Helping Students Own Their Reading And Writing Through Modeling

The teachers I highlight on my blog provide their students with access to a variety of texts, their histories, and new learning. Today, I celebrate Pat, a primary classroom teacher from Ohio. Each month, she invites 5 families to do a quick write with their children in an effort to increase writing as a model at home. The children choose the topics and facilitate the writing in the provided jounrals. Pat understands that children are influenced by what they see around them.

Something to think about

What opportunities do you create that encourage parents and students to read and write together?

1. Reading survey: encourage families to write the title and brief description of the kinds of reading and writing that occur in their home: newspaper articles, mail, instructions, etc.

2. Ask parents to write the title and brief description of the kinds of reading and writing that occur at their workplace on any given day: memos, blueprints, signs, instructions. Create a bulletin board of this kind of environmental print.

3.When sending home books or articles, include a bookmark that says: Read to me; Read with me; or Listen to me read; depending on which situation is most appropriate.

4. Send home an article about a science topic or current events. Ask families to read it together and send a joint statement back to the classroom to be shared.

5. Create moon journals. (see the recommended reading list)

Recommended reading

• Moon Journals: Writing, Art, and Inquiry Through Focused Nature Study by Joni Chancer and Gina Rester-Zodrow (Heinemann)
• Other People's Words The Cycle of Low Literacy by Victoria Purcell-Gates (Heinemann)
• Classroom Interviews A World of Learning by Paula Rogovin (Heinemann)

Helping students own their reading and writing through silence

This clip brings us into the outdoor classroom referred to in my previous blog. Scroll down to read how Suzanne, a primary teacher has helped her students own their reading and writing through silence.

Helping students own their reading and writing through silence

In this blog entry, I thank primary teacher, Suzanne Pohl for her insight. I lean heavily on her writing , a piece titled "Silent Space Between." (assignment written for UNH graduate course- italicized words are quotes from Suzanne's paper)
    Our students are bombarded with prompts and worksheets that take them away from their own thinking and choice. Suzanne acknowledges that the "influence of technology has given us well-wired students who often experience a sense of individual disconnect from the real world." She asks that we provide silent space between the structures of the teaching day for slowing down. She provides these silent times by taking her students to the outdoor classroom she created behind her school.

My video clip today brings us there on a crisp New England fall day.  (Technical difficulties are preventing the video from uploading... I will keep trying!)

Suzanne believes silence is a gift; one worth bestowing upon our students and ourselves. Silence is essential for discovering our own sense of being.

(from Silent Space Between)

    As architects and designers of time, we can create moments of silence helping to establish a balance between our inner and outer worlds.  By providing silence and stillness, we foster and draw upon the imagination and creativity of our students. We need to allow unstructured time for imagining, questioning, and reflecting.

....the first fifteen minutes outdoors are spent in unstructured time and silence. Options include finding a special place for alone time; the setting becomes a literary studio with students moving about choosing to read, write in a journal, or sketch.

This setting gives students a sense of wonder and fosters their choices for selections of further reading and writing pieces as an extension of this time spent in nature. Suzanne agrees with what she read in  Sense of Wonder (McDonough and Heard, Stenhouse, 2009) that researching and writing about the natural world was easier for her students to begin with and often made for more creative non-fiction.

    Her students brainstorm items found in the natural world that they want to sketch and then write about during their crafting sessions. She prepared blank journals with an area of focus written on the front: snakes, rocks, water, sunlight, birds, clouds, trees, smells, colors, movenment, and even Fibonacci numbers! Students choose their focus journal and enjoy reading entries written by their classmates before adding their own questions, insights, and connections.

Something to think about:

• How do provide silence for your students?
• Is there a natural setting in your area where students can find a special place to foster their sense of wonder about the natural world?
• Is there a quiet space in your classroom where students can sit and wonder - perhaps a seat by the window with a special journal for recording observations of the sky, birds, trees, etc.?

Other literary activities for a natural setting:

Suzanne's second graders took a preposition walk along the path through the outdoor classroom. She had prepared "tree cookies," slices (approx. 2-3 inches thick) of birch branches upon which the students had written a preposition with a permanent marker. The students creatively placed the cookies under the bush, along the path, between the trees, next to bridge...

Here are examples of the preposition poems the students wrote that demonstrate an integration of math, earth science, art, physical activity, and a bit of whimsy!

Behind

One behind the other,

Standing in a row

All in a position,

One, two, three.

First is Sam,

Jack comes second,

Third is me!

Beneath

Low beneath the trees

Wet snow upon my back

Never sunny in this spot,

In February.

Trees making shade

All around me.

Under

Under the bridge

Holding on

So I won't fall in!

Under the snow,

Water and ice.

Creatures hibernating,

Waiting for spring.

