization brings us closer to peoplearound the world. We want to widenthe ocus o this call to include theollowing: What kinds o literacyprojects are happening in countriesaround the world? What aspects o
literacy are currently drawing at-tention in your country? What can
we learn rom your best literacypractices? How do literacy practicescompare across dierent countries?
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Non-Proit OrgUS Postage
PAIDSan Diego, CA
Permit No 1909
San Diego Area Writing ProjectUniversity o Caliornia, San Diego9500 Gilman Drive, Dept 0036La Jolla, CA 92093-0036
Opportunities forEducators:
Reading LikeA WriterGrades K-12
June 22 - June 26, 20098:00 am - 3:00 pmRegistration $37500
ImprovingStudents'
Academic WritingGrades 2-16
July 20 - July 24, 20098:00 am - 3:00 pmRegistration $49500(Includes 4 ollow-up
hal-days duringthe 2009-2010 school year)
Calendar of Events
Opportunities forStudents:
ImprovingStudents'
Academic WritingGrades 11-12
July 13 - July 17, 20098:30 am - 11:30 amRegistration $29500
The CollegeAdmission and
Application EssayHigh School Seniors
and Community CollegeTransfer Students
July 20 - July 24, 20098:30 am - 11:30 amRegistration $29500
San Diego AreaWriting Project
Directors:Makeba Jones
m3jones@ucsdeduKim Douillard
teachr0602@aolcom
Associate Directors:Karen Wroblewskikwroblewski@coxnet
Gilbert Mendez (Imperial Valley)gmendez2@yahoocom
Young WritersPrograms Coordinators:
Divona Roymrsroy@hotmailcom
Janis Jonesaboriginals@coxnet
NWP Technology Liaison:
Kendra Madden Redernkmadden1@sandinetChristine Kan
kealoha2006@yahoocom
Senior Program Associate:Carol Schrammel
To contact the SDAWP oice,call (858) 534-2576
or email sdawp@ucsdedu
Visit our website athttp://createucsdedu/sdawp/
For registration materialsand inormation regarding these programs,
please contact the SDAWP ofceat 858-534-2576 or sdawp@ucsd edu