Hi- I am getting ready to start a non-fiction how to unit. Do you have any mentor text titles that you really liked on this topic? Thanks very much!

I am confused. Are you referring to nonfiction writing? Idn't that on down the road. If anyone has a current map from her would you post please?!

CHOICE! My students are much more engaged when they choose their own topic when we do "All About" books.

It's the last week of school, and I'm not reading well!
For All Abouts we were studying Animal Adaptations in Science, and my students chose different animals to research. There are lots of books for them to read, and great mentor texts to read to them on animals.
Student sharing works well with any writing genre.
I do think that topic choice is key.
Have fun!

if the next time they can choose their own topic, if the engagement would be better?
Two ideas:
1. Share a mentor text or have a student share a How to text at the beginning of writers' workshop.
2. Let them know that several students (You will choose those who worked hard.) will share at the end.
Good luck!
My favorites this year (Second grade) were: How to Get Revenge and How to Show Pigs at Fair. They were all wonderful!

I am not real crazy about the way this unit is set up for first graders, so I have adapted it so that we are all doing the same topic (frogs), come up together with 4 chapters, and then together do the research for each chapter. We took two days for each chapter and now we are in the wrap up phase but it is like pulling teeth to get some of my students to stay engaged in their writing for the alloted time and finish each of the chapters with quality. I feel like I am constantly saying "Is your talking helping you as a writer?" "Please push yourself as a writer today" and any other little comment to address all the disruptions that are overall minor, but still not helpful. The other thing that drives me crazy during writing time is that students wait like hawks to get their turn with the bathroom pass, which I feel like for many is a huge avoidance opportunity for them. While I am conferencing with students I am half listening to the student I am conferencing with and 1/2 noticing how many of my students have sly sneaky off task behaviors down to a T (If only they would put all that effort into their writing). As a result, we are still plodding along, and several of my kids are still needing to do more work on their chapters. Uggh. This is half vent and half help, does anyone else have this problem?