Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book is about looking. About listening. About teaching young children the craft of writing by beginning with what they know. It is situated in work of kindergarten teachers in Boston Public Schools. The book focuses on how to present mini-lessons. Each lesson consists of three parts: the background, the lesson, and resources. The background helps readers know the context for the lesson. The book explains the reasoning behind the choices. It also focuses on telling, drawing, and writing stories, which means we have not addressed poetry, informational texts, and other genres that are flourishing in many of these classrooms. Children's own stories form the heart and soul of the work, and we think they are important enough for a whole book.