maybe chatter boxes can write too

First of all, I just got back from a wonderful vacation to Beaver Creek, Colorado.  The skiing was AMAZING! We had such a blast!

Now onto writing workshop...  I stand persuaded (not corrected of course!) by Katie Wood Ray.  My last post admonished her ideas about allowing and even encouraging talking among students during the work time.  I didn't understand how this could possibly work.  Ray writes, "I believe it is best if we do not aim for a 'no-talking' workshop.  FIrst of all, we will spend all out time trying to enforce it (GREAT POINT KATIE), and second of all, I don't really think it makes for a healthy working environment."  After reading, I realized that although I find any type of noise terribly distracting while writing, doesn't mean all students should be held to such a silent standard.  

In chapter 7, Ray gets specific about how a predictable distraction such as talking can be both managed and productive.  Woods first suggestion to manage and effectively facilitate talking during writing workshop is a "strong teaching presence."  Teachers need to strictly insist that students stay "on-task" during writing workshop...although being "on-task" can look different from student to student. These on-task behaviors may be freewriting, doing writing exercises, reading to support writing, drafting a project, having a peer conference, or even staring off into space. This "strong presence" means making students understand that choosing NOT to work is NOT an option.  She also points out that the teacher must use discretion when deciding if a student is on or off-task.  Writing workshop should not be an "oppressive place," but rather a place where a healthy working environment is created by human interaction. 

Her next suggestion to productively manage talking is to use all of the classroom for the working portion of the workshop.  In a crowded environment students might talk because there's 2-3 people sitting basically on top of them - it's natural to talk to someone right next to you! So, spread students around the classroom.  If we use the space available in the room, the space itself will swallow up some of sounds of people working (whether it be clicking a pen, turning the pages of a book, or conferencing).  

And for students like me, Ray points out that there can be designated quiet zones for those who prefer a more serene working environment.

So, Katie Wood Ray, chapter 7 served it's purpose and showed me the specifics in how this "talking while writing" deal really works.  Thanks for saving me from turning into this:

  

"The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing." - Walt Disney

First of all, I love to talk.  It's hard for me not to start talking at this very second as my husband and I attempt to get some work done on the couch to polish off this Valentine's evening.  The problem is, if I were to start talking now, neither of us would be able to do our work. Namely, this post wouldn't get written before 10:00 (hopefully!) and I'd be tired all day tomorrow.  In our class, LLED4120, we all softly chatter for the first couple minutes of writing.  Then what happens?? The room goes COMPLETELY silent. Why? Because we actually want to get our writing done.  I imagine many kids work the best in the same way - without 20 jaws flapping within a 10 foot radius of them. Sure...talking is great. I can hardly stop! But, can you really count on kids to only talk about their writing, and are many people under the age of 25, or many people at all, very effective workers if they're busy talking?? 

Oops, sorry! Just got distracted...started talking about puppies. Really. See what I mean??

My current distraction...doesn't he just look so fun to talk to :)

  I understand certain situations where talking could result in valuable sharing within a writing workshop.  Maybe students could research together or test out ideas, but only for the first five minutes or so.  Because the teacher is busy conferencing with 7-8 students throughout the supposed 45 min writing block, the teacher has no time to monitor the content of every conversation.  I know if I had been given free choice to talk in elementary school, I would have, and I wouldn't have stopped.  Why not put on some peaceful music and have some quiet writing time so students can focus on their, you guessed it, WRITING! I would be willing to negotiate with the rare elementary aged child who can both carry on a meaningful conversation and produce magnificent writing, but until I find this extraordinary child, I'll stick with my belief that the best writing occurs in a quiet classroom.  No, this doesn't mean if a child talks I'm going to throw my clipboard and flip out.  I have no problem with soft chatter accompanied by work...I'm just not so sure this tandem exists. 

10:00 on the dot.

In class...

Today we started class by making a Pic Lic at www.piclics.com about what a focus lesson is.  Great website. Check it out!

Next, we read a little bit from Word After Word After Word by Patricia MacLachlan. Haven't been able to get into it yet, but I'm hoping I will as we continue to read it a little bit every week.

We also watched a couple videos of teachers doing a focus lesson. One was on leads.  Our class further investigated different leads in informational children's literature.  Here's what we came up with...

   

Some interesting ways to write a lead:

-start off with exciting action

-beautiful imagery and illustrations

-telling us about the main character

-asking the  reader a question (perhaps a provocative question)

-broad picture of setting

-historical context

-font choices

-getting us interested in family

-challenging our beliefs

-making the reader think - thought provoking

-quote

-title or chapter title

Good Morning Writers!

