Highlights from Chapter 12
Secrets of Good Writers
*They think about their writing all the time
*Reread as they go
*Read the piece aloud to hear how it really sounds
*Read a lot - note what authors do
*Write every day
*Write in a quiet, organized setting
*Don't give up
*Don't always love to write but love having written
*Get feedback from other writers
*Write with their reader(s) in mind
*Be relentless about accuracy
*Revise as they go along
*Know a lot about their topic, or find out what they need to know
*Write to figure out what they want to say
Reduce the paper load - put more responsibility on the student
Be choosy about what you read (professional reading)
Eliminate (or reduce) daily worksheet and isolated excercises
Monday, April 14, 2008
Chapter 11 - Build on Best Practice and Research
Highlights from Chapter 11
*Write every day.
*Understand social context (share writing)
*Provide caring teachers (students will write more if they feel safe and valued)
*Professional Development
*Encourage both teacher and parent support
*Create predictable writing routines
*Provide support through conferences
*Keep test prep embedded in curriculum
*Emphasize writing as a process
*Provide choice, purpose, and audience
*Recognize writing's role beyond the classroom
Take responisbility for beoming an effective writing teacher
Adopt practices of highly effective teachers
You achieve what you believe
Develop a schoolwide vision
*Write every day.
*Understand social context (share writing)
*Provide caring teachers (students will write more if they feel safe and valued)
*Professional Development
*Encourage both teacher and parent support
*Create predictable writing routines
*Provide support through conferences
*Keep test prep embedded in curriculum
*Emphasize writing as a process
*Provide choice, purpose, and audience
*Recognize writing's role beyond the classroom
Take responisbility for beoming an effective writing teacher
Adopt practices of highly effective teachers
You achieve what you believe
Develop a schoolwide vision
Chapter 10 - Make Assessment Count
Highlights from Chapter 10
Rubrics are a lot like checklists or guidelines (an evaluation tool)
Use 6 plus 1 trait writing
Do not use rubrics on every piece of writing
Make sure that writing is woven throughout the curriculum all year long so that when it comes time to do district or state writing it will be well written.
Self-evaluation is the missing piece in writing instruction.
Rubrics are a lot like checklists or guidelines (an evaluation tool)
Use 6 plus 1 trait writing
Do not use rubrics on every piece of writing
Make sure that writing is woven throughout the curriculum all year long so that when it comes time to do district or state writing it will be well written.
Self-evaluation is the missing piece in writing instruction.
Chapter 9 - Conference with Students
Conferencing with students can be to celebrate, validate, encourage, nudge, teach, assess, set goals, etc.
*Listening
*Affirming
*Reinforcing
*Assessing
*Teaching
*Scaffolding
*Setting Goals
Wholeshare - formal conference done publicly
Quickshare - miniconference
Roving conference - on the run
One-on-One conferences
*Listening
*Affirming
*Reinforcing
*Assessing
*Teaching
*Scaffolding
*Setting Goals
Wholeshare - formal conference done publicly
Quickshare - miniconference
Roving conference - on the run
One-on-One conferences
Chapter 8 - Organize for Daily Writing
Those who write every day in a regular planned writing session produce about twice the volume and twice the number of ideas as writers who write when they feel like it.
Provide more choice within meaning ful structure.
Pre-writing - generate, plan and organize ideas with the purpose of producing effective writing.
Do more freewrites.
Limit the use of graphic organizers. (Don't spend too much time before writing on this)
Have more conversations about writing.
Establish daily routines and model expected behavior.
Provide more choice within meaning ful structure.
Pre-writing - generate, plan and organize ideas with the purpose of producing effective writing.
Do more freewrites.
Limit the use of graphic organizers. (Don't spend too much time before writing on this)
Have more conversations about writing.
Establish daily routines and model expected behavior.
Chapter 7 - The Essential Writing Day
Highlights from Chapter 7
Start writing with the whole picture and then go back in and teach the skills
Reduce isolated skills work
Make sure that students have a meaningful purpose and/or an audience to write to to get the best quality writing.
