I'm wondering why it has taken me so long to come to this conclusion but I'm just now thinking that I should individualize my invitation to students. Up until now, I have been relying on teachers to suggest to students that they visit The Write Place for writing support. Of course I have no way of knowing whether that message is being spread or not. For some reason, I seem to have forgotten that the strength of writing centers lies in student initiative and motivation to use them. Both of the girls that I have conferenced with in the last two weeks sought out my help because they WANTED to be better writers - not because a teacher told them to come to the writing center.
Anyway, after I have a friend look it over and give me feedback, I will hand out flyers to all students during their English classes on Wednesday. I will also put flyers in all teacher mailboxes emphasizing that students may visit the writing center for writing support in any content area.
Another thing I haven't done is post a definite schedule of when I will be in The Write Place for student support. Now I am posting definite hours for the month of March. Our state tests are early in April so this may be another motivating factor for students.
If this center is to continue into next year, I need to find a way to get students to use it.
Monday, February 28, 2011
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Valentine Thoughts
Just got a note from the person who sends out a community newsletter for the school - asking for articles. seems like the perfect time to have pictures and sentiments from our all-school write included. I took the Valentines down today and typed up some of the more original sentiments and am including them in this post:
LOVE
Meeting you was fate,
Becoming your friend was a choice,
Falling in love with you was
Way beyond my control!
-M. Yang
Let love embrace you…
-Annie Carey
To love and be loved is everything!
Love is when you give your heart and soul to someone in hopes that they’ll return it.
If you have any tears to cry,
I will be there by your side.
When you’re sad and feeling blue,
I will be there to care for you.
If you’re scared and all alone,
I will kiss away your fears.
When you need someone to love you,
I will be here.
-Karen Lee
Trust is the way of creating love.
Love is the closest thing we’ve got to magic. When we see the details, we start to see what really matters. There’s regrets and forgets, hearts and desires. You can’t WANT something to be yours. You have to KNOW it truly is. Missing someone is painful; losing someone hurts. Knowing you can’t do anything to change it is a living nightmare.
-Sydney Yang
Everyone says that LOVE hurts, but that’s not true.
LONELINESS hurts.
REJECTION hurts.
LOSING SOMEONE hurts.
Everyone confuses these conditions with love, but in reality, LOVE is the only thing in the world that covers up all of the pain and makes us feel wonderful again.
-Sheng Vang
Love is an uncontrollable passion that weakens even the strongest walk.
Love hurts!
Dislike it!
Love has a 1/1,369 chance on Match.com
Love is a strong word that you want to use carefully.
Love sucks and makes people do stupid things.
Love is a crime that makes everyone blind.
Love is good while it lasts, but you have to burn it at the end.
Love is unconditionally, blind and dangerous.
Love has a 14% chance on ABC’s The Bachelor.
Love sucks:
It kills,
It hurts,
It burns,
It is the worst thing ever
It will always pain you…
Never leave the one you love for the one you like
Because the one you like
Might leave you for the one they love.
FRIENDSHIP
True friendship is no fistfights or hurting,
Not here one day, gone the next.
In friendship,
Everything is better for those
With the ability to love and hate,
Make war, then peace;
To dream and hope and always
Be by their friend’s side,
Never leaving.
-L. Cody Jackson
Friendship is helping one another through thick and thin.
It’s something you need to survive reality
when you’re at your worst.
-KLH
Friends are like stars.
You don’t always see them,
But you know they are there.
-Nina
Best friends are people who know your whole life story and your flaws yet, they still love you.
Monday, February 14, 2011
Valentine's Day
I guess I should back up a bit...I thought that Valentine's Day would be a perfect time to celebrate "the love of writing" with another all-school write. Two weeks ago, I purchased a variety of doily hearts from the $ store and peeled about 1000 of small, medium, and large red, white and pink ones into piles for each homeroom. My intent was to have the students write about either love or friendship on the hearts, the week before Valentine's Day. Then, on Valentine's Day, I would post all of the hearts on the wall in the lunchroom and set up a table in front of them and hand out suckers and chocolate hearts (more $ store purchases) to those who stopped by...
Because I was gone last week, I arranged for the newspaper staff to introduce the hearts and the topic to students in activity classes at the end of the day. Although I was worried that all students wouldn't get the opportunity or that teachers might not collect them and turn them in to me, the newspaper staff did a beautiful job. When I got to school today, I picked the hearts up from the mailroom and posted them. Next, I set up my table in the lunchroom. I had many paper hearts left over so I spread those out on the table with markers. My plan for handing out suckers and chocolate roses was not quite as successful...my table was mobbed! Almost everything was gone by the end of first lunch...if I had it to do over, I would have portioned my supplies and treats out. Even without the treats, many students stopped by just to write out a valentine for someone special.
I did get in a number of conversations on writing and writers. One girl even got a pass to come back with an essay she was writing so that I could sit and conference with her. A very fun day!
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