Professional development in Writing is Thinking.
Writing Is Thinking through strategic inquiry (WITsi) is an approach to closing literacy skill gaps through direct instruction in writing strategies across the curriculum, and embedding them in the work of inquiry teams who analyze student work to see how the strategies have performed, make adjustments, and select and design appropriate instructional responses. WITsi incorporates and utilizes proven methods of school improvement, methods documented in The Atlantic’s “The Writing Revolution” (Oct, 2012) and in Strategic Inquiry: Getting Small for Big Results in Education (Harvard Education Press, 2013). WITsi was a prime turnaround strategy in NYC Renewal High Schools, as chronicled in Mind/Shift’s “Is it Time to Go Back to Basics with Writing Instruction?” (Feb 2017). Watch first hand testimonials about Strategic Inquiry in New York City’s Renewal High Schools. Read more about how the underlying approach to teaching writing works.
Currently we offer in-person and online workshops in the writing component of this work, Writing is Thinking (WIT). WIT improves student writing, content knowledge, academic vocabulary, oral language, reading comprehension, standardized exam performance, and student thinking. It is a particularly powerful strategy for English Learners, because it provides a concrete way to teach language embedded in content while also teaching students how the English language works.
Click on the videos below to learn about WIT with newcomers at John Adams High School.

Upcoming Workshops
Workshop | Date(s) | Location | Credits | More Info |
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WIT 101 for all populations | TBA | Bronx, NY | CTLE hours: 15 | Details |
WIT 102 | TBA | Bronx, NY | CTLE hours: 15 | Details |
WIT 103 | TBA | TBA | CTLE hours: 15 | Details |
WIT 104: Train-the-facilitator | TBA | NYC | CTLE hours: 48 | Details |
WIT for Math | TBA | TBA | CTLE hours: 15 | Details |
WIT for Science | TBA | TBA | CTLE hours: 15 | Details |
Workshop | Date(s) | Location | Credits | More Info |
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WIT 103 | June 27, 28 & 29, 2023 | Online | CTLE hours: 12 | Details |
WIT 102 | June 20, 21 & 22, 2023 | Online | CTLE hours: 12 | Details |
3-hour mini-workshop: Conjunctions | July 5 OR August 2, 2023 - AM | Online | CTLE hours: 3 | Details |
2-hour mini-workshop: Expansion | July 5 OR August 2, 2023 - PM | Online | CTLE hours: 2 | Details |
3-hour mini-workshop: Parallel Revision | July 6 OR August 3, 2023 - AM | Online | CTLE hours: 3 | Details |
Recognized by New York State Education Department (NYSED) as an approved sponsor of CTLE for Professional Classroom Teachers, School Leaders and Level III Teaching Assistants in New York State.
