Pernille Ripp did such an outstanding job with the Global Read Aloud project, and Katherine Applegate--author of The One and Only Ivan--noticed her hard work. Katherine Applegate answered several student questions about Ivan. Take a look at this video and see if it something you would want to share with your students.
She makes some good points. I like what she says about being a writing. She doesn't lie when she states, "It's difficult!" I think students should hear this from an author. Writing isn't about completing an assignment and being "done." It's a long thoughtful process that develops the perfect message for an audience. I cannot count how many times students just did not want to rewrite a "final" draft. After the second time, students always grabbed the standard operating comment--"but, I've already written the final copy"--and threw it in my face. Students don't "own" or see value in the writing. Instead, they are merely completing an assignment.
