Blog post #2: Writing Essentials Ch. 7-9
By: Lauren Brown
Routman
discusses on page 173 that, “a successful writing program requires a
knowledgeable, organized teacher with excellent classroom management skills.” From
what I have observed in my classroom these past couple of weeks I have only
seen writing three of the days. From what I have seen, students were given no
clear directions on how/what to write and this was to be done
individually-mainly, because we (my mentor teacher and I) wanted to evaluate
where our students’ writing was. After reading Ch. 7, Routman discusses many
ideas that I would like to implement into our writing time. For example, having
students discuss their writing-either at the beginning, during, or at the end
seems logical in that they can generate further ideas and create a flow that
they may be initially be struggling with. Obviously, to make this method
successful classroom management is key. I believe directions/expectations and modeling
correct behavior would have to be done beforehand; and then, consistency in
holding the students’ accountable would have to place to enable an effective
conversation environment that would benefit their writing. I believe that conversations
with peers and the teacher (one on one) are crucial. Some problems I may run
into while attempting these methods include; students not paying attention and participating
in conversation with one another, while a student is meeting with the teacher
others may not be on task, and conversations that may not be beneficial to
their writing. The previous problems described are classroom management issues
that I would want to handle before attempting this method. I would try to
hybridize my literacy instruction by trying a whole class discussion first so
that there are no misconceptions about what should be discussed when going over
a writing piece.
In my classroom we perform many lessons, almost all, using a workshop model that allows for a short lesson to be taught to the whole group and then allowing the children to return to their seats and work on whatever concept the lesson focused on. Thus far I have seen the children learn how to run a “Writer’s Workshop” efficiently and effectively through the assistance of my MT setting clear expectations and modeling. The students have begun to work on personal narratives in a draft stage this week and are working on stamina to be able to write for an extended period of time independently. They are also told to remember to persevere in order to solve their own issues they come to while writing in order to reach the level of stamina we are hoping for, around 20 minutes of writing.
ReplyDeleteTo hybridize the lessons I would like to see more integration of Science and Math into their prompts by allowing them to still write personal statements, but instead of asking for simply “a memory” have them write about “a memory of using Science outside of school” or “tell about a time when you needed a map”, etc. However, the class is just getting started and they may be able to integrate such prompts at a later time when they are more comfortable with the system. The final part of the Workshop calls for the children to “whisper share” or “buzz” about their writing to first a small group or partner and then those who wish to share with the large group are allowed to do so. Routman suggests that moving away from isolated teaching encourages more quality writing and states, “Having students share their writing regularly as a basis for celebration and great teaching moments” (p. 144). This is something my classroom fosters a lot in all subjects, not solely writing. I agree with Lauren when she said that sharing and working in groups during the writing process is something that must be well-explained and a lot of expectations must be covered for it to run smoothly. Specifically, the appropriate language to use when critiquing, applauding, or listening to another student’s work would be a concern of mine. Another aspect of the Writer’s Workshop that is similar to Routman’s approach is the mini lesson; the list on page 155 is helpful and closely correlates to what the launch of our writing looks like on a daily basis.
On page 199 Routman discusses “snapshots” and I found that to be particularly interesting because we did the exact same exercise today in my classroom. My MT demonstrated verbally what a story that we would typically get would sound like that (and then, and then, and then…) and asked them to focus on writing about snapshots rather than retelling a long period of time. They were encouraged to use more details in this activity.
In my classroom placement, I have seen a great deal of writing already. We use a genre based curriculum in language arts and have started the year focusing on poetry. My mentor teacher used a great deal of the framework for teaching writing genres found on page 196. As we introduced poetry to the students, my teacher asked the students what they thought poetry was. This was done so that students could reveal their basic knowledge of the genre. They described what they thought the purpose of poetry was, they related the rhyming and rhythm to rapping, and they gave examples of when they saw or used poetry. I thought this was a great way to start learning about the genre.
ReplyDeleteAs we have continued through teaching poetry, my teacher has used a great deal of former students work as examples. Each year, the students write an “I Am” poem in which they use a selected structure to describe themselves. When the students are completely done creating, editing, and revising, my teacher then sends of the poems to the Anthology of Poetry by Young Americans to be published. Many of the students are chosen (30-50 usually) and have their work published. This is a great honor for the students whose work is selected. I think this is a fantastic incentive for students to work hard on developing their poetry and gives new poets a goal to work toward.
During the process of creating these “I Am” poems, my MT adheres to many of the guidelines. When we began writing, my MT modeled exactly what she wanted from the students. She had the students work together in pairs for peer editing. The writing process took place over several days before they finalized their drafts to be submitted for publishing. During the process, students would be asked to share lines in the poem to the class that they were especially proud of. Each student was given one-on-one time with a teacher (either my MT or me) to help them develop a richer text. I am very impressed with this approach to genre based writing and am thrilled that I was able to witness it.
I really liked the quote Lauren pulled out of the article this week saying,"a successful writing program requires a knowledgeable, organized teacher with excellent classroom management skills.” I am lucky in that I am able to witness almost all of these aspects of a good writing program with one of my mentors this year.
ReplyDeleteThe literature teacher I am working with this year has a heavy back ground in Language Arts teaching, including being a reading recovery specialist. With this comes a lot of knowledge on reading and writing skills and how to build them in the classroom.
Both my mentors this year have great classroom management skills and I think this is partially due to the many years they have had teaching. I see how they are able to waste less time and transition effectively with these management skills. Another aspect of the classrooms I work in that helps with classroom management is the CHAMPS boards (conversation, help,(A),movement, procedure, success. These are boards that are posted around the school and tell the students how they should be behaving at different points of they day.
Lastly, in reference to the quote Lauren shared, my teacher does also have, to some extent, good organizational skills. For a teacher who just moved into a new building with no literacy curriculum and a brand new empty room, she is doing really well. I can tell that she comes from a school that she had been at for years and had been settled into. I can see this year how staying organized really helps the flow of the classroom, the teaching and the learning, for both teacher and student.
At this point in my literacy classroom students have not been grouped into any ability levels because the teacher is waiting on RMAZE, RCBM, and San Diego Quick scores to evaluate were to best put students in order to challenge them and teach them. I am eager to see how the school year and literacy curriculum progress as these groups are formed and as we move into more content and standards.