Greenbelt Writing

This past summer I read Joy Write: Cultivating High-Impact, Low-States Writing by Ralph Fletcher. Many of the ideas in his book I found myself already doing in my classroom but there were a few that were new to me and one in particular that I new I was going to put into action, Greenbelt Writing,

Greenbelt Writing is about giving students a time and place to write and create whatever they want. Since I was an art major in college and have a love of incorporating art into my lessons, I created a makers space area in my classroom that can be used during Greenbelt Writing time, which will take place every Friday during the school year.

During our first full Friday of school I talked about Greenbelt Writing with all four of my fifth grade writing classes. We discussed what it was, what it will look like in the classroom, and generated a list of ideas of what the students could create. To say they were excited would be an understatement. These students were ecstatic!

Last Friday was our official first day of Greenbelt Writing. When I watched the students in class, I knew I was going to write about it.

It.
Was.
AMAZING.

Here are things I noticed:

I was extremely relaxed, which is a great way to end the week.
All but three of my 90 students were 100% engaged.
Students that aren't normally excited about writing, were the first to begin working.
Creative juices started flowing.
Books were started.
Stories were created.
Students collaborated.


When class was over, students asked if they could take their work home to continue working on it over the weekend.

My students can't wait until next Friday for Greenbelt Writing.

They are hooked, and my plan is working!

One of our paper drawers for Greenbelt Writing