Chapter 3 Refections

Chapter 3 really helped me understand that if we are to teach writing well we need to see ourselves as writers.  If we haven’t experienced writing in a positive light, how do we expect our students to develop a passion for writing? I thought the ideas that Routman shared about writing together as a staff would indeed increase our writing confidence and make us more aware of how we teach writing in our classrooms. 

The Optimal Learning Model noted below is the structure that I intend to use in my first grade classroom:

1.    Demonstration (mini-lesson/teacher’s thinking aloud and writing)

2.    Guided Practice of the specific strategy or activity (students’ writing/thinking aloud/conversations with peers/conferencing)

3.    Independent Practice

4.    Celebration and Sharing

I am also going to create a “My Writing Practices” list to share with my students.  (I love this idea!)  On Friday, I added my first type of writing to that list.  I showed my class the sympathy card that I would be sending to our former neighbor’s husband who had recently lost his wife to cancer.  I told my class what I planned to write in the card, and why it was important for me to send a sympathy card.  On Monday, I will share the card again and read what I wrote inside.  I will also show them the stamped, addressed envelope that it will be sent in.

Sympathy Card 

Questions:

1.    What do you think about having the staff write together?  Would your teachers be open to this idea?

2.    Do other teachers feel that having students complete a graphic organizer before writing is effective? I have my first graders occasionally fill out an organizer before writing a story.  Many times they add more details to their stories because they have thought more deeply about the topic before they began writing.