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A Brave Writer's Life in Brief

Thoughts from my home to yours

Tea with Julie: Writing Voice

Brave Writer

“Tea with Julie” is a weekly emailed missive that enhances your life as an educator, parent, and awesome adult. From time to time, we’ll share some of our past topics here on the blog.


In this Tea with Julie series (linked below), I talk about writing voice. Writing voice is the sound and feel of the writing—the way you recognize one author over another, or the way one sort of writing connects with you while another type doesn’t. Authors with strong writing voices are those who stand out in a crowd of writers, those you return to because you want to hear what they have to say.

Honestly, your kids are naturals. If you support their self-expression by capturing it for them (jotting down their hot takes, their little narratives, their jokes), they come to trust their writing voices.

It’s when you ask them to sound like someone else—Aesop, some adult writer, the format prescribed in the writing assignment—that we lose the heart of their message and their natural, rich vocabulary.

I hope you enjoy your exploration of the magic of “voice.” In our world of echoes, we need powerful voices. You’re raising them!

Writing Voice

  • Value your child’s voice
  • They speak in prose and paragraphs
  • Fill the “house” with a lively voice!
  • Just how important are spelling and punctuation anyway?

Glad you’re here! This is your time for tea and a break from the breakneck pace of your important life.


Some Tea with Julie messages have been
shared on the Brave Writer Podcast!


Growing Brave Writers

Tags: Tea with Julie Messages
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Friday Freewrite: Letter “T” Words

Friday Freewrite

Write a story using as many of these “T” words as you can.

  • Table
  • Tiptoe
  • Total
  • Toast
  • Terrific
  • Timely
  • Toss
  • Trumpet

New to freewriting? Check out our online guide.

Tags: Writing prompts
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[Podcast #227] The Learning Game with Ana Lorena Fábrega 

Brave Writer Podcast

There’s a big difference between “the game of school” and “the learning game.” Ana Lorena Fábrega picked this up as a kid when she went to 10 different schools by the time she was 15. She learned it again as an educator herself.

Today Ana joins us on the Brave Writer podcast to discuss her book, The Learning Game: Teaching Kids to Think for Themselves, Embrace Challenge, and Love Learning.

Ana Lorena Fábrega 
Ana Lorena Fábrega 

In this episode, we talk about:

  • memorization vs. applied learning,
  • “pointsification” vs gamification,
  • testing culture vs. curiosity,
  • and the importance of embracing confusion. 

Show Notes

Applied Learning vs. Memorization

When Ana taught at a traditional school, every year she would have to re-study the material in order to teach her students, even though it was the same material that she had taught the year before. She realized that if she wasn’t retaining the information, her students weren’t either. That’s when Ana started to focus more of her lesson time on helping students apply concepts, rather than over-explaining the concepts and then expecting memorization. 

“Pointsification” vs. Gamification

A lot of teachers use some kind of point system–if the class does a certain number of behaviors or achieves a certain academic milestone, they get a pizza party, or something like that. There’s nothing wrong with a good pizza party, but this kind of “pointsification” creates external motivation, which is powerful in the short term, but does nothing for long-term learning and understanding. On the flip side, using games to challenge students to grapple with concepts creates internal motivation and helps students really absorb what they have learned.

Testing Culture vs Curiosity

In today’s education system, standardized test scores reign supreme. Teachers, parents, and students stress year-round about test scores. That stress actually lowers the students’ ability to perform on tests. Even worse, the test-centered education design lowers students’ ability to learn. In her final year of teaching, Ana ignored test prep and instead cultivated her students’ innate curiosity. Ironically, that year her students excelled on their standardized tests, outperforming their peers.

Embracing Confusion

Confusion is part of problem-solving. A lot of times, intentionally or unintentionally, parents and teachers hide their confusion from their students. They want to seem like experts on every topic or in every situation. The problem is that this can lead to students thinking that when they experience confusion, they are doing something wrong. By modeling acceptance of confusion and patiently working through it, parents and teachers can reduce pressure on students and encourage them to take on challenges.

The bottom line of our discussion with Ana: Think like a videogame designer. Kids (and adults) don’t love video games because they are easy—they love them because they are challenging, hard to win, and packed with intrinsic motivation. Don’t be afraid to make your kids’ education the same way.

Resources

  • Read Ana’s book: The Learning Game 
  • Follow Ana on Instagram: @MsFab_LearningLab
  • Check out Ana’s website: AFabrega.com
  • Sign up for our Text Message Pod Ring to get podcast updates and more!
  • Send us podcast topic ideas by texting us: +1 (833) 947-3684
  • Start a free trial of CTCmath.com to try the math program that’s sure to grab and keep your child’s attention!
  • Good news: There are enough weeks left to do a writing project with your kids that will leave you feeling confident and accomplished this school year. Sign up for a Brave Writer online writing class. Our classes start every Monday, and each one only lasts three to six weeks. Sign up today!

Connect with Julie

  • Website: bravewriter.com
  • Instagram: @juliebravewriter
  • Threads: @juliebravewriter
  • Twitter: @bravewriter
  • Facebook: facebook.com/bravewriter

Connect with Melissa

  • Website: melissawiley.com
  • Substack: melissawiley.substack.com
  • Instagram: @melissawileybooks
  • Twitter: @melissawiley

Produced by NOVA Media

Brave Writer Podcast

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Try It Activities: The Complete List

Brave Writer

Sometimes, the best way to learn something is to TRY IT!

This collection of posts offers short activities you can do right away with your kids—with little to no prep!

Engage your kids in writing mechanics (grammar, punctuation, spelling) in a whole new way! The Brave Writer way!

Just Try it!

  • Book Hooks
  • Reading Faces
  • Pushy Prepositions
  • Interview at 11:00
  • Free Writers
  • Clever Combinations
  • Powerful Descriptions
  • Terrific Titles
  • Spot Some Sequences
  • Concise Colors

Bookmark this page! Try It activities will be added as we share them.

Brave Writer Natural Stages of Growth

Tags: Try It
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Alone or Independent?

Brave Writer

Some home educators believe (whether true or not) that kids in school are basically learning independently. School kids get themselves to and from class, jot down the homework assignment, complete the work often without assistance, and return that work to school.

Homeschool parents wish their children would get their work done without:

  • help,
  • reminders,
  • cajoling.

And yet: school kids are not independent learners. They are performing a set of tasks determined by the teacher, with due dates and clear instructions. School kids learn how to follow instructions and perform the assigned tasks on their own. I call this: “Doing schoolwork alone.”

Independent learning is something else!

The independent learner takes initiative to learn what is important to them. The independent learner finds resources to support learning: asks for help, conducts research, tries and fails, complains to an empathetic listener, suggests alternative methods for learning, and may want companionship just for the support it offers.

A child who can “do schoolwork alone” is not necessarily learning independently. Rather that child is good at cooperation or obedience without help.

Independent learning means caring about what you are learning and then:

  • gathering resources,
  • asking questions,
  • knowing when you need support,
  • trying, failing,
  • taking breaks and trying again.

The power of home education.

Being good at “doing schoolwork alone” is especially painful for homeschooled kids. They don’t even get to go to school for a break from all that alone schoolwork. Independent learning can be a joyful experience of companionship and adventure!

So remember: there’s a difference between independent learning and “doing schoolwork by yourself.” Independent learning means taking the initiative to teach yourself what you want to learn but does not mean you always have to learn alone.


Brave Learner Home

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