Testimonials

This workshop was wonderful. Thank you for sharing convenient ways to get students writing about ANY topic, and ways to highlight student work, and how we can continue to build student self-talk in a way that transfers to paper. I can’t wait to bring sparkling sentences, journal writing, ba-da-bings, and all of your wonderful structures into my classroom.

—Rebecca

Thank you for helping me think through the hardest parts of teaching writing. They don’t seem that hard after all. I hope to enjoy another one of your workshops soon.

—Pearl

For various reasons our kiddos are coming up with little writing confidence and OT experiences. They especially have difficulty answering questions related to the texts they are reading. The text structures will provide a way to help them organize and expand their thoughts in order to create detailed responses.

I can’t wait to get back to the classroom to try some of them out!

—Regina

I cannot wait to use, smash, tweak, and enjoy the fun ideas you shared. My school, our kids will have a wonderful learning writing and reading blook due in part to your enthusiasm you’ve brought back to their teacher.

—Rosanne

This has been the MOST productive and useful workshop I have ever attended.

—Sheila

We need Gretchen Bernabei in our lives to be the charging station for our teaching train.

—Kristin

I also was reminded of the importance of letting kids have the chance to write things that have been on their minds the past few years. It was even eye opening of how much I needed to write some of those ideas out.

—Lanie

I will use the information to guide our instructional coaches in urging our teachers to not drill our teachers to death and they can prepare the kids for life and more importantly STAAR with a variety of text and writing opportunities.

—Brandi

I’m excited to be able to verbalize how narrative writing is the basis for informational and argumentative. I had a hard time making the correction before this workshop. Thank you for all the text structures and kernel essay structures.

—Kristen

I really liked how you had us develop questions and use structures to answer them. Thank you for answering my questing about how to turn a kernel essay into an extended constructed response by using app smashing. I appreciate you taking the time to show us. I’m interested in new ways you find to develop extended constructed responses. I also appreciated how you tied everything back to the TEKS standards.

—Denise

I would like to thank you for helping to calm my nervousness and stress I felt before coming here. I hope to come to another professional development of your again.

—Ashley

Thank you for giving this VERY young teacher some new tools to put in the toolbelt for the future. I plan to use much of what we discussed in my classroom, including ba-da-bing, the kernel poem and the sparking sentences. Thank you again for what you do and I hope to come to another conference of yours soon!

—Reed

Already I plan on utilizing dead giveaways + authors craft for reusing and impact on reader for drafting. My dept chair highly recommends you and I could immediately tell why.

—Diane

I plan to take this information back to school and use it with my students. I’m going to change a bit of my classroom structure to accommodate these strategies that are fun and innovative and engaging!

—Ginger

Thank you for bringing calm, loving, positive remarks that reminds us to mirror in our classrooms.

—Martha

As always, I leave your conference/workshop skipping, dancing and smiling ear to ear! Your attention to teachers’ worries, concerns, joy and love for writing shine through every time.

—Stacy

I love that you gave us a way to help connect reading response to the new STAAR. I plan to use a lot of the information and structures in my writing class to assist the social studies, reading, math, and science teachers in preparing students for the written part of their exams.

—Valerie

This is my first year as a 4^th grade self-contained teacher, and I am very overwhelmed. This training was a breath of fresh air.

—Cassy

You have provided me with a wealth of tools, strategies, and resources that I will carry with me as I continue developing as a new teacher.

—Kayla

The past two days helped ignite the flame that one burned years ago for the writer in me. The workshop has been such a cathartic experience, and I didn’t know I needed it. I cannot thank you enough.

—Rebecca

I also want to say thank you for giving me hope. Teaching has not been the easiest for me this year. Yet after today, I have a new found sense of hope and courage.

—Megan

You’ve given me a treasure trove of ideas to help me inspire my students to write and communicate effectively.

—Liz

I have read a few writing books and also watched some YouTube videos on writing. I have also attended writing workshops in the past, but never have I been so engaged and filled with knowledge like I have been in this training.

—Juliet

I often find myself stuck when it comes to actually teaching how to compose a piece of writing. With the tips, tricks, and tools you have given me in just two short days, I have gained great confidence in my next step.

—Kara

There’s such a wealth of knowledge that you have to share with us. My favorite part was EVERYTHING!

—Tina

This year I have been struggling with responding to reading, but after today I feel confident in how to teach my students.

—Mari

I swear we can hear your mind working to create even more award worthy resources and structures as you show us how to empower our own readers and writers.

—Jessica

The toolbox that you have shared definitely puts back the fun into learning.

—Rucille

I am leaving your training with knowledge and clear lenses. I look forward to implementing these strategies and watching my little ones bloom.

—Jasmine

This course was not only filled with information, but so much joy as well. I got to feel like a scholar myself hanging on to every work in an engaging classroom setting.

—Dariana

Your little quips and ways of speaking like we’re just hanging out in your living room — while teaching us so much information — makes it easy to pay attention.

—Brooke

Thank you for keeping it real and providing us with a realistic and relaxed way to incorporate these lessons into our chaotic classrooms.

—Ashley

After 27 years of teaching language arts, I didn’t think I could learn anything new. I am revived.

—Angela

You’ve given me tools to get my students talking, to get them excited, and ways for them to feel noticed in a positive way.

—Mandy

My big take away is that now I know how to incorporate writing into the reading block. Thank you!

—Marycruz

I see the power behind what you taught us, and I see how it all will apply to assessments such as STAAR.

—Holly

The strategies, the lessons, the techniques are all so straight forward and structured. Foolproof!

—Robin

I really appreciate how you bring down all the strategies into simple actions that any student can accomplish.

—Maricarmen

Kid friendly activities with an understanding of how actually to do them is my greatest take away from these past two days.

—Krystal

I love the simplicity of implementation of these practices that also make such a huge impact in the delivery of my instruction.

—Carolyn

We cried, we laughed, and we learned…and that is my measure that as a teacher, you gave your all. Thank you.

—Daniela

I am a second-year teacher who has been feeling overwhelmed and unsure of where to start and how to grow. I love the realistic and genuine approach you have to writing. Your techniques and ideas have resparked my passion and reminded me why I chose this career.

—Jazmyn

You gave us practical tools that have minimal to no preparation needed. Your emphasis on conversations in the classroom is exactly what I needed.

—Lauren

It was very refreshing to attend a training that made me excited again!

—Alexa

You taught me, empowered me, and above all inspired me. I was engaged the whole time, and my brain was buzzing with ideas.

—Nahla

In a year where teachers feel pulled in more directions than ever before, you simplified cross-curricular planning and refreshed my perspective on the most important ways to cultivate student thinking and learning.

—Mallory

The bridge between reading and writing seems so effortless because of you!

—Mary

Your website is a great resource for all teachers.  I love that you are so willing to share all your wonderful ideas.

—Krista

Thank you for challenging me, enlightening me and reminding me that teaching comes in all forms, but most importantly, the form of fun.

—Traci

You have opened my eyes to a different world — one that presents reading and writing clearly and encourages, supports, and enhances students’ discovery in these areas.

—Mayani

I am leaving this place with a mind full of new strategies and tools for my classroom and my students. Thank you for the books, the handouts, and especially the laughs.

—Luis