Thanks to Connie Weaver, generations of teachers have come to understand that the most efficient way to teach grammar that's relevant for writing is to embed it within writing instruction. Now her Grammar Plan Book is designed with precisely one thing in mind: to be the best resource you've ever used for teaching grammar to strengthen writing. This new book helps you apply a limited amount of grammar instruction directly to writing and enables you to map out instruction in the way that best serves the needs of your students.

A complete planning tool, The Grammar Plan Book has two complementary parts. Part One describes an overarching framework for high-quality grammar instruction in conjunction with the process of writing. It offers:

• engaging examples of effective teaching
• demonstrations of how that teaching has improved students' use of grammatical options in writing
• suggestions for deciding which editing conventions to teach
• an informal analysis of the grammatical content of typical ACT practice exams.

The Plan Book also contains ideas for encouraging students to make independent use of what they've learned in their own writing and about how to apply grammatical insights to enhance and improve their writing, from adding details to editing appropriately.

Then in Part Two, Weaver presents an exceptional tool for preparing to teach grammar related to improving writing: a minimal grammar handbook for teachers that doubles as a lesson planner. Everything you need to know to teach major grammatical options, stylistic features, and conventions is included:

• basic grammatical functions within the sentence
• grammatical options for adding details and sentence fluency
• connectors (transitions) for organizational flow
• parallelism and other rhetorical devices for emphasis and effect, style, and voice
• stylistic options (dialect versus “standard”) for different audiences and purposes
• conventions most important for edited American English
• "rules" that don't necessarily rule effective published writing.

With a designated column for your notes, special lay-flat binding for your convenience, and helpful, comprehensive coverage of important grammatical concepts, The Grammar Plan Book is designed with one thing in mind: to be the best resource you've ever used for teaching grammar to strengthen writing.

 

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Weaver extends her philosophy by offering teachers a rationale and practical ideas for teaching grammar not in isolation but in the context of writing....

 

• address all of the 6 Traits of writing instruction
• emphasize depth, not breadth
• should be positive, productive, and practical - not stodgy, “correct,” and limiting
• must be incorporated throughout the writing process, not broken out in isolated units.

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