The Writing Teacher's Troubleshooting Guide

“By its very design, a troubleshooting guide is intended to create ease of use, to build both competence and confidence of the user. That is our goal in selecting this format. The spare design compels us to think and to pare down our language to the bare essentials. It requires the practical.”
—Lester Laminack and Reba Wadsworth

The 1970’s VW Beetle Owner’s Manual found in the glove compartment of every “bug” gave drivers security in knowing that whatever went wrong, there was always a quick fix to get them back on the road. The Writing Teacher’s Troubleshooting Guide uses the same clear, concise format to offer practical ideas for helping students who may be out of gas, idling for too long, or just plain stuck in a rut. Lester and Reba first help you “notice and name” particular struggles that writers may have, identify possible causes, and then offer specific tools to nudge writers toward their next level of development. Their vast knowledge and appreciation for children’s literature is showcased in the mentor texts they suggest to support your teaching.

Don’t let minor breakdowns stall your students’ writing journey. With The Writing Teacher’s Troubleshooting Guide in your back pocket, you’ll always have a quick repair to keep them moving forward.

Download a sample chapter here.

Lester L. Laminack is Professor Emeritus at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee, North Carolina where he received two awards for excellence in teaching. Lester is now a full-time writer and consultant working with schools throughout the United States and abroad. He is an active member of the National Council of Teachers of English and has served three years as coeditor of the NCTE journal Primary Voices and as editor of the Children's Book Review Department of the NCTE journal Language Arts (2003 - 2006). He also served as a teaching editor for the magazine Teaching K - 8 and wrote the Parent Connection column (2000 - 2002). He is a former member of the Whole Language Umbrella Governing Board, the Governing Board and Secretary of the North Carolina Association for the Education of Young Children, and the Board of Directors for the Center for the Expansion of Language and Thinking. He served as the Basic Reading Consultant to Literacy Volunteers of America from 1987 through 2001 and is a former member of the Board of Directors of Our Children's Place. Lester has served as editor (2017) of the Writing Department for the ILA Journal Reading Teacher. Lester's academic publications consist of several books including Learning with Zachary (Scholastic), Spelling in Use (NCTE), Volunteers Working with Young Readers (NCTE), andhis contributions to The Writing Workshop: Working Through the Hard Parts (NCTE), Learning Under the Influence of Language and Literature (Heinemann), Reading Aloud Across the Curriculum (Heinemann), Climb Inside a Poem (Heinemann), Cracking Open the Author's Craft (Scholastic), Unwrapping the Read Aloud (Scholastic), Bullying Hurts: Teaching Kindness Through Read Alouds and Guided Conversations (Heinemann), The Writing Teacher's Troubleshooting Guide (Heinemann), and Writers ARE Readers: Flipping Reading Strategies into Writing Instruction (Heinemann). In addition, he has several articles published in journals such as The Reading Teacher, Science and Children, Language Arts, Primary Voices, and Young Children. Lester is also the author of several children's books including The Sunsets of Miss Olivia Wiggins, Trevor's Wiggly-Wobbly Tooth, Saturdays and Tea Cakes, Jake's 100th Day of School, Snow Day!, Three Hens and a Peacock (2012 Children's Choice K - 2 Book of the Year Award), and The King of Bees in addition to a forthcoming nonfiction poetry collection, Voices for Civil Rights all published by Peachtree Publishers. His newest books for teachers, The Ultimate Read-Aloud Resource: Making Every Moment Intentional and Instructional with Best Friend Books (Scholastic) and The Best Friend Fiction Collection (Scholastic) are available now. Lester currently lives in Whittier, North Carolina with his husband Steve and their two dogs, Bailey and Sora. They are the proud grandparents of an adorable little girl named Everette. You can connect with Lester on his website, LesterLaminack.com, or on Twitter at @Lester_Laminack.

Reba Wadsworth, a former elementary classroom teacher, guidance counselor, and principal, now works as an independent consultant. She has conducted numerous literacy workshops at the local, state, national and international level. Reba currently serves as a national consultant for Booksource, Inc. and Developmental Studies, conducting workshops across the United States. She is coauthor of Learning Under the Influence of Language and Literature, Reading Aloud Across the Curriculum, and Bullying Hurts.