Genius Ladder

Oh my gracious! It's been forever since I've posted. School has been CRAZY!!! The past week or so we have been working with the Genius Ladder. Today was the day that I thought they really got it! It was so exciting. They watched me us the Ladder, then we made a story together and then they went back to their seats and created their own. They had so much fun doing it and they worked very hard. The picture below is the story we created together. I ran out of room, so I wrote the story on the top. Next time, I need a larger space for the Genius level. I love how the Ladder helps students visualize their writing. I've seen them catching themselves during our regular writing time, they say, "ugh, what a blah sentence. I need some spice!"  I have seen those students who struggle with writing do so much better, even with their spelling. It is such a great tool! I love it and so do they, which keeps them motivated. They begged me today to do the Ladder with them and we did. They really got it today and I think the picture below demonstrates their understanding.