Bring Life Into Learning: Create a Lasting Literacy

I am pleased to have the opportunity to study and develop my own strategies in writing as well as teaching. This book gives me guidelines that I can use for each student across the grade levels as well as in different stages of development. The use of character is excellent for primary students who are working to create any piece of writing. They can identify with the person if not the action of the story. Many times this is done in pictures only, but the teacher can help the child commit words to drawings. The "actions" are wonderful ideas. I look forward to returning to school to use these with my own group.

Graves new book, Bring Life into Learning, is written from the point of view of one who's been there. We've all had creative writing courses that followed such a structured curriculum that they might as well have left the word "creative" out of the course description. I particularly liked his human approach to writing. Writing begins as thought. We don't think in perfect sentences and paragraphs. We can't be expected to write like that either. The only disappointment I had with his book was chapter 9, Let the Arts Lead. Since I am a music teacher I got excited, until I realized he omitted the performing arts. Children sing and dance long before they write. I would like to see the chapter re-titled. Otherwise the book is excellent and I would strongly recommend it.