I like that these 3 chapters work together to show teachers how to effectively assess a student's work. Conferencing is a technique that I had never heard about until discussing it in this class. I really like this concept because it gives the teacher one-on-one time with the student, rather than simply handing back a paper with red scribbles on it. It also allows the teacher to focus on the individual progress of each student.
While conferencing students, the most important thing (I believe) is making sure the student's strengths are mention. When students feel overwhelmed and pressured, they can sometimes shut down all together. Creating a balance between praise and suggestion is key to a successful conference.
After accessing the students a teacher can get a better grasp on what they need to teach next. A conference is beneficial to the teacher because it can help determine what issue needs to be addressed in the next mini-lesson.
As we learned in previous chapters, it is not only important for a child to properly develop skills in the technical aspect of writing (punctuation, spelling, sentence structure), but 'tweaking' how they write and the emotion that their writing portrays. Development of each student's individual craft can be achieved through proper conferencing and assessment techniques that are supportive of the student's writing style.
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Crafting Writers Ch 7-9 & appendix F
This portion of Crafting Writers discusses ways to help students develop writings and then how to use effective conferencing strategies to critique the student's work. In order to help students develop their craft and skills in writing, the book suggests mini-lessons that work toward the success of an idea in writing.
I think that this is best when learning any new subject matter. Instead of bombarding the students with too much information, mini lessons make the material more manageable. Mini lesson also offer a variety of explanations to the idea. Some students may not be able to comprehend the material hearing it one way, but may understand it better practicing it in a different mini-lesson. There are many different writing strategies and 'try-its' mentioned that teachers can use in their classrooms.
Once the writing is complete the teacher should hold a conference with their student and talk to them about their progress. This is NOT a time to point out every single flaw the child has made. When working with young child and your first mini-lesson is putting periods at the end of sentences, you shouldn't worry about a few spelling errors. I thought of the lesson we learned in class where we discussed not over-critiquing a child's work. The goal should be to praise and encourage, not repremand and discourage them.
Conferences should be a time to show students what they've done in the past, what they currently completed, and what they could work on for next time. The goal should be to reflect your belief in the child and to get them to believe in themselves too. By having conferences with each student about their current progress in writing, a teacher can get a better understand about what each individual student struggles with, and modify lessons as needed. This should be a learning experience for the student and the teacher.
I think that this is best when learning any new subject matter. Instead of bombarding the students with too much information, mini lessons make the material more manageable. Mini lesson also offer a variety of explanations to the idea. Some students may not be able to comprehend the material hearing it one way, but may understand it better practicing it in a different mini-lesson. There are many different writing strategies and 'try-its' mentioned that teachers can use in their classrooms.
Once the writing is complete the teacher should hold a conference with their student and talk to them about their progress. This is NOT a time to point out every single flaw the child has made. When working with young child and your first mini-lesson is putting periods at the end of sentences, you shouldn't worry about a few spelling errors. I thought of the lesson we learned in class where we discussed not over-critiquing a child's work. The goal should be to praise and encourage, not repremand and discourage them.
Conferences should be a time to show students what they've done in the past, what they currently completed, and what they could work on for next time. The goal should be to reflect your belief in the child and to get them to believe in themselves too. By having conferences with each student about their current progress in writing, a teacher can get a better understand about what each individual student struggles with, and modify lessons as needed. This should be a learning experience for the student and the teacher.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Crafting Writers Ch 4 & 5
Ch 4 - Catagories of Specific Craft
The chapter covers 5 main catagories that help writer's develop their craft (Five Senses, Show Not Tell, Dialogue, Sentence Variety, & Word Choice).
The Five Sense catagory show the imporance of incorporating ALL of your sense in your writing. By describing what the writer wants the reader to see, hear, taste, feel, and smell; the reader can better understand what the writer is trying to portray. The textures you feel, the colors you see, and the volume of things you may hear are all ways to incorporate some of the 5 senses in writing.
The Show Not Tell catagory talks about how we want the reader to feel certain emotions and experience certain thoughts. Instead of simply saying "I was sad.", the writer can be more specific by saying "I was so sad that I could cry forever." The first sentence is a simple 'tell' which is not as well written as the second sentence, which is a 'show'.
