By Christine Field   It is said that imitation is the highest form of flattery. Flattery, yes, but modeling and walking in the footsteps of masters, both forms of imitation, are also effective tools of instruction. When I was a music major in undergraduate school, I listened to my favorite artist play the classics. My

Writing is an extremely complex process that requires the brain to do many different things at once: form an idea, put that idea into words, think about how to spell those words, consider what to capitalize and how to punctuate, and remember how to form letters (or where to find them on a keyboard). In

Teaching children to write is a monumental task. However, by engaging children in the process of writing, it can be as easy as one, two, three. The process of writing involves following simple steps in order to produce a final document. These steps include brainstorming ideas, webbing or mind-mapping, writing, editing, revising, and finally sharing

As in many areas of education, the “skill” of writing has been elevated to the status of “art,” which it rightfully should be. However, this has often been to the detriment of children. Equating “good” with “creative” and “creative” with “good,” many teachers, schools and curriculum publishers have taken an approach to teaching which more