Plodding through essay after essay of the same exact structure can get old. In her classroom, Gretchen knew that there had to be some alternative to the traditional five paragraph essay. Through her work in the classroom to her work with teachers and creating and deciphering text structures she has students do exactly that: Take an essay; break it down into steps; then write one sentence for each step; boom, kernel essay. Then, students choose a kernel essay to expand into a full essay. Giving students dedicated time to practice, choice, control, and the ability to attack any genre by knowing a few structures is key to taking that writing from mundane to fabulous. Teaching text structures allows students and teachers to live in all kinds of genres all year long.

Gretchen's website: Trail of Breadcrumbs

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Thomas Newkirk