Teaching Nonfiction Craft Moves

In most schools, students are deeply immersed in their informational writing unit at this time of year, so I thought it might be helpful to share the table below, which appears on p. 54 of 5 Kinds of Nonfiction.   While the book discusses each of these craft moves in detail—with half a chapter on text features and […]

Narrative & Expository: Two Nonfiction Writing Styles

Over the holiday break, I spent some time thinking about what I’d share on this blog over the next few months and decided to take a look at my most popular post of all time. The answer surprised me, so I’m sharing it again for folks who might have missed it. Should I write about […]

How Young Writers Can Avoid Plagiarism, Part 2

On Tuesday, I shared a video in which I discuss how two personal experiences helped me develop the lens of gratitude that makes my new book Thank You, Moon: Celebrating Nature’s Nightlight so much more than just a matter-of-fact book about how moonlight affects animals. I hope you’ll take a few minutes to view it and […]

How Young Writers Can Avoid Plagiarism, Part 1

Yesterday was the Full Beaver Moon, so it seems like the perfect time to share the video that accompanies my new book, Thank You, Moon: Celebrating Nature’s Nightlight. On October 24, I wrote a blog post discussing how two personal experiences helped me make Thank You, Moon a unique book that only I could write. The […]

Thank You, Moon: Making It Personal

Once I had a plan for how to organize the animal examples in Thank You, Moon, I needed a beginning and an ending. In early drafts, I started by contrasting bright nights and dark ones, but I kept looking back at my original brainstorming sheet. I loved the phrase “constant companion in space” and I wanted […]

Thank You, Moon: Choosing a Text Structure

Last week, I described how I decided to look at the role of the Moon in animals’ lives through the lens of gratitude. That was an important first step in creating Thank You, Moon, but I still needed a text structure, and that’s often the biggest challenge for me. Nearly all narrative nonfiction has a sequence […]

Thank You, Moon: Finding a Hook

Today is the official release date for Thank You, Moon: Celebrating Nature’s Night Light, and I couldn’t be more excited.  The story behind this book traces back to February 2020. Editor Katherine Harrison tagged me on Twitter, alerting me to a conversation about how animals respond to the Moon’s cycle, and asked “Is this something you’d potentially be […]

Adopting School-wide Terminology for the Steps of the Nonfiction Writing Process

When I visit schools, I ask students to walk me through the steps of their nonfiction writing process. My goal is to learn the terminology they use, so I can literally speak their language during my presentation. For example, do they use “rough draft,” “first draft,” or “sloppy copy”? Do they say “buddy editing” or “peer […]

Blasts from the Past

Each summer, I review this blog’s stats to see what kinds of topics resonate most with readers. And year after year, I notice a trend. Readership tends to fall off in April.   I think there are a few reasons. First, most schools have finished their informational writing unit for the year, so fewer educators are […]

Let’s Talk Nonfiction! The More Voices the Better

I spent a big chunk of my summer reading and thinking about nonfiction. And that means I’m brimming with ideas and questions. Right now, they’re kicking around in my head, and I can’t wait to share them with you. But I’m also open to your ideas, suggestions, recommendations, and questions. If there’s a topic or idea […]