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Write well updates
- 1. Jennifer Evans Assistant Director ELA St.Clair County RESA Evans.jennifer@sccresa.org http://www.protopage.com/evans.jennifer#Untitled/Home
- 2. 70% of all students in grades 4-12 are low achieving writers. 9th grade students in the lowest 25% of their class are twenty times more likely to drop out. 50% of high school graduates are not ready for college level composition courses.
- 3. Kelly Gallagher, Author and Teacher http://www.kellygallagher.org/index.html “Assigning writing is easy. Teaching writing is really hard.” “We need to teach our students to read like writers and write like readers.”
- 4. The most effective strategy to improve writing… Increase the amount and quality of writing.
- 5. It is a carefully sequenced, coherent K-12 writing curriculum that follows a Writing Workshop format designed to: span the grade levels meet the needs of all students increase writing proficiency at every grade use effective, researched based instructional practices
- 6. Increase writing proficiency for life endeavors Increase test scores Coordinate and refine writing instruction Create a unified writing program K-12 Increase use of research-based instructional practices during writing instruction
- 7. Only teach what writers do. Teach the writer not the piece of writing. Writing is telling what you see and what you think about it. It is both external and internal. We learn about writing through describing writing not by having someone prescribing writing.
- 9. Mini-Lesson (10-15 min.) Independent Practice with Conferring (30-40 min.) Sharing ( 5-10 min.)
- 10. How Often • Everyday • Everyday • Everyday How Long • KDG – 45 minutes • 1st Grade – 45 minutes extending to 60 minutes • 2nd – 12th Grades – 60 minutes When • Beginning the first day of school • A single block of time at the same time everyday Management • Same format used everyday • Same rules and procedures used everyday • Keep it simple Why • Consistency • Consistency • Consistency
- 11. Grades 1-5 K staple small unit booklets for their notebook Specific directions for grades 2-5 in WriteWell Write everyday
- 13. Three… ◦ Times you laughed really hard ◦ Times you were in physical pain ◦ Memorable Moments ◦ Topics that interest you Circle the one that you could tell the best story about Tell your story to a partner Write your story in the writing section of your notebook Share
- 14. Play the contrast game. Write five minutes on one side and then five minutes on the other side: I want… I don’t want… I remember… I don’t remember… I do… I don’t… Last summer… This summer… Last Saturday… Next Saturday… A scary place… A safe place…
- 16. 6 + 1 Writing Traits One Day in the Life of Bubble Gum The Secret Knowledge of Grown-ups Nothing Ever Happens on 90th Street
- 19. Ba-Da-Bing – Gretchen Bernabei Ba Da Bing Example: As I stepped onto the red carpet of the darkened room, I noticed a wall lined with lit candles and an old woman hunched in the far corner at a round table and I thought maybe now I’ll get some answers.
- 20. 30-40 Minutes Students work independently while the teacher meets with small groups or individual students •Conferring Talking Cards Possible mid-workshop teaching point •Occur naturally when the teacher notices something that needs clarification or further explanation to help students as they write
- 21. Research •Ask “What are you working on as a writer?” •Have the student read aloud his/her work Decide • Synthesize what is learned • Decide what to compliment: “What has this child done that I can name and make a fuss over?” • Decide what to teach: “What does this child use but misuse? or “What is nearly there in his or her writing that I can help them with right now?” Compliment •Point out writing strategies the child used well •Say “I like how you…”(give specific example) Teach •Teach only one thing •Teach to the compliment •Teach to today’s teaching point •Negotiate a strategy When choosing your teaching point think: Of all the options I have, what can I teach that will make the biggest difference for this writer?
- 22. What to look for when deciding what to confer about… • Structure – Focused – Beginning, middle, end – Moves across time or space • Meaningful – Writer cares about it – Reader learns from it • Narrative strategies • Conventions that enhance – All caps – WOW – Bold – Wow – End marks – Wow!!! – Italics – Wow! – Stacked Words - One! Two! Three!
