Teaching & Pedagogy
Course · 12 lessons · 1h 32m
Writing Instruction and Sentence-Level Scaffolds
Teach sentence-level moves that improve student writing in minutes, not weeks.
By the end, you'll be able to
- Five-Minute Sentence Combining for Stronger Writing
- The Sentence-Level Scaffold That Gets ELLs Writing Fast
- The 90-Second Sentence Expand That Gets Kids Writing
- Three-Way Sentence Rewrites: A 5-Minute Writing Boost
Curriculum
12 lessons- 01Five-Minute Sentence Combining for Stronger WritingIn this episode, the hosts break down a quick, high-impact sentence-combining routine that helps students build more complex syntax in just a few minutes. They connect practical classroom moves with research from Writing Next and recent writing-instruction guidance, including how to use appositives, conjunctions, and subordinate clauses to make student writing richer and less repetitive.10 min
- 02The Sentence-Level Scaffold That Gets ELLs Writing FastLearn a simple embedded-scaffold routine that helps experienced ELLs turn fluent discussion into clear academic writing without freezing at the blank page. The hosts break down a three-part structure for claims, evidence, and reasoning, plus a quick AI-assisted shortcut for generating custom sentence frames.10 min
- 03The 90-Second Sentence Expand That Gets Kids WritingExplore a quick, low-stakes writing routine that helps students expand simple kernel sentences by answering who, what, where, when, and why. The episode also explains why this works for reluctant writers, how it reduces cognitive load, and how to fit it into a real classroom in under two minutes.9 min
- 04Three-Way Sentence Rewrites: A 5-Minute Writing BoostLearn a quick classroom routine that helps students vary sentence structure, build syntactic flexibility, and see writing as a set of choices instead of a single pattern. The episode also connects this simple move to research on sentence combining and explains how it can fit into even the busiest school day.10 min
- 05The Power of the Juicy Sentence: Deconstructing Complex SyntaxRenata Salas and Colin Whitfield explore the Juicy Sentence protocol, a high-leverage strategy for helping students deconstruct complex syntax instead of just "word searching." Learn how to use AI-powered tools to transform your reading instruction through a simple four-step routine that builds deep comprehension.8 min
- 06Harvesting Maturity: The 90-Second Fix for Choppy Student WritingExplore how the "small-bore" philosophy of sentence combining can break the "choppy ceiling" in student writing across all grade levels and subjects. Hosts Renata Salas and Colin Whitfield break down the harvesting technique and explain how just 90 seconds of daily practice builds lasting syntactic maturity.8 min
- 07Micro-Writing: Five Minutes to Boost Student ThinkingThis episode explores how brief, low-stakes writing bursts can build fluency, deepen comprehension, and support reluctant writers without the pressure of grading every line. The hosts share a simple classroom routine using timed prompts, partner share-outs, and specific feedback to make writing more frequent and meaningful.7 min
- 08Sentence Combining: A 3-Minute Writing BoostLearn a quick, low-prep routine that helps students turn short kernel sentences into richer, more precise writing. The episode shows how sentence combining supports grammar, lowers cognitive load, and can be used in any subject with a simple AI prompt.4 min
- 09Build Bigger Sentences in MinutesThis episode breaks down the kernel sentence routine: how to start with a tiny sentence and expand it through simple, targeted questions that strengthen writing, syntax, and working memory. The hosts also show how this quick scaffold works across ELA and science, and how teachers can use AI to generate ready-to-go sentence-building warm-ups.7 min
- 10Make Sentence Frames Disappear: Embedded Scaffolds for ELsRenata and Colin unpack why traditional sentence frames can become crutches for multilingual learners, and how embedded scaffolds build the language move directly into the task. They share practical examples, from using When and Although prompts to leveraging AI as a co-planner for faster, more targeted lesson design.7 min
- 11Verbal Rehearsal: The Writing Block FixRenata Salas and Colin Whitfield break down how verbal rehearsal helps students get unstuck by saying sentences aloud before writing. They share a simple classroom routine, a collaborative paragraph-building activity, and quick AI prompt ideas for generating sentence frames.6 min
- 12Sentence Combining: The 5-Minute Fix for Better WritingRenata Salas and Colin Whitfield unpack why isolated grammar drills can hurt writing growth, and why sentence combining is one of the few approaches that reliably improves students’ prose. They share a quick, low-prep routine for using content-connected sentence pairs, scaffolding complexity across the week, and even speeding up prep with AI.6 min
Your instructor
Teach Better Tomorrow
A daily 5-10 minute podcast for K-12 teachers. Each episode: one specific teaching method you can use tomorrow morning, why it works, and one AI prompt to help you pull it off. Powered by Jellypod.
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