Middle schoolers can be the masters of disengagement. Recognising that all students, adept and struggling writers alike, lose steam at times and need a revitalising jump start, Christopher Lehman offers effective, developmentally-appropriate fixes for addressing situations that frequently sidetrack or distract adolescent writers.

Organised as a practical on-the-go teaching reference, the first four chapters offer strategies for counteracting commonplace situations that can regularly spring up and disengage middle school writers such as:

writers who seem to have an almost allergic reaction to the writing process
writers who cannot possibly find anything to write about

writers who talk, talk, talk the writing time away

writers who need constant approval before moving on.

The final chapter offers an inquiry-based study guide that supports teachers in collaborating on and customising strategies for reviving the disengaged writers in their learning communities.

A Quick Guide to Reviving Disengaged Writers is part of the Workshop Help Desk series.

About the Workshop Help Desk series

The Workshop Help Desk series is designed for teachers who believe in workshop teaching and who have already rolled up their sleeves enough to have encountered the predictable challenges. If you’ve struggled to get around quickly enough to help all your writers, if you’ve wondered how to tweak your teaching to make it more effective and lasting, if you’ve needed to adapt your teaching for English learners, if you’ve struggled to teach grammar or nonfiction writing or test prep…if you’ve faced these and other specific, pressing challenges, then this series is for you. Provided in a compact 5 x 7 format, the Workshop Help Desk series offers pocket-sized professional development. Samples Preview sample pages to A Quick Guide to Reviving Disengaged Writers, Grades 5-8