- 23. Commentary With One-on-One Reading/Writing Conference http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/top- teaching/2011/04/reading-and-writing- workshop-virtual-tours-each-component
- 24. 5-10 Minutes Notice Question Personal Connection Compliment and Suggestion (glow & grow) Partner Small Group Whole Group
- 25. ◦ Teaching Kids About Revising (Writing Workshop Lesson) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBKqgOv mJ8w
- 26. Aligned to CCSS Weekly concepts taught approximately five minutes a day Follows Jeff Anderson’s format PowerPoint to match each weekly lesson
- 28. Moved below the line for those who would still like to use it Test Prep Units of Study embedded in units (starting in grade 2) Generate many seed ideas in writer’s notebook “What Should I Write About?” section Target! Aim! Score! (beginning, middle, end) CD with Student Writing & MEAP Released Anchor Papers: http://tinyurl.com/cvraun
- 29. Same Assessment to be given at the beginning of the year and the end of the year Use to show growth See Sample
- 31. Immerse in the genre Identify distinguishing features of the genre Choose an idea to write about Choose a mentor text to help you write Plan your draft Draft long and fast Revise Edit Publish/Celebrate
- 32. http://sccresa.org/toolsforschools/curri culumtools/writewell/introductiontowrit ewell/writewell3rdgrade/ ◦ Notebooking ◦ Explanatory Unit ◦ Grammar Units ◦ Assessments
- 33. Video Library ◦ All grade levels ◦ Various lessons Kindergarten 2nd grade 10th grade
- 36. WriteWell© ◦ http://www.sccresa.org/toolsforschools/curriculum tools/writewell/ ◦ Select logo ◦ Enter school log in and password: Temporary Log in: Temporary Password:
- 37. www.sccresa.org
- 38. Skim & Scan the Units Review the Table of Contents Log In and Select Your Grade
Editor's Notes
- Research presented April 12, 2011 – Kelly Gallagher workshop session on writing @ Macomb ISD
- Assign and assess writing does not teach students the knowledge and skills needed to become better writersWriteWell is designed around the format of Writer’s Workshop where teachers teach students minilessons as well as teach them to read like writers and write like readers.
- Model/coach students to elevate their writingRead lots of mentor texts in the genre – have them look at the text with the thought “What did the writer do that I could do?”Turn & talk about the “how” Show them by writing in front of students – write in front of the class and think aloud during the process, modeling about 5-7 minutes at a timeWriteWell is about quality vs. quantity
- Discuss alignment process this summer to match CCSSIt is an online product that is revised and improved as needed throughout the year and more extensively each summer, relying on classroom teachers to make the revisions
- Structure similar to 90-minute reading block – whole group, small group, independent work
- “seed ideas” 20 best moments20 worst momentsKelly Gallaghar’s suggestion for persuasive writing ideas: matrix chart – school issues, local issues, state issues, national issues, global issues (take one class period and give students stacks of newspapers and magazines --- have them generate a list of ideas on the matrix
- “seed ideas” 20 best moments20 worst momentsKelly Gallaghar’s suggestion for persuasive writing ideas: matrix chart – school issues, local issues, state issues, national issues, global issues (take one class period and give students stacks of newspapers and magazines --- have them generate a list of ideas on the matrix
- Draw an outline of a body in notebook or use the template provided and glue it into the notebooks.
- Example of a “to” or “I go”Draw the Ba-Da-Bing graphics in the CRAFT section of the writer’s notebookShare my exampleAsk: What do you notice?
- Share “Conferring Talking Points” handout
- Show an example of a finished PowerPoint after this slide
- Provide Introduction to Language Minilessons handout with this slide
- Provide handout of pre/post assessments for each grade level with this slide.
- Note – WriteWell does not dictate topic, but does dictate genre – students are more willing to write when they have choice – they can write what they know about, care about, and can tell stories aboutUnits of study related to the genre of test prep – is its own genre with rules
- Participants spend some time online exploring the units for their grade level