Before I start discussing the chapters for this week I want to first express how thrilled I am at how phenomenal my school placement is.  I'm in a first grade class at J.J. Harris Elementary and I couldn't be happier about what I'm learning and will learn in this classroom.  Writing is a huge part of everyday.  The students arrive at school and immediately get out their personal journals and start writing.  One child in particular ALWAYS writes about mohawks.  "Mohawks are big.  Mohawks are little.  Mohawks are sweet.  Mohawks are cool" etc. "Mohawks" even made the word wall! 

The teacher announces, "Good morning writers!" She calls them to the carpet and writer's workshop begins...focus lesson, 30 minutes of writing, and finally sharing, following our textbook procedures to a tee.  They write in their journals whenever there's down time throughout the day and also have home journals where they write to their parents about what they're learning once a week and parents respond.  I'm sure I'll have more stories from the classroom, and I'm going to start taking pictures to share as well.

Now, The Writing Workshop...I loved how Ray suggested teachers evaluate their workshop environment: "If I locked my students in my classroom and stood outside the door, what could they learn about writing without me even being in there?" What resources do you have available to students and how do they interact with their environment while writing?  The students in my class aren't necessarily researching yet, although a few refer to children's books in the class. However, one thing I love is that they have "good fit spots" in the classroom where they go to write.

  

Here are some other environment enhancing tips that I really enjoyed:

*student-designed bulletin board for sharing writing

*copies of writing with writing advice attached from past students or for future students

*quotations from writers throughout the room

The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug.  ~Mark Twain

I also liked the idea that writers are engaged in "prewriting" all the time - watching listening, studying, and gathering information from the world.  This is a writer's homework, or as Ray coined it, worldwork.  If one aims to be a great writer, he has to live a "writerly life," constantly searching for material to use in writing.  Students keep this worldwork in their writer's notebook, which should be consistently evaluated by the teacher.

My biggest concern as a future teacher of writing workshop is proving to students that I, as the teacher, am a writer. At this point, I don't see myself as one...it's not a habit of mine to write on any consistent basis.  However, it seems like a very important facet of creating a successful writing workshop.

For a teacher to love teaching writing, she must love the learning journey.   

    

In Class...

Today in class we were asked to make a concrete poem about what a writing workshop is and is not. Here's what we came up with!

The pencil is what writing workshop IS NOT and the rest is what it SHOULD BE

This a great book of concrete poems:

We also started to work on our own narratives.  What is a narrative, you might ask?

What does a narrative entail?

• Characters
• Dialogue
• Plot/storyline
• Descriptive language
• Conflict (problem) and resolution
•  Can be conversational or formal
• Chronology/order
• Attention to emotion
• Setting

Maybe I'll let you in on the topic of my narrative later.  For now, it's still in the works!

A good narrative to read to your class or use for a focus lesson:

Writing as Curriculum

"Writing is something you do, not something you know."

Is it possible to call yourself a writer if it's not your profession? A reader, yes, but a writer? Is writer a term reserved only for those who pursue it as a profession, or anybody who spends time and enjoys writing?  Katie Wood Ray in Writing Workshop asserts that seeing the label writer only narrowly referring to professionals limits those (like me) who hope to become future teachers of writing.  You learn dance from dancers, piano from pianists, and cooking from cooks, so shouldn't writing be learned from those who are considered writers? They would be the most qualified, it seems. It is first important for teachers to develop an identity as writers themselves before asking and expecting students to assume the same identity in the classroom.

"The writing workshop is a lot like lunchtime."

This quotation from chapter five of The Writing Workshop cleared up many problems I've seen occur in other writing workshop-like settings I've observed in several classrooms.  Some students "finish" their writing piece in ten minutes while other students never turn in any completed work.  Students finish up at all different times within the assigned period and ask, "What do I do now?" repeatedly.  This, of course, disrupts students who are still trying to work.  By viewing writing workshop as bounded by time rather then a set of directed activities, much like lunch, students know the options for how to fill this time, and the same method is followed day after day.  Lunch cannot be cut out of the schedule; it happens everyday at the same time for the same length of time; students know where they sit, how to get their food, how to eat their food, how to spend their time after eating, and how to dispose of their plate. Daily, non-optional writing experience where students are familiar with the rules and rituals allows students lots of experience actually writing.  The desired outcome of everyday's writing period is the same.  

When students write, they become writers and grow as writers.  

It's as simple as that.