never too late for a writer's notebook

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When the last giggles and burps, tickles and nudges turn into calm and quiet expectation, I let my words enter the classroom.
"When we wrote the mathematician list, it turned out pretty good. Then we wrote the reader list and it came out kind of poor. When I started to read your writer statements I was worried and didn't know what to expect. When I had finished taking ideas from everyone's list and writing the class one, I read it over and said "Wow!" out loud. You know, this is the best list ever any of my students have written as a class."
Eyes widen and grins appear.
"You are writers and the list shows that you know a lot about getting ideas, writing drafts and revising, living a writerly life. I realized there is one thing that I hadn't given you that is also part of a writer's life," I pause.
Puzzled looks.
"Every writer has a writer's notebook," I say while I get my personal small stack of writer's notebooks out of a white cloth bag.

Shifting and murmuring rise and fall.
"I am a teacher but for many years I didn't even know that writers kept notebooks. I was adult when I learned about it. You can see that my first notebooks are small and regular but as time passed they became thicker and more personal," I show my notebooks.
"I remember that last year we came to your class and the students showed us their notebooks," L. blurts out.
"Yes. They started with simple notebooks in the fall, and when they were filled, they bought their own notebooks, just the kind they wanted. I am sorry that you are getting your notebooks in January. But you are still lucky to get started already as a child," I continue and pull out a stack of simple thin notebooks.
On top of a stack is a small book.
"You will learn soon what the role of a notebook is in a writer's life. I will read to you a bit out of Ralph Fletcher's book where he explains what a notebook is, and in the days to follow I will share what kind of treasures you can collect in your notebook," I finish my words and continue with Ralph Fletcher's words.

After the short reading the students excitedly take notebooks and  decorate them with care. Some notebooks get names and first greeting letters filled with promises of taking care and write a lot.

I know I had my reasons why I didn't give them the notebooks earlier. I felt they were not ready. Some were, but not as a whole class. I felt I needed to upholster their belief in themselves as writers. I was looking for some kind of evidence that they would write with the spirit of experimentation not duty. I wished to see them to increase the volume of writing so there would be something to fill the notebooks.
Looking back, I am not sure it was the right decision. Maybe giving them the notebooks would have boosted their writer identity sooner. We can't turn back the time. They have their notebooks now. Better late than never.

I hope that in spring the students will add "Writers keep notebooks" to their list.
Here is the current list where I combined statements from individual lists. This is what grade 3 students know to be true about writers.

Writers think what to write about

Writers use real life things

Writers pay attention

Writers get inspired

Writers imagine

Writers write what they want

Writers write about family

Writers write about old times

Writers write about moments

Writers think about humans

Writers write books

Writers think of ideas

Writers collect ideas

Writers fix ideas

Writers use ideas

Writers share ideas

Writers listen to other writers’ stories

Writers read books from other writers

Writers think about other writers

Writers discuss

Writers study

Writers write drafts

Writers draw drafts

Writers think again

Writers revise

Writers use different strategies

Writers write again

Writers take advice

Writers think about words

Writers add details

Writers draw pictures

Writers undo

Writers correct

Writers edit

Writers publish books

Writers think what to write next

Writers want to write

Writers know how to write

Writers try their best

Writers don’t give up

Writers get better when they make mistakes

Writers write very much