We have read several books and articles about success and achievement. We have watched, shared and discussed many stories of people who have overcome obstacles to achieve success in their lives. These experiences have given students the language and insight to begin writing about their own dreams. 

We set criteria together as a class (see below). Organization, craft and voice were featured in our guidelines. You will also notice that I am using language that students understand ("stretching toffee"). Students visualize a piece of toffee getting stretched or pulled. This helps them understand the idea of elaboration or providing detailed examples to make their writing interesting for the reader.

Students are also aware of what they can already do in their writing. A bulletin board of "I Can Statements" reminds students of what good writers do. These statements grow over the course of the year as students acquire new skills. It's a great assessment tool or reference for students to use when they are drafting a piece of writing. These statements helped us create the criteria mentioned above.

I am so thrilled with the quality of my students' writing! It is very sophisticated because of the front-loading and because of all of the hard work we've been doing with leads, voice, vivid words, using one's senses, etc. 

In the end, we will be compiling all of our writing into a picture book, which students have planned to give to the Children's Hospital. They want their writing to inspire others and make them feel hopeful. 

I feel this writing project has been so successful! Students were invested in their work right from the start because they knew their thinking would be shared with a larger audience - beyond our school walls. Also, the topic is so very important to them - everyone has dreams! Just look at the sincerity in the examples featured below.

Sample One (Gr. 4):

Sample 2 (Gr. 4):

Sample 3 (Gr. 5):