Capture, inspire, teach,..."

“Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day, but teach a man to fish…” This 2000 year old parable is at the heart of Hale’s focus on improving the writer, not the writing.  Her mini-lessons are designed to teach incremental writing skills and techniques that make children active participants in their own learning. Text is used as a means of modeling the tools of writing, while "try-its" are opportunities to actively engage children in the use of these tools.  "Turn and talk" helps develop a community of learners. Together, the participation in "try-its" and "turn and talk" are powerful motivators for active listening and learning. This motivation is reinforced during the process of conferring with writers. I am once again reminded of our visit to Ms. Seabrook’s class. Both she and Hale support the idea of an early acclimation period for boosting effective and efficient use of instruction time.  Seabrook uses her first week to explain rules and procedures.  This orientation period establishes a positive tone and helps students understand expectations without the pressure or distraction of instruction. Hale, likewise uses her initial conference as an opportunity to present writing as a positive experience. Defining her writer’s strengths during research serves several purposes, first it helps to identify potential “next steps”, next it engenders the desire for ownership, and finally it instills self-confidence and inspires risk taking. It seems that both educators also share a common goal, to develop the scholar within each and every student.

--It is difficult to overestimate the power of positive affirmation. One positive reinforcer can have more impact on memory and behavior than ten negative reinforcers.