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Excerpts from Drawing/Writing and the new literary

Here are some excerpts from Drawing/Writing and the new literacy; because of limitations such as storage space, file size, and downloading time, these excerpts do not include all the beautiful illustrations from the book. Information on ordering Drawing/Writing and the new literacy is available by clicking the link below.

Note: The illustrations may take longer to download than the text, so you'll need to be patient; the text downloads right away, so you'll be able to read as you wait for the pictures.

	Part One: The Reasons Why: A Pesuasive Essay in Four Sections Part One of Drawing/Writing and the new literacy, is a persuasive essay demonstrating why drawing and writing belong together and how a program called Drawing/Writing models brain processes. The arguments are taken from art history, linguistics, education, psychology, the history of writing, and brain science. The Drawing/Writing Experience New Classrooms, New Teachers The New Literacy
	Part Two: How to Do It: A User's Guide Part Two provides an icon-driven script, or course of instruction, for the five-step Drawing/Writing program. How to Do It Preliminary Drawing/Writing
	Preliminary Drawing/Writing To provide a pre-test sample for the evaluative tool Rescore, students draw their object for ten minutes and then write about it for ten minutes. They do this without any suggestions or instructions. In a multicultural classroom, students may do this preliminary writing in their own language with the understanding that they will have to translate this sample into English at their current skill level. After this preliminary step, all students must write in English. If skills in the target language are very weak, the student's mother tongue is used as a bridge into the new language. Starting with what students know is a cardinal constructionist rule. It is also sound neurobiology; the brain scaffolds new skills on existing structures. In my experience, ten minutes is about the length of time most untrained students are productively able to draw or write about an object. Although students will be able to draw and write for longer periods of time after training in Drawing/Writing, the same ten minutes is allotted to the closing sample. The choice of a new object for the closing sample determines to what degree there has been a "transfer of skills." Skills learned by drawing a hammer, for instance, should transfer to a drawing of a geode. The goal of Drawing/Writing is the development and transfer of thinking skills into other context areas and into life beyond the classroom. Download "Preliminary Drawing/Writing" exercise
	Part Three: Hitchhikers' Guide to Brain Science Part Three is a collation of information about the brain useful to parents, teachers, students and other thinkers. This guide includes 13 tips for how the brain grows and learns. Excerpt from "Hitchhikers' Guide to Brain Science"
	Part Four: The Thinking Child Part Four is a curriculum guide to WholeBrain teaching and learning appropriate K-12 and at the college level for English courses and for studio courses and art history courses which can be taught in any language and applied to any content area. Excerpt from "The Thinking Child: A Thumbnail Sketch for Teachers and Educators"
	Appendices A section titled "How I got here" provides information about the author. An appendix, "Terms and Powerful Ideas," includes definitions of the terms "The New Literacy," (see article, The New Literacy," as well!)"Neuroconstructivism * (Sheridan, 1990)," "WholeBrain teaching and learning,"(click) as well as other terms and powerful ideas central to this book . Two bibliographies are included: one with the works cited in the book ("Works Cited"); a second with the doctoral research undergirding the book ("Extended Bibliography"). How I got here Terms and Powerful Ideas The New Literacy Works Cited Extended Bibliography

Please e-mail your questions or comments for Dr. Sheridan at susan.sheridan9@gmail.com

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