The very first thing I think Regie Routman would say is that we don't have enough writing instruction going on in our classroom. We have not had a writing workshop every day of school. Sometimes we just don't get to it, so in her words, she would say that we don't value writing instruction enough (page 176). Every time we do have a writing session, though, we do model it on the Smart Board while the students sit on the rug, so they are paying attention. We model how we sound out the words and write them down. A rule for when the students are writing is that if they make a mistake or want to erase something, they are not allowed to. The have to just cross it out and go down to the next line. So, while we are modeling our writing, we make sure to do that as well, to remind them. Part of me thinks that Regie would think that is good, but part of me thinks that she might think that we are focusing too much on their revising of the piece while they are writing.
We definitely stress to the students to just do their best and not to worry about whether they are spelling things correct or not. And we will not tell students how to spell words. I have noticed myself and my MT saying, "add more detail", "tell me more" etc. But, after reading these chapter I now know that we should be saying things more like, "tell me what happened next". Also, before giving suggestions we need to give the students a compliment and make sure they understand that they are doing well so that they don't get discouraged.
Another thing that I think Regie Routman would discuss with us would be topic. I feel that we are sort of in the middle of the road with regards to choosing topics. We give the students a very broad topic and they can write about anything within that topic that they would like. Examples of topics we have chosen are, "My favorite thing is...", "I like to...", "I can...". Now that I am looking at these three topics, I realize that they are very similar. The students might consider writing about the same thing each time (which one child did want to do). But we have another rule...students are not allowed to write about something they have already written about. I understand why my teacher does this, but from the readings, I now believe that we are severely hindering our students ability to just write. The one child who wanted to write about her cat multiple times got very frustrated and said she didn't want to write about anything if she couldn't write about her cat. In this way, I do feel that we are not producing good, independent writers. What do you think?
Overall, I do feel that my MT does more in regards to writing instruction that many other teachers I have seen, but there is definitely room for improvement and I would be interested to see if the students would be able to conference among themselves or as a whole class instead of having continual informal conferences after every writing with us.
Would Regie think that there is enough writing instruction going on in your classrooms? Why or why not? After reading the chapters and my blogs, do you have any suggestions about adapting our writing instruction at least a little bit? How might you adapt yours?
I don’t think Regie would think that there is enough writing instruction going on in my classroom because the students write, as of right now, maybe once each week. My school decided to use the “Reading Street” program for grades K-2 so there is little time for extra writing to be included. The program is scripted and there are many parts that the principal deemed “non-negotiable” as far as teaching them goes. There is one writing unit that goes in depth into the writing process, but writing does not seem to be a large priority for these grades. This may because the students are so young and have such a wide variety of skill levels. One writing assignment that my student did try to complete for the Reading Street program was writing a personal narrative in which they were supposed to write a paragraph about what they did this past summer. However, most of the students numbered sentences and turned in the papers. I looked ahead to the actual Writing Unit and it has specific lessons and mini-lessons to teach the basics of the writing process.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading both the blog and the chapters, I think we should adjust or adapt writing instruction in the classrooms. One way I read about is called a “free write” in which the teacher gives the students a familiar topic, such as bubble gum, and the students write as much as they can for five to ten minutes. I think this is a good way to help students brainstorm and get ideas down on paper and show them that writing does not have to be difficult. It also shows them how to write about something that they know a great deal about to be able to write more. Another adaptation I would make would be to try and have one writing lesson or even a mini lesson in each day of Reading Street. This way the students writing skills could build on each other over time and hopefully improve.
I think Regie Routman would say that the students are doing a decent amount of writing in the classroom. Elliott also has the "reading street" program but my MT kind of does her own thing when it comes to the writing section. I think that with this "reading street" program we do need to adjust or adapt our writing to fit our classroom needs. My MT has created this writing workshop idea in the class so I think my MT has been successful in adjusting and adapting to her new classroom needs.
ReplyDeleteEvery day the kids have the work on their writing. We usually read a book to them in the morning and then we have them write. (Usually because a interesting topic or idea was brought up in the story.) The kids are given the lined paper but with a story box on the top of the paper. The idea behind this in the students have to create a quick sketch to help them think about what they are going to write about. Then they can start writing after they have finished their sketch. While the students are writing, like Toni's class, my MT just tells the kids to "stretch out the words" when students ask how to spell a word. Then when their story in done they can go back and finalize their picture. The kids are also given 3 pieces of paper (one for the beginning, middle, and end.) Overall, I really like this writing workshop that goes on in my class an the kids really like it too.