Chapter 10 January 30, 2008

Promoting Motivation for Writing

After reading chapter 10 and the article, I feel deflated as a teacher.  I hear a lot about what teachers do not do.  I do try to motivate my students and give them entertaining things to write about.  It is my responsibility to help prepare for a test that I do not agree with nor like the pressure the test puts on the children or on teachers.  Even though I do not like it, I still have to work to get the children ready to take the test.  I also have to do what the state and my county tells me to teach.   Teachers are put in a very stick position especially when you look at writing examples such as these.  I do think that it would be great to just let the children come in and write what they choose to write daily and in response to things in the classroom.  Two mornings a week I give my students time to write in a journal.  They may also choose to write more if they so desire.  Most of the time I do give them an idea or topic to write about.  This just works better for me and I get more writing out of my children.   I have read several things on the Internet recently about journals and many teachers say that if they do not give prompts, the students do not write.  It is hard to prepare for a prompt test with out writing from a prompt and it gives the children ideas that they can build upon.  It would be a great injustice to give the children the third and fourth grade writing test after only having the students write what they want to write about. 

 I struggle with writing not only as a teacher, but also personally.  I try very hard not to show my struggles and frustration in my classroom.  I model for my students and think aloud as I write.  I also must have a preconceived idea of what I am going to say.  I always have a prewritten story before I model a story for my class.  I may not even use a word on the paper but I must have the support of a story already written.  This is one way I have developed to help with my confidence in writing.  I think that as my students see me write and then write themselves they get excited about telling me a story.  We collaborate as a class together and plan our stories.  I have a story I am writing on the board and the students change it to fit their idea or if they need to they can use mine.  I think that if I did collaboration as small groups I would just have arguments.  I also have the students respond to things that we do in class, but usually I do not find that this is a great writing exercise.  I can find out what they know but the writing part is really lacking.

I feel very confused about writing now.  I want to do what is best for my students and want them to love writing and all aspects of learning.  I want to do what is best for them and also want to do what my superiors expect.  I do not know how to get it all in.  I am searching to find a balance.

Best Practices in Writing Instruction January 17, 2008

Writing is an integral part of the classroom curriculum.  To be effective in writing instruction, a teacher must make it consistent, important, and exciting to the students.  Teachers must make sure that the students have the modeling they need to make their writing successful.  The teacher must spend a great deal of time modeling for the students what they need to do in their writing before the student understands and can produce what is expected of them.  After modeling for the whole class, then the teacher must individualize  instruction to students that need extra help.  After the child has completed the “sloppy copy” of the work, then the teacher must make sure that the student is pushed further in his ability so that the student and the teacher are proud of the finished product.  The teacher must make the expectations clear to the students before the writing process begins.  The best way to do this is have a rubric which the teacher will grade each writing assignment  by.   Each student is graded on their improvement on the rubric and not as a whole group.  This way each child can feel accomplished.  The finished products are displayed on the classroom boards, in the bookshelves, and in the halls of the school.  This way the students know that they have accomplished something that others would want to look at.

I think that all of the ideas in the chapter are things that teachers should know, but as time constraints are always present, some things are just passed by in order to get other things completed.  It is also difficult to know exactly where your students should be compared to other grades and classrooms unless you work closely with other teachers.  Again, that takes time that teachers feel they do not have.  Reading this made me have some great reflections on my classroom and my process of writing.  I do not like a whole lot of things on the wall to clutter the room.  I have never really thought that all students writing should all be up at the same time.  Now I am revising that thinking and wondering where I am going to find the room for all work.