Introduction to Living the Writer's Life: Grade 1, Part 2 for Teachers

During Living the Writer’s Life: First Grade, Part 1, you established the routine and tone of Writing Workshop. You primarily “invited” students to join the “writers club” by having a we-can-do-it approach as you read and talked about books other authors have written.

Living the Writer’s Life: First Grade, Part 2 supports first graders’ growing ability to compose (“What do I say?”) and transcribe (“How do I put it down on paper?”) by offering them more opportunities to employ strategies and build confidence as writers. The mini-lessons in Part 1 were designed to be short so students could get to “work” quickly and feel the excitement of being authors. You’ll notice that in Part 2, some mini-lessons require more time because they include specific demonstrations (shared or modeled writing) designed to give students more explicit information to help them compose and transcribe their ideas and stories. Part 2 also includes several “studies” where students spend more than one day learning a technique or strategy.

By the time you start Living the Writer’s Life, Part 2, your students should have several books or pieces of writing in their folders. Part 2 begins with a ritual (Authors Day) for celebrating the learning and work accomplished so far during Writing Workshop.

As the unit progresses, let students choose work samples to keep in their writing folders or a separate file that you maintain at school. They’ll be eager to take their work home, but you will need work they can revisit for future learning (for example, see lessons 27–30).

A sample schedule for both Part 1 and Part 2 is provided to show one lesson arrangement. Become familiar with the lessons and arrange them in an order that supports your students’ needs. Several lessons should be repeated, circling back to ideas and strategies as students widen their experience as readers and writers. You are also encouraged to add lessons your students need to be independent and successful during Writing Workshop.

Sample Schedule: Writing Workshop/Living the Writers Life (click here to get a Word or PDF of this schedule)

*Part 1* (PDF or Word)
	Monday		Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday
Week 1	Lesson 1: Establishing the Routine of Writing Workshop (PDF or Word)		Lesson 2: Making Books (PDF or Word)	Lesson 3: Thinking about Why Writers Write (PDF or Word)	Lesson 4: Waking Up Our Stories (PDF or Word)	Lesson 5: Establishing Writing Partners (PDF or Word)
Week 2	Lesson 6: Moving from Talking to Writing: Picnic Basket (PDF or Word)		Lesson 7: Finding Our Stories (PDF or Word)	Lesson 8: Using Tools for Writing: Alphabet Chart (PDF or Word)	Lesson 9: Creating Writing Folders (PDF or Word)	Lesson 10: Knowing When a Book is Finished (PDF or Word)
Week 3	Lesson 11: Choosing a Story Format: Sequencing (PDF or Word)		Lesson 3a: Thinking about Why Writers Write	Lesson 8a: Using Tools for Writing: Name Chart (PDF or Word)	Lesson 4a: Waking Up Our Stories	Lesson 6a: Moving from Talking to Writing: Picnic Basket
Week 4	Lesson 11a: Choosing a Story Format: Sequencing		Lesson 3b: Thinking about Why Writers Write	Lesson 8b: Using Tools for Writing: Word Wall (PDF or Word)	Lesson 4b: Waking Up Our Stories	Lesson 6b: Moving from Talking to Writing: Picnic Basket
Part 2 (PDF or Word)
	Monday	Tuesday		Wednesday	Thursday	Friday
Week 5	Lesson 12: Learning to be Good Writers: How are We Doing? (PDF or Word)	Lesson 13: Authors Day Celebration (PDF or Word)		Lesson 14: Drawing Our Stories: Modeled Drawing (PDF or Word)	Lesson 15: Writing Our Stories with Words: Modeled Writing (PDF or Word)	Lesson 16: Writing Our Stories with Words: Modeled Writing (Continued) (PDF or Word)
Week 6	Lessons 17–21 Writing with a Beginning, a Middle, and an Ending (PDF or Word)
Week 7	Lessons 22–26 Writing to Share Information (PDF or Word)
Week 8	Lessons 27–30 Revision: Seeing What Else is Possible (PDF or Word)						Lesson 10a: Knowing When a Book is Finished: Editing (PDF or Word)
Week 9	Lessons 31–34 Writing a Book: Start to Finish (PDF or Word)						Lesson 13: Authors Day Celebration (PDF or Word)
*Continue the Living the Writers Life* lessons until students are ready for the First Grade Genre Unit.**

Lessons 3a and 3b: Insert your own lessons modeled after lesson 3 in the unit to support students' growing understanding that they can write to tell a story or share information. Use a different but familiar book.
Lessons 4a and 4b: Insert your own lessons modeled after lesson 4 in the unit to support students’ growing understanding that they have topics “sleeping in their heads.” Insert a different experience and share a new story.
Lessons 6a and 6b: Insert your own lesson modeled after lesson 6 in the unit. You’ll need new familiar objects for your basket that generate talk and ideas for writing.
Lessons 8a and 8b: These lessons are provided.
Lesson 10a: This lesson is provided.
Lesson 11a: Insert your own lesson modeled after lesson 11 in the unit to support students’ growing understanding.

Type of Lesson	Goal	Lessons in the Unit
Procedure Lessons	To help children learn productive procedures for workshop (routines) and rituals that introduce magic and play into the workshop (rituals)	12 (PDF or Word) 13 (PDF or Word)
Using Tools to Support Independence	To help children make use of classroom tools to work independently	15 (PDF or Word) 16 (PDF or Word) 31–34 (PDF or Word)
Strategy Lessons	To help children think of ideas and expand ideas (composing) and record ideas (transcribing and problem solving)	10a (PDF or Word) 14 (PDF or Word) 15 (PDF or Word) 16 (PDF or Word) 17 (PDF or Word) 18 (PDF or Word) 19–21 (PDF or Word) 22 (PDF or Word) 23 (PDF or Word) 24–26 (PDF or Word) 27–30 (PDF or Word) 31–34 (PDF or Word)
Author-Based Lessons	To help children use other writers’ work to understand topic choice, writing forms and structures, and pictures	14 (PDF or Word) 17 (PDF or Word) 18 (PDF or Word) 19–21 (PDF or Word) 22 (PDF or Word) 23 (PDF or Word) 24–26 (PDF or Word) 31–34 (PDF or Word)
Craft Lessons	To help children use other writers’ work to take on the language of authors and develop word choice awareness	14 (PDF or Word) 27–30 (PDF or Word) 31–34 (PDF or Word)

If you have technical questions about this Web site, contact Joel' Bradley-Hess at
joel_bradley-hess@dpsk12.org or 720-423-3723.