ASSIGNMENT FOUR: WRITTEN REFLECTION-Section Two- Teaching Essentials Chapters 4-6
Read Writing Essentials, Chapters 4-6 and BRIEFLY reflect on the following thoughts written below and any additional comments that you have after reading these chapters. Post your reflection to the course blog.
Chapter 4: Raise Your Expectations
• Why we need to raise expectations – ESPECIALLY for our minority and lower socio-economic students
• How to raise expectations in your classrooms as well as in your grade level and throughout your entire building
• What about handwriting, spelling and editing expectations?
• How to use the Optimal Learning Model to support your students’ needs
“Raising expectations” for our students is a big push in all of our districts. Under “No Child Left Behind” many schools have been identified as “in need of improvement” and have been working furiously yet unsuccessfully for over ten years to “close the gap” for our minority children. But more important than improving performance on high stakes tests is remembering that if we raise our expectations and teach explicitly, then our students will rise to the occasion and astonish us with the high quality work that each of them is capable of.
Regie has some great insight into the need to raise expectations of our students and feeling comfortable and confident with the decision to set high standards for all learners. She raises the question, What are our clearly articulated, rigorous yet reasonable expectations? This is a question that we should reflect on as individual teachers, and one that should be the starting point for a conversation within our grade levels, buildings and across entire districts.
We’d like to know what you think of one of our favorite quotes from the book: “Worksheets aren’t good enough. The students who can do them don’t need them, and the ones who struggle with them feel defeated by the red marks, which only reinforce their feelings of inadequacy. WORKSHEETS FOSTER MEDIOCRITY!” (We personally wanted to shout out when we read that!) Please include your thoughts in your Section Two Reaction.
In this chapter, Regie also sheds some light on several topics that teachers often ask about. “What about handwriting expectations?” and “Conventions, Editing and Publishing?” It’s always helpful to get another professional’s point of view on these pressing issues! Enjoy the chapter!
Chapter 5: Do More Shared Writing• Where does Shared Writing fit within the Optimal Learning Model?
• For which learners is Shared Writing appropriate?
• How can we link Shared Writing with Shared Reading?
• How can Shared Writing be used to support word work?
• What are some “Tried and True” ideas for Shared Writing?
Regie's idea of Shared Writing is very different than that of many other professionals in the field. So often we use Shared Writing only with the primary grades. As Regie states, “What a great way to teach and engage all students in all aspects of oral and written language.” If we are to consider teaching through all phases of the Optimal Learning Model, we can begin to see how important Shared Writing is for our students. We think that the idea of using Shared Writing in both upper elementary and the middle schools is a new way of thinking for many of us.
One of the reasons Regie encourages teachers to use chart paper and an easel, instead of projecting to a screen with an overhead or document camera, is that the children are seated right with you on the floor, which usually holds the children’s attention a little better. Another idea that has worked great for me is to move the overhead machine to the group area and place it on the floor in the middle of the group in front of the easel. I then project the machine onto the white space of the easel. It’s great because you’re able to be right there in the middle of the group and have the benefit of writing more quickly onto a transparency rather that chart paper. You’ll need to consider which of your Shared Writing activities you’ll want students to be rereading (don’t forget that you can hole punch transparencies and put them in a binder for future reference) and which you may want posted to your walls on charts.
Regie’s list of “Tried and True Ideas for Shared Writing” (page 112) is very extensive. It would be helpful to take a look at Regie’s list as you create your curriculum map for the year. Where would some of her suggestions fit within your science, social studies, math, reading and writing units across the year?
Chapter 6: Capitalize on the Reading-Writing Connection
• How can we become more effective integrating our reading and writing instruction?
• Are we as efficient as possible with our responses to reading?
• The benefit and necessity to integrate our content area teaching with both reading and writing
• The importance of writing (and reading) more nonfiction
We know research shows that reading achievement affects writing achievement and vice-versa, and we also know that it continually gets harder to fit “it all” into our day. Effectively using reading and writing connections throughout the day in all areas of language arts, math, science, social studies, and even specials such as art, music and library, is our only option.
Regie’s suggestion of taking a closer look at how we use written response to reading is a very important one. Careful consideration is needed to decide if what we’re asking the students to do is “worth their time.” For example, if the response we’re looking for will “deepen comprehension, cause the writer to reflect on the content, and/or foster appreciation for the text” then it’s worth it. We whole-heartedly agree with her statement that many of the overly structured assignments such as book reports can alienate our readers! While response journals do have their benefits for us professionally Regie states, “they also take up a lot of our time!” It’s a very organized teacher who can effectively keep up with their responses without feeling overwhelmed and frustrated. Don’t forget the bottom line – “Be sure that students spend more time reading than writing about reading!” (Page 126)
We are so glad that Regie addressed how to effectively teach summary writing. We know that many teachers have a difficult time differentiating between a summary and retelling – I (Jackie) was one of them until several years ago. The snapshots and procedures that Regie shares on how to teach summarizing are invaluable and should be a reference that we all refer back to throughout our teaching year.
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While reading chapter four I was definitely inspired to raise my expectations with my first graders. I set writing expectations, but I feel my expectations are based more on writing a specific length and focusing on quantity (senences) rather than quality. Regie gave great suggestions and tips in her Nurture and Nudge section. I am looking forward to raising my expectations and creating charts using her examples on her What makes Writing Interesting? And What Does It Mean To Write More/Tell More? Charts. These charts could easily hang above my writing table and could be referred to often. With regards to Regie’s quote on worksheets I couldn’t agree more. My students complete grammar/spelling double-sided worksheets two mornings a week after our whole group grammar lesson (this is during our whole group reading block). I feel the pressure from our program to complete these, but I also believe the kids get more out of our whole group lesson than the worksheet itself. While we work on the worksheets as a class, my more advanced students seem to work ahead and complete the worksheets themselves, while the others are still finishing. I could easily incorporate the worksheet onto chart paper.
