I chose this image because it contains three of the most important things in writing. Wait, you're saying, pencil and paper? A bit old-fashioned, don't you think? Yes and no.
I suppose my own writing preferences emerge here, but I'm a firm believer in pen or pencil touching paper at some point in the writing process. Whether that draft is hand-written or a print-out, there's nothing like taking a writing instrument to paper, engaging the tactile sense in the process.
There's something possessive about mutilating that otherwise clean piece of paper. It says, this is my writing, and I'll do what I want to it. A well marked-up draft is virtually incomprehensible to anyone else, anyway--arrows indicating when paragraphs should be moved, transitions penciled into tight margins, words crossed out and replaced. What's beautiful about this process is when you see the student reading back over the changes and mentally comparing them to the original, smiling to him/herself. That moment where you, the tutor/teacher/educator, have been forgotten about in light of the task--literally--at hand, is amazing.
That's revision, and it's at the heart of good writing. You could, I suppose, track changes in Word or compare one draft to a previous one, but it's just not the same thing. You've got to be able to hold your writing and physically alter it, I think, to truly own it.
. . .
So. I re-wrote this post three times, trying to find the right tone and content. I thought that was tough. Then I read the rules.
THE RULES:
Post a picture or make/take/create your own that captures what YOU are most passionate for students to learn about.
Give your picture a short title.
Title your blog post “Meme: Passion Quilt.”
Link back to this blog entry.
Include links to 5 (or more) educators.
I inhabit a very small sector of the blogosphere and de-lurk in an even smaller sector. The only educator thus far untagged who comes to mind here is Jo(e). Perhaps her amazing-ness will compensate for the absent four?
----------------Now playing: Bad Religion - Faith Alone
No comments:
Post a Comment