   

    The focus journals change with the seasons. These journals are similar in concept to interest journals. They belong to the class and not to individual students. The journals are stored in a basket and students choose the one they want to write in that day. Student entries create an anthology of writing and sketching over time, an opportunity for students to share their thinking.

    Students have written guides to accompany their sketches, and researched various indidenous plants and vegetation. Poems and stories are brought along to the woods to be read aloud and performed.

         

                  They return each time to the "canvas provided by nature; a place of silence."

"We must learn to reawaken and keep ourselves awake, not by mechanical aids, but by an infinite expectation of the dawn."  Thoreau

Follow up reading suggestions:

To Understand by Ellin Oliver Keene (Heinemann)

Keeping a Nature Journal by Clare Walker Leslie (Storey Publishing)

Sense of Wonder by Jennifer McDonough and Georgia Heard (Stenhouse)

Moon Journals by Joni Chancer (Heinemann)

NCTE Beliefs about the Teaching of Writing

NCTE Beliefs about the Teaching of Writing

Writing Assessment: A Position Statement

Writing Assessment: A Position Statement

Helping Students to "own" their reading and writing

    Jackie helps her third graders look closely at text to make decisions as a reader and writer.  When her students began to "read like writers", she recognized the many opportunities this provided for teaching. It continues to expand her literacy curriculum.
    These young writers develop a working relationship with favorite authors, giving them a voice in the process. The writing lessons stem from their reading, and help them to see the importance of their decisions. Her conferences now include a discussion about the intentions and decisions they must make as a writer.
Something to Think About:
What decisions do your students make in their writing?
Who are their favorite authors?
Be sure to include non-fiction authors as well as fiction!
Recommended Reading:
How's It Going by Carl Anderson
Wondrous Words by Katie Ray
From the Ground Up:Improving student writing through teacher collaboration by Wrobleski,Cushing,Hemphill, Johnson, Marcotte, Lurvey,Prewitt, McMullen in New England Reading Journal, Vol.47, Number1, 2011

  

Spend time with favorite authors! Your students' favorite authors can teach alongside you! When students read like writers, they begin to think and articulate as a writer. Jackie's students learn the craft of writing based on their needs and interests. Not only are the students learning, but Jackie loves the excitement of new teaching ideas that come from her students.

Something to Think About:

 Fold a piece of paper into four columns. In the first column, make a list of your students' names. In the next column, list what they are writing about; either the topic or the genre. In the third column, write what they need to enhance their piece. In the fourth column, list the mentor text that will help them meet that need?

Recommended Reading:

Mentor Author, Mentor Texts by Ralph Fletcher

Jackie's students recommend books by Judith Brinkloe, Jim Arnosky, Ralph Fletcher, Cynthia Rylant, and Jane Yolen!

In the third interview with Jackie, she reviews the chart her students created after reading Fireflies by Judith Brinkloe (1986). She helps her students develop the language of writers. After reading the book through, they reread it to examine it for the techniques they might use in their own writing.

Something To Think About:

At the beginning of writing workshop, remind students of the new techniques they might try in their own writing. When you notice a student has tried a new craft,  ask them to write their name on the board. When it is time to share, they will be asked to model their intention. It is a great way to motivate students to try something new, acknowledge the attempt, and  teach it to their friends.

Recommended Reading:

What You Know by Heart: How to develop curriculum for your writing workshop by Katie Wood Ray

Helping students to "own" their reading and writing

 

     Time, choice, feedback, and a community of learners are the basic premises of a successful writers workshop. Students choose what to write about based on their interests and the purpose for their writing. They then need time to work and re-work their piece. Time to talk and share their ideas and words before, during, and after the process provides the feedback writers need. Together this creates a community where each writer is a respected member of the group.

     In the first segment of my interview with Kris, she speaks to the importance of creating a community at the beginning of the year. They use their interests as a springboard for their writing, play with words, and reflect on who they are as writers.

Something to think about:

    Time - there never is enough time!

When you feel the pressure of time, what do you let go? Too often, it is the time to talk and to share, yet we all know our students need it.

What are some ways you can provide time for your students to talk and share?

Recommended reading:

Writing Essentials by Regie Routman

Fresh Look at Writing by Donald Graves

Writing Workshop by Ralph Fletcher

Helping students "own" their writing

I interviewed teachers and asked them how they help their students "own" their writing. I will be adding these interviews to my blog. Listen to Kiley discuss how she explored mentor texts with her 4th grade students. She admits to being nervous about letting go but realized allowing her students to make decisions and take control of  their writing, opened up opportunities for quality teaching. Following the interview are points for you to ponder as well as some suggested reading. I welcome your comments and questions! Upcoming topics: silence in our students' day, conferring, observing student writers...Let me know which topics are of interest to you! Email me if you would like to submit an interview.