Teaching kids about writing can be enjoyable . . . it can also be difficult and scary. Helping kids find their writing voice can be rewarding . . . it can also be a long, tedious process. Discovering how to teach and what to teach your writing students can be an exciting journey . . . it can also be a long and lonely road.

Most writing teachers in elementary schools don't have a curriculum to use. Instead, they have standards to reach. Standards are the scope of the curriculum. Sometimes those standards are arranged in the order they are to be taught, and that makes the sequence of the curriculum. The actual curriculum—the lessons—still have to be developed by teachers.

What helps me most as a writing teacher is a community of fellow writing teachers. We share lessons, ideas, discuss problems, and plot solutions. If you don’t have such a network, make it your goal to develop one. In the meantime, here are some resources to get you on the road to success.