So much has changed since 1999 when the original Wondrous Words: Writers and Writing in the Elementary Classrooms was published. The world is a different place, and our classrooms have changed. But, so much of what we learned in Wondrous Words holds true today. In this new reimagined edition of Wondrous Words, Katie Wood Ray revisits some of her original work that has been the grounding for quality writing instruction over the past quarter-century. Along with elementary teacher and EL coach, Stella Villalba, this book takes on new life.
With the addition of new titles, new insights from children’s authors and stories from classrooms today, Katie Wood Ray and Stella Villalba show what is possible when teachers embrace an inquiry-based instructional stance that creates joyful, rigorous, and student-centered writing classrooms
Not only will you learn about books that serve as wonderful mentors for young writers, but you’ll learn practical ideas for how to introduce key instructional concepts in your classrooms. When children see the power in reading like a writer, they grow as writers. Katie Wood Ray and Stella Villalba share the power of quality children’s literature in teaching our young writers. Mentor texts provide the catalyst for quality student-responsive, explicit instruction.
For those who read Wondrous Words when it was first published, this updated work will remind you of the journey you’ve taken as a teacher of writing and give you new ways to think about the ideas that have been embedded in your work with young writers.
For those of you new to this work, it is sure to spark energy and excitement that brings joy and purpose to writing classrooms everywhere.
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Author Bio
Katie Wood Ray is the author of Already Ready, Study Driven, About the Authors and its DVD companion The Teaching Behind ABOUT THE AUTHORS, The Writing Workshop: Working Through the Hard Parts (And They're All Hard Parts), and Wondrous Words. A former Associate Professor at Western Carolina University Katie is now a full time writer and researcher of the teaching of writing. With a particular focus on the study of writing craft, she leads teacher workshops and summer institutes across the nation related to the teaching of writing. Her professional background includes both elementary and middle school teaching experience and two years as a staff developer at The Reading and Writing Project, Teachers College, Columbia University.