Save exemplary writing (with the students' permission) to use as models
Teach useful mini lessons as needs or situations arise in class
Keep min lessons short
Don't overemphasize correctness during writing - writing quality will decline. Focus on corrections after quality writing is produced
Raise you expectations for spelling - use everyday situations to talk about the importance of good spelling
Limit dictionary and thesaurus use - put them away until the editing stage
Start writing with the whole picture and then go back in and teach the skills
Reduce isolated skills work
Make sure that students have a meaningful purpose and/or an audience to write to to get the best quality writing.
Save exemplary writing (with the students' permission) to use as models
Teach useful mini lessons as needs or situations arise in class
Keep min lessons short
Don't overemphasize correctness during writing - writing quality will decline. Focus on corrections after quality writing is produced
Raise you expectations for spelling - use everyday situations to talk about the importance of good spelling
Limit dictionary and thesaurus use - put them away until the editing stage
Chapter 6 - Capitalize on the Reading-Writing
Highlights from Chapter 6
Link writing with reading - integrate them when teaching
Begin teaching the reading/writing connection in kindergarten
Ensure students read quality materials
Students can revise better is they wait a day before rereading their writing
Written responses to reading that are beneficial to students:
book review
book blurbs
author profile
interview with an author
literature response
letter to an author
readers theatre script
Combine writing with science and social studies to "find time" for daily writing
Teach summary writing ( purpose of text, sequence of events, connecting new information with what one already know, put information into one's own words.
Link writing with reading - integrate them when teaching
Begin teaching the reading/writing connection in kindergarten
Ensure students read quality materials
Students can revise better is they wait a day before rereading their writing
Written responses to reading that are beneficial to students:
book review
book blurbs
author profile
interview with an author
literature response
letter to an author
readers theatre script
Combine writing with science and social studies to "find time" for daily writing
Teach summary writing ( purpose of text, sequence of events, connecting new information with what one already know, put information into one's own words.
Monday, March 3, 2008
Chapter 5 - Do More Shared Writing
Highlights from Chapter 5:
In shared writing, the teacher and students compose collaboratively, the teacher acting as expert and scribe for her apprentices as she demonstrates, guides, and negotiates the creation of meaningful text, focusing on the craft of writing as well as the conventions. p. 83
During shared writing you are holding the pen and guiding rthe writing while acting as an expert for your group of apprentices. p. 84
It's a delicate balance, seeking and validating students' input while at the same time shaping their thoughts in a respectful, collaborative manner. p. 84
Regardless of student age, shared writing needs to be a major part of every writing program.
p. 85
Shared writing helps provide the rich oral language modeling that stimulates literacy development. p. 85
Shared writing is a safe context in which struggling learners can shine. p. 85
We can use shared writing to teach conversation, humor, character development, interesting beginnings - everything authors do. p. 86
Shared writing can take the form of narratives, lists, charts, booklets, poems, pamphlets, newsletters, worksheets, etc. p. 86
Frequent rereading of texts they have taken part in writing is also a terrific strategy for improving the fluency, reading skills, and confidence of developing readers, English language learners, and readers who struggle. p. 87
Interactive writing is a form of shared writing in which the teacher and a student or students share the pen. The student writes the letters he or she can write, the teacher writes the rest.
p. 87
Tried and True Ideas for Shared Writing:
pp. 112 - 118.
In shared writing, the teacher and students compose collaboratively, the teacher acting as expert and scribe for her apprentices as she demonstrates, guides, and negotiates the creation of meaningful text, focusing on the craft of writing as well as the conventions. p. 83
During shared writing you are holding the pen and guiding rthe writing while acting as an expert for your group of apprentices. p. 84
It's a delicate balance, seeking and validating students' input while at the same time shaping their thoughts in a respectful, collaborative manner. p. 84
Regardless of student age, shared writing needs to be a major part of every writing program.
p. 85
Shared writing helps provide the rich oral language modeling that stimulates literacy development. p. 85
Shared writing is a safe context in which struggling learners can shine. p. 85
We can use shared writing to teach conversation, humor, character development, interesting beginnings - everything authors do. p. 86
Shared writing can take the form of narratives, lists, charts, booklets, poems, pamphlets, newsletters, worksheets, etc. p. 86
Frequent rereading of texts they have taken part in writing is also a terrific strategy for improving the fluency, reading skills, and confidence of developing readers, English language learners, and readers who struggle. p. 87
Interactive writing is a form of shared writing in which the teacher and a student or students share the pen. The student writes the letters he or she can write, the teacher writes the rest.
p. 87
Tried and True Ideas for Shared Writing:
pp. 112 - 118.
