ASSIGNMENT SIX: DVD Reflection-
Included in your text is a DVD containing video clips of Regie’s
conferences with writers in the classroom. There is a detailed
commentary accompanying the DVD on page 336 of her text. Please watch
the DVD and then look at her teaching notes beginning on page 336 (Regie
suggests just watching without notes first so that you don’t miss what
she and the students are doing.) After both watching and reading her
notes, write your reflection and please post a copy of your DVD
Reflection to the blog.
*NOTE:
If you experience problems playing the DVD please refer to the Writing
Essentials companion website at www.heinemann.com/writingessentials for
directions for playing the DVD. Look in the upper right hand corner for
the link.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
It was nice to see how Reggie conducted her whole-class conferences. I noticed how she praised each students work with specifics and then helped students revise. When she was conducting a conference with a struggling writer, I took note of her questioning strategies. She continued to reread and then ask the student, “Then what happened?” It helped the student make sense of the story and helped the writer move the story along, but always reaffirming what the writer already had.
ReplyDeleteI can see how valuable it is to make sure that the whole-class conferences are efficient and productive. At times, I felt that some of the conferences lagged on and I could see a student feeling discouraged if there are too many items to correct if there is not a trusted relationship. I feel that keeping a whole class engaged is important. So, I would choose to project the writing while it is being reread the second time. I think I would also have students pair-share their thinking and also have only 3-4 students share in the whole class setting. All in all, celebrating writing is one key way to encourage growth and productivity.
Out of all of the video conferences I watched, I thought the spelling conference was the most powerful. I have struggled with having my 5th graders misspell many high-frequency words. I appreciate how Reggie had the student inspect, rewrite, and think about what letters made a particular sound in the misspelled word. I also like having the students make check marks above the letters that they know are correct. Having the student quickly rewrite the word and then use the same spelling strategy to create similar words seems like it would help solidify their understanding of letter sound arrangements. This would be a valuable whole-class lesson that would send a message to reread, use simple strategies to help with misspelled words, and why too many misspellings can distract the reader.
Glad you enjoyed watching Regie in action. :) Yes, others have also mentioned that they felt the lesson went on a little long but they enjoyed watching it.
ReplyDeleteCandace Palmesano – August 15, 2017
ReplyDeleteEssential Writing – Assignment Six: DVD Reflection
It was encouraging to watch Regie in each of the conferences. I loved when the students shared and she celebrated with each of them. They also showed a variety of different scenarios that might occur in the whole-class sharing, such as, when Max was reluctant to read his poem but Regie encouraged him by saying it needed his voice. Then, he started laughing on the second read and she got him back by reading a little and having him conclude. She complimented him on his title, too, by saying it was tricky but so important; the other students were all seeing how important a title is too. I also liked seeing how she assisted Garrett with picking a topic. He had originally copied another student’s words, but Regie used that as a springboard as possibly something Garrett could write about. She celebrated many things with him and you could tell he felt proud of what he wrote. I think Regie’s gentle, calm demeanor also helped those students who were a little reluctant to read their poems. She began by telling the students that they were sharing to celebrate all the good work they had done. That right there might put children at ease. I love giving a round of applause (we do a “Bobcat” clap, which is 2 claps). You can tell these students have come to love writing and will continue to do so. They are realizing that there is pleasure in writing and they seem to enjoy the experience of expressing themselves. There are so many students who have a story to tell, but just don’t know it and have a difficult time of getting started. That is when the one-on-one conferences really help and something I am going to try doing at least once a month. First of all, students love the attention whether they are good writers or not and second, some students just need the help in getting started. I am going to establish some guidelines for one-on-one conferences so everyone gets a chance and it is not the same 7-8 students who are always needing help. Of course, the goal is to get our writers who are able to self-monitor and self-edit throughout the writing process to do it independently. I also like the idea of writing on stickie notes, not their papers. It was good to see how Regie modeled fixing spelling errors too. In conclusion, basically it is just so important to connect, have high expectations, model and celebrate your students every day.
Getting started is often one of the hardest things for some children. Scaffolding and doing oral rehearsal are excellent strategies to use to support them. YES! We want students to see that writing is pleasurable and fun! (Who wants to do something that they are always being corrected about or told they are doing it wrong, or not good enough?)
ReplyDelete