Tara McCarthy

On their way to a wedding, Megan and Joel crash their car in Elise Juska's 'Perfect Weather for Driving'. It makes for a great drunken story at the rehearsal dinner, but they've found themselves stuck indefinitely at a hotel in Vermont. In 'The Happiest Day of Your Life' by Heather Swain, everyone tells Annie that her wedding day will be the best yet, but her invitations have the wrong name, and a tornado destroys the bar where the is supposed to take place. But when a bomb explodes on the subway line that her fiancé, Ben, takes every morning, everything changes. In 'Losing California' by Tara McCarthy, L.A. surfing teacher Allison Beyer cancels her wedding and flies to Nova Scotia to infiltrate the life of a singer in her favourite band. And in 'Jules & Emily' by Lisa Tucker, two lonely people meet on an online board for agoraphobics, but both will be forced to change when one is invited to her estranged brother's wedding all the way across the country.

Dip into this vast collection of quick writing lessons and activities to find exactly what you need-whether it's a lesson on using exact words, writing an essay, developing a plot, or organizing a report. You'll find dozens of ideas for teaching students the persuasive, narrative, descriptive, and expository writing skills they need. This comprehensive resource gives you the tools you need to successfully-and joyfully-teach writing. For use with Grades 4 8.