Dialogue is another great way to add 'umph' to a writer's craft. By using dialogue properly, the writer can truly express the emotions of certain confersations. The chapter also addresses the use (or overuse) of the word 'said'. Showing students that a person can 'yell', 'whisper', 'shout', or 'cry' can help the reader experience the true emotions of the characters in the peice of literature.
Word Choice is not only a great way to make writing more interesting and varied, but it can also expand a writer's vocabulary. Repetition of certain words can sometimes make a piece of literature seem uninteresting. Using synonyms can also better reflect what the writer is trying to reflect.
Sentence Variety explains how the variety of sentence length and structure can also help portray certain mood and describe the plot of the story. Using 2-or-3 word sentences, long then short sentences, starting sentences with different words, and starting sentence with different objects are all ways that a student can add sentence variety to help them with their craft.
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Ch 5 - Crafting With Punctuation
When we see developing writer's first works, the spelling and the letters are usually not standard ways of writing, however, in some cases while children are still grasping concepts of word development they may already have an idea about punctuation. This chapter address punctuation such as periods, quotation marks, and commas; and how they can be used to add description and personality to one's own craft. While students will first begin to understand common uses of these punctuations, they can then personalize their use of them.
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Final Thoughts
For me, I can relate to this. Whenever I write about something passionately, I tend to write long (sometimes too long), descriptive sentences because I want to get my point across and make the reader feel the same enthusiasm I have for it. However, I wasn't until my late, late years of education that I learned of this independence. In elementary school, I was taught to use a dependent phrase here, or use a independent phrase here, or follow sentence structure of subject then verb then preposition. Boring. I really enjoy the fact that we are focusing on student's developing their 'craft' at a younger and younger age. Perhaps this will be more effective in 'turning kids on' to writing.
The chapter covers 5 main catagories that help writer's develop their craft (Five Senses, Show Not Tell, Dialogue, Sentence Variety, & Word Choice).
The Five Sense catagory show the imporance of incorporating ALL of your sense in your writing. By describing what the writer wants the reader to see, hear, taste, feel, and smell; the reader can better understand what the writer is trying to portray. The textures you feel, the colors you see, and the volume of things you may hear are all ways to incorporate some of the 5 senses in writing.
The Show Not Tell catagory talks about how we want the reader to feel certain emotions and experience certain thoughts. Instead of simply saying "I was sad.", the writer can be more specific by saying "I was so sad that I could cry forever." The first sentence is a simple 'tell' which is not as well written as the second sentence, which is a 'show'.
Dialogue is another great way to add 'umph' to a writer's craft. By using dialogue properly, the writer can truly express the emotions of certain confersations. The chapter also addresses the use (or overuse) of the word 'said'. Showing students that a person can 'yell', 'whisper', 'shout', or 'cry' can help the reader experience the true emotions of the characters in the peice of literature.
Word Choice is not only a great way to make writing more interesting and varied, but it can also expand a writer's vocabulary. Repetition of certain words can sometimes make a piece of literature seem uninteresting. Using synonyms can also better reflect what the writer is trying to reflect.
Sentence Variety explains how the variety of sentence length and structure can also help portray certain mood and describe the plot of the story. Using 2-or-3 word sentences, long then short sentences, starting sentences with different words, and starting sentence with different objects are all ways that a student can add sentence variety to help them with their craft.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Ch 5 - Crafting With Punctuation
When we see developing writer's first works, the spelling and the letters are usually not standard ways of writing, however, in some cases while children are still grasping concepts of word development they may already have an idea about punctuation. This chapter address punctuation such as periods, quotation marks, and commas; and how they can be used to add description and personality to one's own craft. While students will first begin to understand common uses of these punctuations, they can then personalize their use of them.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Final Thoughts
For me, I can relate to this. Whenever I write about something passionately, I tend to write long (sometimes too long), descriptive sentences because I want to get my point across and make the reader feel the same enthusiasm I have for it. However, I wasn't until my late, late years of education that I learned of this independence. In elementary school, I was taught to use a dependent phrase here, or use a independent phrase here, or follow sentence structure of subject then verb then preposition. Boring. I really enjoy the fact that we are focusing on student's developing their 'craft' at a younger and younger age. Perhaps this will be more effective in 'turning kids on' to writing.
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