Saturday, March 1, 2008
Chapter 4 - Raise Your Expectations
Highlights from Chapter 4
Raised expectations mean that students learn what it means to explore writing in depth. p. 54
Competence leads to confidence, which leads to wanting to write. p. 54
It is well documented that minority students as a group experience a curriculum of lowered expectations and less rigor. p. 54
Disadvantaged students just need more instruction: more demonstrations, more shared experiences, and more guided practice in order to become successful independent learners. p. 56
Students achieve faster, more easily and on a higher level when they find the lessons and materials interesting, relevant and challenging. p. 56
Worksheets foster mediocrity. p. 57
Establish school wide expectations for quality. p. 59
If you're reading everything your students write, they're not writing enough. p.65
If we expect it, explain why it is important, demonstrate how to achieve it, and provide time for it, students almost always meet our expectations. p. 68
Students will only feel the "need" to learn something if they see the task as significant. p. 70
Shared demonstration is underused as a powerful teaching context for students of all grades. p. 71
Guided writing is not parallel to guided reading. p. 72
Just as it is necessary to do a great deal of independent reading to become s competent reader, so too is it with writing. p.73
If they are to become excellent writers they have to spend most of a writing lesson composing continuous text, not participating in lessons and activities about writing. p.75
We will rely on shared experiences (such as shared writing) only if we value their worth. Otherwise, we fill our classroom time with other activities. p. 76
Until the student thinks of himself as a writer, no real improvement is possible. p. 80
We can only reach a child when that child senses our genuine caring, respect, and belief in his abilities. p. 81
Listen with your heart as well as your mind, and you will know what to say and do. p. 81
What would you attempt to do if you knew you could not fail? p. 82
Raised expectations mean that students learn what it means to explore writing in depth. p. 54
Competence leads to confidence, which leads to wanting to write. p. 54
It is well documented that minority students as a group experience a curriculum of lowered expectations and less rigor. p. 54
Disadvantaged students just need more instruction: more demonstrations, more shared experiences, and more guided practice in order to become successful independent learners. p. 56
Students achieve faster, more easily and on a higher level when they find the lessons and materials interesting, relevant and challenging. p. 56
Worksheets foster mediocrity. p. 57
Establish school wide expectations for quality. p. 59
If you're reading everything your students write, they're not writing enough. p.65
If we expect it, explain why it is important, demonstrate how to achieve it, and provide time for it, students almost always meet our expectations. p. 68
Students will only feel the "need" to learn something if they see the task as significant. p. 70
Shared demonstration is underused as a powerful teaching context for students of all grades. p. 71
Guided writing is not parallel to guided reading. p. 72
Just as it is necessary to do a great deal of independent reading to become s competent reader, so too is it with writing. p.73
If they are to become excellent writers they have to spend most of a writing lesson composing continuous text, not participating in lessons and activities about writing. p.75
We will rely on shared experiences (such as shared writing) only if we value their worth. Otherwise, we fill our classroom time with other activities. p. 76
Until the student thinks of himself as a writer, no real improvement is possible. p. 80
We can only reach a child when that child senses our genuine caring, respect, and belief in his abilities. p. 81
Listen with your heart as well as your mind, and you will know what to say and do. p. 81
