Unleashing the Real Potential of the Writer’s Notebook

Many teachers do not hold a vision of themselves as writers. The origin of this disconnect can frequently be traced back to their own school experiences with writing and the way it was presented. In many instances their writing history involved tightly controlled assignments where a teacher made all the decisions concerning topic, genre and sometimes the word limit, the notion of writing independently was seldom a classroom consideration.

The young writer’s competency may have been determined by a teacher’s brief, sometimes harsh written remarks or a rather subjective mark out of ten or a letter grade, with such judgments scratched across the written piece in red ink making the page appear like a crime scene.

The accumulation of such dispiriting writing experiences frequently leads to a conscious uncoupling from the act of writing for pleasure, because pleasure was never associated with that initial experience. Aversion to writing is the sad outcome.

In my own case, I came through my early education with these same restrictive approaches to writing in place. However, I was fortunate that within me was a compelling urge to forge a relationship with pen, paper and words, and this became my rock. I entered teaching as a teacher who wrote. Across my career I have become a writer who teaches.

Writing in fact makes us better teachers. It helps us appreciate the joys and struggles confronting the young, inexperienced writers with whom we work. It brings energy to the classroom.

We are endowed with a responsibility to share the talents and knowledge acquired from our literate lives. Bringing writing and the stories connected with it offers an exciting prospect. I am reminded of the powerful words of Annie Dillard (1990) in her book The Writing Life:
'… the impulse to keep to yourself what you have learned is not only shameful, it is destructive. Anything you do not give freely and abundantly becomes lost to you. You open your safe and find ashes.'

Dillard’s words are unequivocal. Writing alongside inexperienced writers is too good an opportunity to let slip or ignore. Your writing possesses the potential to provide insight and give confidence to young writers. Your writing actions can deliver hope and inspiration to your fellow educators.

When a teacher chooses to write, it allows less experienced, highly impressionable writers to see firsthand the process of writing - from the spark of an idea through to the organisation of the text, through the struggle and problem-solving to the eventual sharing of words with an audience. It is a demonstration of powerful creative actions - the sharing of a precious gift.

The understandings acquired as a teacher and writer across many years in education laid a foundation built on a conscious decision to be a teacher who writes. My decades long notebook life has contributed immeasurably to my writing pleasure, providing the launching pad for numerous writing projects across my career. My notebooks represent the footprints of my life. As the inspiring writing of Donald Graves (1983) reminded me, the words are proof of my existence.

In its simplest form, the notebook is a writer’s resource, a risk-free place to collect potential ideas, explore and experiment.  It continuously informs my teaching of writing. It is a trusted reference point.

Notebooks are as unique as the writers who write in them. As the most proficient writer in your classroom, you should feel confident in giving your writing a leading role in the important work of growing young readers and writers. It is an opportunity to develop within them a genuine sense of their own agency as writers.

Used with integrity the writer’s notebook can support your teaching and writing efforts.  In my latest book, Notebook Notions I share practical wisdom on launching and sustaining writer’s notebooks in the classroom.  Keeping a writer’s notebook can revolutionise both your teaching and your relationship with writing.  It will assist you to deliver genuine writer agency for the developing writer. If we want our inexperienced student writers to be risk-takers, it is imperative we lead the way …

Alan J Wright is an education consultant, writer and poet whose enduring career has been guided by his belief in empowering learners to become independent and self-directed. Alan has striven to present as an advocate for living a literate life. Over five decades, he has worked as a teacher, principal and consultant to promote choice and voice in literacy education. He has maintained a profile as a teacher who writes, committed to the belief that literacy is an empowering force every child deserves to access. He has worked with schools and school systems throughout Australia and internationally to promote the effective teaching of literacy.
His latest book, Notebook Notions -Using a writer’s notebook to harvest ideas and transform your teaching’ is published by Amba Press