Last time, we discussed the special, double audience that we have to consider when writing a class assignment for a teacher. Hopefully that advice will help all the students that have now gone back to school! The audience* for ... Read More  

Today, we're talking to Dr. Linda Campbell of Saint Mary's University. I worked with Campbell at SMU, and she's passionate about both her science and science communication, so she's a perfect fit for this blog! Read More  

Back in 2015, I became involved in refugee sponsorship when I joined a group sponsoring a Syrian family with four small kids. It was a great experience. In fact, this first sponsorship led me to start three more sponsorship ... Read More  

Time to get a little... strange... over here, with a series of posts about the scientists* of Stranger Things. We're going to start with Martin Brenner, the true Big Bad of Season One, and a textbook example of one ... Read More  

Listen up, students, because this edition of Teach Write is all for you: today, we continue our exploration of audience with a critical one: teachers. When teachers give us writing assignments, they are trying to measure two things: Read More  

Today we're branching out - rather than talking about a specific woman in science, we're going to talk about the perception of women - and men - in medicine. Specifically, the perception of nurses. Read More  

A plaster cast of an embryo fossil and three eggs circulated around the room. Dr. David Evans, a paleontologist at the Royal Ontario Museum, described his remarkable find: a dinosaur nursery where he found dinosaur eggs! Read More  

Ghostbusters (1984) is one of the first movies I remember seeing in the theatre as a kid. I'm pretty sure it was the VERY first movie my little brother saw in the theatre: he was young enough that he ... Read More  

Last time we talked about why it's important for writers to think about audience - the readers we are writing for. Today, let's dig a little deeper into types of readers, and identify some questions we can use to ... Read More  

Today I'd like you to meet Dr. Amanda Roe, of the Great Lakes Forestry Centre (Natural Resources Canada). I wanted to feature Roe because she's not only a dedicated scientist, she's also a talented visual artist, meaning her work ... Read More  

Half Brother deals with a lot of the same questions that came up while I was researching Fox Talk. What are the most ethical ways to study and learn from animals? What responsibilities do scientists have towards the animals they include ... Read More  

News that an arctic fox from Svalbard, Norway, traveled 3,506 km across the sea ice to Ellesmere Island, Canada surprised social media, but not Dr. L. E. Carmichael. The Ontario author of children’s science books is also a scientist ... Read More  

OK, yes, it's not technically Monday anymore. I traveled, I was felled by an airplane cold. But then, as I soaked my coughing muscles in a hot bath while listening to old episodes of The Daily Show on Sirius ... Read More  

Last time we talked about the 40:20:40 rule of writing, and how the first 40% of the effort that goes into any piece happens in the preparation phase. The very first piece of preparation is to identify your audience: ... Read More  

I'm on the road right now, posting between adventures in Cape Breton (*waves from Nova Scotia*), so it's a quick one today - a list of lists of kids books about fabulous women in science. Head to your local ... Read More  

I wrote the first draft of SMALL WORLD in 2011. When I tell people that, they always pause. I can see the gears working in their minds: am I THAT BAD at this writing thing? Read More  

Let's talk Game of Thrones. Specifically, Season 8, Episode 5, "The Bells," an episode a lot of people hated for a lot of really good reasons relating to character arcs and storytelling. Those reasons have been discussed in detail ... Read More  

Welcome to Teach Write! This column draws on my 20 years' experience teaching writing to kids, university students, and adult learners. It includes ideas and exercises that teachers can use in the classroom, and creative writers can use to ... Read More