DreamIT Description
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Authors in the Making
Authors like Shakespeare, Tolstoy, and Carle write the books from which we crave knowledge. Without their written words we would have nothing to read. Great authors don’t have an era or old age in common. However, they do have one key element that causes books to be published and the enlightenment of impressionable minds. All exceptional writers express themselves through the art of story telling. Stories are meant to draw the reader in as conflict is evolved throughout the pages of a book.
The Problem with Conflict
I aim to immerse my students in the engaging conflict within the common story structure that will transform young writers into true authors. Too often I have read the traditional first grade three-part story about a student’s drive to McDonald's. This story usually evolves by the end of the year to include adjectives and conventions. However, there is no conflict! "If an audience is not compelled by the problem the main characters face, they will never gain interest. Conflict is the most important feature of a story" (Willingham, Daniel T. "The Privileged Status of Story."). It is my goal to bring conflict into student narratives and in doing so, a purpose to both reading and writing.
Authors like Shakespeare, Tolstoy, and Carle write the books from which we crave knowledge. Without their written words we would have nothing to read. Great authors don’t have an era or old age in common. However, they do have one key element that causes books to be published and the enlightenment of impressionable minds. All exceptional writers express themselves through the art of story telling. Stories are meant to draw the reader in as conflict is evolved throughout the pages of a book.
The Problem with Conflict
I aim to immerse my students in the engaging conflict within the common story structure that will transform young writers into true authors. Too often I have read the traditional first grade three-part story about a student’s drive to McDonald's. This story usually evolves by the end of the year to include adjectives and conventions. However, there is no conflict! "If an audience is not compelled by the problem the main characters face, they will never gain interest. Conflict is the most important feature of a story" (Willingham, Daniel T. "The Privileged Status of Story."). It is my goal to bring conflict into student narratives and in doing so, a purpose to both reading and writing.
Web 2.0 Resolution
Great authors are not only published on the Internet, but use technology to build and improve their craft. These same experiences can be brought into the classroom, on a modified scale, to support beginning authors in first grade. I plan on using Web 2.0 writing and publishing tools to structure and enrich student narratives. Such technology will provide a basic and concrete outline for stories while allowing students to input the details. Student success will come in the form of audience approval through both teacher conferencing and peer feedback as well as improved writing assessments. |