ReplyDeleteChapter five definitely inspired me to add more shared writing into my first grade classroom. I do incorporate shared writing, but this chapter has inspired me to incorporate it throughout several subjects throughout the day. As I was reading the chapter I took notes regarding where I could incorporate shared writing into my lessons. We are currently studying healthy eating and learning about the five food groups. Since this is the end of out healthy eating week, we created a chart listing all of the reasons why eating healthy is good for us. Then I wrote about what I ate that day and how it will help my body. My students then returned to their seats and also wrote about healthy eating. Next, we will revisit our chart and create a shared writing piece explaining why it is important to eat healthy. Finally, as Regie suggested, I will type up our piece and display it as an option to read during literacy centers. I am also looking forward to incorporating shared writing into our social studies unit about schools, and creating a fiction story about our class. I can also incorporate shared writing into our living things science unit. Regie's tried and true ideas are a wonderful resource that I look forward to referring to throughout the remainder of the school year and in years to come.
Chapter six provided me with great ideas on connecting reading and writing. I could definitely use literature, as Regie suggested, to inspire myself and my class to write similar but original texts. Reading a nonfiction text daily is a goal I plan to work toward. Reading more nonfiction will expose my first graders to expository information which will hopefully inspire them to write more nonfiction pieces. I also found it helpful when Regie reminded me about the importance of teaching students how to retread their own writing. I have been encouraging my students to do this more and have found it helpful to have my first graders reread aloud to at least two other students when they are done with a writing piece. I also plan on role-playing this this process more often with my students. Role-playing will help my first graders fully understand how to reread and the benefits of rereading. I also love her suggestion about of using writing in guided reading groups. We use whiteboards a lot for making words, phoneme deletion, etc… But I could definitely use them as a tool for responding to questions rather than stating their responses out loud. This will also give my students more time to process and think about the question that I asked them.
Assignment Four
ReplyDeleteChapter 4
Regie’s instruction on the importance of knowing your audience has already made a big difference in what my students are producing. Some of my students are writing to each other. Being interested in their audience has affected how much they care about handwriting, spelling, editing, and attaching a picture clearly connected to their writing. For the first time, I hear their voice, and an inner organization of thoughts in their writing. (“In the end, the North won. Now, I’ll talk about how, unfortunately, President Lincoln was shot in the theater.”)
The Optimal Learning Model is likewise proving to be valuable. A complete demonstration of what I am asking a student to do, clarifies expectations, puts me “out there” as vulnerable, and is actually a form of drama, more apt to catch the learner’s attention than rhetorical teaching or worksheets. (Yes, worksheets foster mediocrity!) The Optimal Learning Model and choice in writing, work together to teach conventions in context much more effectively than worksheets.
Chapter 5
Shared writing techniques that especially caught my attention:
1. Incorporating conversation,
2. Modeling rereading as a writing strategy,
3. Letting the reader know we’re changing topics,
4. Inviting students to read the text aloud or follow silently with their eyes,
5. Getting ideas down quickly,
6. Guiding students to end their own writing with a line that acknowledges the reader:
“I think we need another line that invites the reader to see a small group.” Students respond: We hope you’ll come see us in action.” (p.110)
7. “Who sees something they know? How did you know that?...If we want students to be independent problem solvers, they have to be able to articulate the skills and strategies they use.” (p. 98)
Some “Tried and True Ideas for Shared Writing:”
• Letter to the principal requesting something;
• Advice (to parents of new babies, to next year’s students, to teachers);
• What to do if (you see a spider, bee, or wasp; when you’re bored; when you’ve done something hurtful or wrong);
• How to (make a meal, select a book, get ready for school);
• Letters of encouragement (to sick people, soldiers);
• Books (our pets, siblings, hobbies, what we’re experts at);
• Short plays;
• Songs, raps, chants, jump-rope rhymes. (I’m going to try this with one of my ESL students tomorrow).
Chapter Six
This chapter covered various points of special value to my work:
1. The writing-reading connection is what helps dyslexic readers learn decoding and spelling conventions when they use speech-to-text apps, such as Dragon.
2. Letting kids decide whether their response to their nightly independent reading will be written or oral (in a conference). (p.126)
3. Procedures for Teaching Summarizing (pp.130-131):
• “I’m going to show you how to decide what’s most important on the page when you read, instead of ‘Today we’re going to work on summarizing.’”
• “Think aloud as you read. Stop and give a summary after every few pages, so students ‘see’ your thinking.”
• “Here’s what I think is most important. The main thing the author is saying is this.”
• “I’m not going to include that because it’s not crucial to what’s most important.”
• “I’m going to put that into my own words and say it like this.”
• “When returning to a nonfiction text-in-process, ask, ‘What are the three most important things that have happened so far?’ Accept all logical responses.”
I also liked the ideas of using small spiral notebooks to check students’ comprehension through writing, and using more brief writing assignments to check comprehension.
These three chapters contain many invaluable ideas. Some that have most impressed me are:
• Interest in audience;
• Optimal Learning Model;
• Rereading;
• Importance of leading students to articulate the strategies they use (metacognition).
Hi Leslie,
ReplyDeleteI am so excited reading your post. Glad that you found some inspiring ideas to try out with your students. And we agree, you’ll be referring to this text for years to come! We still do!!!
Hello Jean,
Wow! You highlighted a lot of great points from these chapters! I’m glad you also found the section informative and worthwhile!
Remember not to overwhelm yourself with all the ideas and changes you want to implement. Pick a few and work on those, see how it goes and then add some more. It’s better to slowly make changes and have them last, instead of trying to change everything at once and getting frustrated, and then going back to your old ways.