Discover Writing with Gretchen Bernabei

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Speakers Bureau - Gretchen Bernabei

Gretchen Bernabei

Dear Texas Teachers,

TABS. TEAMS. TAAS. Now TAKS. And the benchmarks! You want your students to rake in the high scores, but you feel like the joy has been drained right out of your classroom, out of your students, and frankly, out of you.

If only your students could get ready for The Test in a way that works yet is stimulating, not deadening, to the brain. If only your students didn't ever have to hear "TAKS" until February! If only a stack of ungraded essays gave you some feeling other than dread or weariness. If only you knew that your efforts would absolutely produce high scores.

Come spend a day with me. I want to show you something.

I'll show you lessons that incorporate the best of what we know about kids, applied theory, and high-scoring papers. I'll share with you what I've learned from students across the state, in my own classroom and in classrooms of other teachers. We've listened to the words from TEA, studied rubrics and scoring guides, decoded words like "formula-writing," developed and tried out techniques on students, watched as scores have visibly climbed, and listened to the students about what works for them.

At the end of our day together, you will leave feeling refreshed. You will have a better understanding of the writing test (without reading tedious standards), a deeper working knowledge of the rubric (without ever looking at an "official" one), and a wonderful array of engaging writing lessons that your students will actually like, that don't feel like drudgery, that are satisfying to teach. Best of all, your students will produce writing that you will want other people to see. And they'll never have to know that it was also effective and powerful test preparation. You'll be surprised by what you bring back to your students and campus. You'll be surprised at how many 4s your students score. You'll notice there's joy in your classroom again, in your students, and in you!

Gretchen Bernabei

Gretchen Bernabei has taught grades 4 - 11 in San Antonio public schools for 18 years. She spent nine months "working backstage" at the Texas Education Agency's Division of Student Assessment, where she participated in the thoughtful test-building process. Since that time she returned to her real passion, classroom writing, and learning and inventing remediation strategies for students at all levels. A joyful learner, she has participated in several writing projects and became a trainer for the New Jersey Writing Project in Texas in 1991. She has published two articles with NCTE in The English Journal and Voices from the Middle. Her first book, Why We Must Run With Scissors: Voice Lessons in Persuasive Writing, co-authored with Barry Lane, shares her philosophy and many of her favorite lessons.

For fifteen years, Gretchen has conducted writing workshops for enthusiastic teacher audiences from Amarillo to Houston, from Fort Worth to South Padre.

Gretchen's
Latest Book!

Gretchen will share many ideas from her new book,
Reviving the Essay:
How to Teach Structure without Formula
at her latest Voice Lessons in TAKS Writing seminar.

You can Order this book by clicking HERE!

Workshop: Reviving the Essay: Teaching ALL Students to Excel on the TAKS Writing Test 4-12
with Gretchen Bernabei

Whether your students are writing in content areas or for state assessments, or for the New SAT, the five-paragraph essay just doesn’t cut it any more. Formula writing is out and “Real Writing” is in.
In this idea packed, practical workshop let master teacher Gretchen Bernabei show you how to abandon the five-paragraph essay in favor of more choices for possibilities all along the essay-writing process, to bring life and light into your students

"After I took Gretchen’s workshop my TAKS essay scores jumped form 44% passing to 76% passing in one week.”
--- Nika Maples Grade 10 Texas

"Wow! I thought after countless hours of writing workshops and training, that I knew how to teach writng! I was wrong! Gretchen showed me a whole bunch of new ways to teach writing to my 4th graders. I can’t wait to get back to school tomorrow."
--- Susie Jackson 4th grade San Antonio TX

"Gretchen is awesome. Not only does she have great strategies for helping students become writers, she also has a great down to earth delivery. She brings it home and makes it real. I can’t wait to take it back.
--- Carla Blackwell gr 9-12 Lavernia TX

“Our 7th graders at Goddard Junior High in Midland scored a 94% passing the TAKS writing test. Over 40% were commended. Thanks again for your in-service in Houston and your new book, Reviving the Essay.” ~Dorothy Thompson

You will learn how to

Make Quicklists, for topics that come from the students’ hearts
Explore Truisms, for turning your students into profound interpreters of the world
Target memories, for switching life lessons to match a memory
Craft the 11-minute essay, for finding brain connections
Master alternative text structures such as:
      The Story of my thinking
·     Comparing notes
·     Evolving a term
·     Tevye’s debate
·     Peeling the onion of truth
·                   ....and much more
Use “thick description” to draw in the reader in
Experiment with the Lullabye weave to bring music and dialogue into an essay
Learn to inject multiple genres in a single work
Employ Narrative technique to bring life to academic essays
Master powerful craft choices for revision
Use drama to teach awareness of Audience
Teach students to visualize a real audience
Learn the secret of “ Ba-da-bing”, a fun, easy sentence-imitating revision exercise

"This workshop has given me the nuts and bolts I need to bring voice into my student’s writing. Thank you, Gretchen!"
--- Michaelene Kasper Gr. 4 Canyonlake TX

"Thank you, Gretchen-- I am so pleased my entire department was able to share this experience all at once! What a great opportunity for vertical discussion when we get back to campus."
--- Liz Maggri Jones Middle school Literacy Coordinator, Texas

"Gretchen’s techniques do indeed bring test scores up significantly. It is a fact.
--- Rodemiro Gonzalez, Principal, San Antonio TX

"Gretchen is a fantastic speaker---so full of love, patience, wit and knowledge."
--- Sharon Rhyme GR 9 10 Portland, TX

Who should attend?

Language Arts Teachers 4-8
English/Reading teachers 9-12
Content area teachers, especially science and social studies
Reading Specialists
Writing Specialists
Special Educators
ESL Teachers
Administrators

Funding sources
Title One
NCLB
Chapter One

The results speak for themselves:

"My students' Taks scores increased from 70% passing to 100% passing in less than 2 months. I credit Gretchen Bernabei and her books for this gain."

Damari Stoops, Grade 4, San Antonio Texas

"Using Gretchen's strategies for only 5 weeks, our TAKS scores jumped from 69% passing with 13% commendable to 96.5% passing with 44% commendable. This far exceeded our expectations."

Mr. Jacob Saucedo, Principal, Judson ISD, Texas.

or call 1-800-613-8055

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