What would you attempt to do if you knew you could not fail? p. 82
Chapter 3 - Share Your Writing Life
Highlights from Chapter 3:
We have to see ourselves as writers if we are to teach writing well. p. 35
Staffs that are more collegial and collaborative have higher achievement in writing and reading. p. 36
Snapshot writing - short, personal pieces of writing. p. 38
Regie Routman's Writing Practices list on p. 41
Toni Morrison says: "I write out of ignorance . . . It's what I don't know that stimulates me. I merely know enough to get started." p. 42
Good writers are good readers. p. 43
Classroom writing ideas: p. 43
Top-ten list of favorite books
Book reviews
Book blurbs
Stories
Letters
Author profiles
Keep a notebook - quotations of memorable writing
One of the most powerful ways for students to grow as writers is to watch you write - to observe you plan, think, compose, revise, and edit right in from of them, pretty much off the cuff. p. 45
When you begin to trust what you do as a writer, you will become a better writing teacher. p. 47
We have to see ourselves as writers if we are to teach writing well. p. 35
Staffs that are more collegial and collaborative have higher achievement in writing and reading. p. 36
Snapshot writing - short, personal pieces of writing. p. 38
Regie Routman's Writing Practices list on p. 41
Toni Morrison says: "I write out of ignorance . . . It's what I don't know that stimulates me. I merely know enough to get started." p. 42
Good writers are good readers. p. 43
Classroom writing ideas: p. 43
Top-ten list of favorite books
Book reviews
Book blurbs
Stories
Letters
Author profiles
Keep a notebook - quotations of memorable writing
One of the most powerful ways for students to grow as writers is to watch you write - to observe you plan, think, compose, revise, and edit right in from of them, pretty much off the cuff. p. 45
When you begin to trust what you do as a writer, you will become a better writing teacher. p. 47
Friday, February 29, 2008
Chapter 2 - Start With Celebration
Highlights from Chapter 2:
We are much more apt to do optimum work when we know our best efforts will be supported and celebrated and when we believe we can succeed. p. 18
Writing success has the power to transform kids, literally. p. 19
Students see writing as performing for the teacher, generating something to fill up the nearest bulletin board, or preparing for high-stakes tests. p. 19
It takes so little to turn a student into a writer: a human connection, teacher modeling, supportive conversations before writing begins, an appreciation of the student's efforts, sincere affirmation, real writing for a purpose, and a reader that the student values. p. 21
Let students know stories happen everywhere - at home, in school, on the playground, on the bus, in the imagination. p. 23
Acting out stories in dramatizations and Readers Theatre, at all grade levels, improves children's reading and writing and positively impacts their fluency, their ability to sequence and shape ideas, their understanding of how stories work, and their awareness of audience, to name just a few benefits. p. 23
Do your best to ensure that you students who need to hear stories and rich language are not leaving the room for special classes when you are reading aloud and introductin shared language experiences. p. 24
Our students will not easily share their life experiences in a meaningful, personal way until we share our. p. 25
Write in front of your students. p. 26
Expand Personal Writing: journals, brief memoirs from one period of their lives, photo-autobiographies, a moment from the timeline of their lives, favorite memories, snapshots, hero moments, friendly letters, cards, and poems. p. 27
It's common sense that whenever we are able to engage student's interests, we will have higher-quality writing. p. 29
Recognize the writer for what he is attempting and help move them forward. p. 29
Leonard Cohen has written:
Ring the bells that still can ring.
Forget your perfect offering.
There is a crack in everything.
