Writing Because…

by Ruth Ayres

One of the reasons I appreciate the opportunity to lead professional development is I get to continue pushing myself to new understandings and deeper learning. Every time I speak or work with a… Read More →

Foundations of Writing Workshop

by Ruth Ayres

I’m looking forward to the next few days. It’s a workshop where old meets new. I’ve been leading beginning writing workshops for nearly a decade. I’m looking forward to making some shifts to… Read More →

Vintage Ayres {2007}: The Heart of It All

by Ruth Ayres

I’m smiling at the phrase Vintage Ayres. It’s a little bit of a smirk because, really, am I old enough to qualify as vintage? Maybe not. But definitely so in blog years. I… Read More →

Rest.

by Ruth Ayres

Rest. Why does this seem like a dirty four letter word? I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about rest. We were on fall break last week. You might think I took rest… Read More →

Words that are Speaking to Me

by Ruth Ayres

Back on the rez, I was a decent player, I guess. A rebounder and a guy who could run up and down the floor without tripping. But something magical happened to me when… Read More →

Christy Is…

by Ruth Ayres

Last week I had the privileged of observing Christy Rush-Levine with her eighth grade language arts classes. Deb Gaby, the reading coach in my district, along with two middle school teachers went with me to… Read More →

Nudging Joy: A Student Group

by Ruth Ayres

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the things I know because I write. I’ve been keeping a little list of these ideas as a crude plan for an article about the topic.… Read More →

Word Play (a writing night for families)

by Ruth Ayres

Tomorrow night I’ve been invited to talk with parents and host a mini-writing workshop for families. You must know, about a week ago, our youngest, Sam (a first grader), gave two slips of… Read More →

Modeling Writing Workshop

by Ruth Ayres

Last week I spent a day at Southbury Elementary School in Illinois. (Hello Southbury!) They had students for half a day and the afternoon was a time for us to come together for… Read More →

Steph Harvey

by Ruth Ayres

I just spent the last two days learning from Stephanie Harvey. (Am I lucky or what?) There are so many big things I’m thinking about. Here’s there: We must live curious lives. Not… Read More →

Conventionally Speaking

by Ruth Ayres

Just a little list of some things that are on my mind about conventions and teaching conventions and using (or not using) conventions. Conventions are important. Learning to use them in Standard English… Read More →

Is it Wednesday?

by Ruth Ayres

Dang. It’s Wednesday. I supposed you can blame my writing group for the late post. It couldn’t have anything to do with me forgetting it’s Wednesday. So here’s a little quote for you… Read More →

Honoring Experiences

by Ruth Ayres

A long time ago I shifted my language from talking about “low” or “weak” writers to inexperienced writers. The shift in language is significant. It’s not about kids being good enough or capable… Read More →

Reflections from Listening to M. Stiefvater

by Ruth Ayres

Here’s the thing: I’m not really the kind of person who follows authors around and gets their signatures and takes photos with them. In fact, I’m rather shy when it comes to this… Read More →

Where am I?

by Ruth Ayres

Look who I spent the evening listening to… Yes, that is Maggie Stiefvater, YA novelist and one of my personal mentors when it comes to crafting a story. Later I’ll share some of… Read More →

The Magic of Workshop

by Ruth Ayres

Today I was working with a group of primary teachers (Hello North Webster Elementary School!) and we were talking about the silly things kids share during writing workshop. Sometimes their stories are outrageous… Read More →

Paragraphs — Part II

by Ruth Ayres

I took your wise words and put them together in a chart. It’s hanging in my office because I love how it is a reminder of the power of collaboration. It also restores… Read More →

Hello Slicers

by Ruth Ayres

Paragraphs — Part I

by Ruth Ayres

How do you know when to start a new paragraph? Yep, that’s all for this post. Do some thinking and then leave an answer in the comments. It’s an important question and one… Read More →

I Read Banned Books

by Ruth Ayres

How will you celebrate the freedom to read during Banned Books Week, September 30 – October 6, 2012? Check out the official website.