I resonate with what I have read in Annie Lamott's book Bird by Bird. I particularly appreciate her chapter on shitty first drafts (sfd). I believe that is one of the hallmarks and consistent ingredients of my own writing. Although I have experienced immobilization trying to strive for perfection and I still sometimes struggle with getting started, I pretty much always produce a sfd. My personal experience has shown me that the process of getting a first draft on paper is a crucial one . I need to get something going (the down draft) and although I do not think I throw away most of the first draft, I do many revisions (the up draft). It is reassuring to read that even successful, published writers still struggle with their craft.
In a similar fashion, I appreciated Regie Routman's honesty in her Writing Essentials book. She sometimes struggles to decide what to write even as she is conducting writing workshops for adults and children. She emphasizes that it is crucial for students (adults and children) to see that struggle in order to make transparent the process and the modeling of writing. She also talks about how it is important for teachers to write in front of our students so that we understand and have empathy for what we are asking our students to do.
I agree with Routman's emphasis on celebrating our student's writing with a focus on writing authentically for a real audience. I know that I was amazed at the letter my daughter wrote over the summer when I asked her explain in writing why she thought she needed a cell phone. I told her that I need to be persuaded because I was not sure it was the right time. Her passion for the topic was evident in the abundance of ideas explaining the benefits of her owning a cell phone. And yes, she is now a texting teen.
I think that the writing strategy of going from whole to part and not part to whole makes a lot of sense. We lose too many students to boredom and apathy if we start with templates, conventions and step by step guides. I like the idea that we need to get students to feel like they are writers and then worry about the details. Routman says " if all of our students are to become successful writers, then from the day they enter school they, and we, must see the process as doable, manageable and enjoyable." Amen.
Your experience with your daughter's letter writing for a real purpose and audience particularly stood out to me in light of what I've been thinking about in Routman and Lamott's books. Just as in what you described, writing has to be for a real purpose for a real audience and there is no missing that in letter writing. Plus, I have just read Lamott's suggestion, that when facing writer's block, it might help to write a letter to someone, anyone, describing something particularly important to yourself or one of your characters. I thought this was a good idea. Then, my sister called. She was moaning about the agony of writing grad school applications. I let her hail down for a while and then gave her the letter suggestion in trying to write one of her essays. You'd think I just handed her the golden solution. She thinks I did, she thinks this letter writing idea is terrific. I haven't heard back yet how it is going...
ReplyDeleteI also completely agree with your last paragraph, the importance of going from whole to part. It just made me think about the importance of that "whole" starting out small. My master teacher calls her writing teaching "small moments" because those are what she wants her 1st and 2nd graders to start with. This, in turn, reminds me of other suggestions Routman makes, like not forgetting the value in writing things such as lists, thank-you notes, etc. I appreciate how Routman and you both reminded me how many meaningful, small, "wholes" are out there for writers of any literacy level.