That's how the light gets in. p. 30
One of the best things about poetry is that kids get to play around with language and fun with it. Such playfulness help develop children's interest in language, which carries over to other forms of writing. p. 31
We are much more apt to do optimum work when we know our best efforts will be supported and celebrated and when we believe we can succeed. p. 18
Writing success has the power to transform kids, literally. p. 19
Students see writing as performing for the teacher, generating something to fill up the nearest bulletin board, or preparing for high-stakes tests. p. 19
It takes so little to turn a student into a writer: a human connection, teacher modeling, supportive conversations before writing begins, an appreciation of the student's efforts, sincere affirmation, real writing for a purpose, and a reader that the student values. p. 21
Let students know stories happen everywhere - at home, in school, on the playground, on the bus, in the imagination. p. 23
Acting out stories in dramatizations and Readers Theatre, at all grade levels, improves children's reading and writing and positively impacts their fluency, their ability to sequence and shape ideas, their understanding of how stories work, and their awareness of audience, to name just a few benefits. p. 23
Do your best to ensure that you students who need to hear stories and rich language are not leaving the room for special classes when you are reading aloud and introductin shared language experiences. p. 24
Our students will not easily share their life experiences in a meaningful, personal way until we share our. p. 25
Write in front of your students. p. 26
Expand Personal Writing: journals, brief memoirs from one period of their lives, photo-autobiographies, a moment from the timeline of their lives, favorite memories, snapshots, hero moments, friendly letters, cards, and poems. p. 27
It's common sense that whenever we are able to engage student's interests, we will have higher-quality writing. p. 29
Recognize the writer for what he is attempting and help move them forward. p. 29
Leonard Cohen has written:
Ring the bells that still can ring.
Forget your perfect offering.
There is a crack in everything.
That's how the light gets in. p. 30
One of the best things about poetry is that kids get to play around with language and fun with it. Such playfulness help develop children's interest in language, which carries over to other forms of writing. p. 31
Chapter 1 - Simplify the Teaching of Writing
We are over focused on procedures, processes, genres, and testing and under focused on thinking, communicating, inquiring, and exploring language. p. 5
Aim to raise expectations while streamlining the reaching of writing to essential elements and manageable procedures. p. 5
We must simplify the process while raising our expectations and achieving better results. p. 7
By contrast, in the districts where students are excellent writers who write for real purposes and audiences - and publish their writing - no particular program is being taught. p. 7
Effective teachers are always examining, evaluating, and refining what they believe as a first step to improving and refining instructional practices. p. 8
Use the optimal learning model on page 11.
Ask myself: How can I teach writing so that all students become effective and joyful writers and communicators? p. 12
We are far more productive as teachers of writing when we embed that teaching in writing for purposes and audiences thatstudents understand and value. p. 15
Aim to raise expectations while streamlining the reaching of writing to essential elements and manageable procedures. p. 5
We must simplify the process while raising our expectations and achieving better results. p. 7
By contrast, in the districts where students are excellent writers who write for real purposes and audiences - and publish their writing - no particular program is being taught. p. 7
Effective teachers are always examining, evaluating, and refining what they believe as a first step to improving and refining instructional practices. p. 8
Use the optimal learning model on page 11.
Ask myself: How can I teach writing so that all students become effective and joyful writers and communicators? p. 12
We are far more productive as teachers of writing when we embed that teaching in writing for purposes and audiences thatstudents understand and value. p. 15
Monday, February 25, 2008
It Takes So Little To Get Great Results
After reading the first five chapters of this book, I have discovered that I have been using many of the same techniques in my classroom that is shared in the book. I do know that many are helpful to my students because I am getting results quickly. Some of my shy writers are now emerging as beautiful communicators of the written language.
I know as a learner that I do not need to be so organized ahead of time (Type A personality) and that to be authentic for the students sake, I shouldn't be too organized. I liked the sticky note idea of putting down a few ideas to get started and then demonstrate the lesson from there.
My students are currently working on their district writing assessment. I have seen growing confidence in the sharing of their writing, pride in their work, many more volunteers to share in class, and even my quiet ones that wanted to "fly under the radar" are wanting to share their work.
I know as a learner that I do not need to be so organized ahead of time (Type A personality) and that to be authentic for the students sake, I shouldn't be too organized. I liked the sticky note idea of putting down a few ideas to get started and then demonstrate the lesson from there.
My students are currently working on their district writing assessment. I have seen growing confidence in the sharing of their writing, pride in their work, many more volunteers to share in class, and even my quiet ones that wanted to "fly under the radar" are wanting to share their work.
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
My First Attempt at Blogging
This is my very first time blogging. I am so excited to share with you!
Glenn Wiebe is doing a great job of showing us how to set up blogs. :-)
Glenn Wiebe is doing a great job of showing us how to set up blogs. :-)
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