Authors "in Residence" Make Writing Fun! Online Mentors Help Fourth Graders Compose Original Stories

Chelsea pointed to four sentences on her computer screen. "Am I done, Mrs. Weeg?" Writing was not her favorite activity. She and five other fourth-grade classmates were in the early stages of writing a story in the global classroom. For the past four years, 12 students at Delmar Elementary...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inLearning and leading with technology Vol. 31; no. 6; pp. 36 - 39
Main Authors Hagins, Chelsea, Austin, Jackie, Jones, Raven, Timmons, Taylor
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published International Society for Technology in Education 01.03.2004
Subjects
Grade 4
Mentors
Sentences
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Summary:Chelsea pointed to four sentences on her computer screen. "Am I done, Mrs. Weeg?" Writing was not her favorite activity. She and five other fourth-grade classmates were in the early stages of writing a story in the global classroom. For the past four years, 12 students at Delmar Elementary School have taken part in this online mentoring program, funded by Title V monies. Called "Authors in Residence," the program matches students with authors Lois Szymanski and Sarah Weeks. The authors mentor the young scribes by e-mail for six months as they create original stories in the global classroom. This article touches upon the following highlights of the program: Starting a New Program: Curiosity and Excitement Build; Bonding with an Online Mentor; Writing with a Partner; Meeting Mrs. Szymanski in Person; Thinking about Writing Today; Using Technology in a Fun Way; Concluding Thoughts from Their Mentor: Lois Szymanski; and Concluding Reflections from the Computer Teacher: Patti Weeg. [Article written with: Patti Weeg and Lois Szymanski.]
ISSN:1082-5754