Shows how a teacher used student curiosity and imagination in helping students to develop lifelike characters and to collaborate on writing short stories. Provides samples of the sketches and stories. (RL)

When children hear, write, and recite poetry, they understand more deeply the qualities of verse--the importance of sound, compactness, internal integrity, imagination, and line. Students' working collaboratively on poetry helps provide a safe structure for their creativity. This lesson plan for a unit on collaborations in poetry writing intended…

Discusses a collaborative writing assignment on the Annunciation and the difficulties posed by summoning personal experiences to help in writing about an unfamiliar situation. The resulting poem is included. (HTH)

Discusses the use of collaborative writing for children who are resistant to schooling--who are delayed developmentally for social, psychological, or biological reasons. Provides examples of collective writing centered around a novel created by a junior high school remedial class. (SKC)