In this workshop you will explore practices that motivate students to write and help them develop into independent, motivated writers. These effective practices include allowing students to make their own choices about their writing, helping them keep a writer's notebook in which to record their thoughts and draw inspiration, and providing opportunities for students to write for authentic audiences.

I've seen children transformed when they had a clear sense of audience and purpose and when they were preparing their writing for an occasion where they can imagine the writing is read.

— Katie Wood Ray, consultant and author or co-author of five books on teaching writing, including The Writing Workshop: Working Through the Hard Parts (And They're All Hard Parts)

Learning Goals

In this workshop you will explore how to:

• encourage students to choose topics based on their interests and knowledge
• help students learn to write for authentic audiences
• create an environment that nurtures the voices of all students
• allow students to choose the mode of writing that fits the ideas they want to express
• help students discover the power of writing to communicate ideas and influence others