Chapter 7 Reflections

What do I need to do to engage my students’ minds so they enjoy writing and want to do their best writing?  Regie Routman suggests that our students will learn to “do” all the required skills and much more if we first change our focus to meaningful teaching of writing and then teach the required skills to support that writing.   The main concept I gathered from this chapter is that when teachers teach from whole to part and back to whole, learning becomes easier and much more meaningful for our students.

It was interesting to read about the changes that the fifth-grade teacher, Debbie Fowler, and her grade-level colleagues implemented in order to help their students improve the quality of their writing.  The four major changes of the program involved shifting from teaching isolated skills to the following:

1. Identifying writing genres that would interest students
2. Deciding whom the audience would be for each piece of writing. (real audience)
3. Modeling their own writing process and struggles in front of students.
4. Having students share their writing regularly.

The section that focused on voice through meaningful writing helped me realize that you can’t teach voice as a separate component of writing, nor are two voices alike.  Finally after all these years of trying to plan great lessons on using voice, I understand that the best way to get my students to write with voice is for them to be interested in their writing.  Students will not take time to produce quality writing if they are not invested in their writing.

Mini-lessons should always be taught at the beginning of writing workshop was an assumption that I’ve had for many years.  I now realize that mini-lessons can and should take place any time students are writing.  Additionally, it’s time for me to get rid of my sequenced list of mini-lessons and start paying more attention to what my students’ needs are by examining their writing. 

Routman’s discussion on revision helped me understand that when our students care about their writing, revising is not a big issue.  She goes on to describe revision as the time to revisit, revalue, reconsider, and look again at our writing (pg. 156).  I know that I need to do a better job of helping my students make revisions.  I believe that I’ve always shied away from revisions because I teach such young students:  I used that as an excuse to not emphasize revisions.  (I was pretty satisfied that they were writing several sentences!)  Now, I know that I must revise my writing in front of my students so they will see what the thinking behind revision entails.  This modeling will help them understand what revision looks like and sounds like.

Finally, Routman describes in depth the importance of teaching spelling well.  Fortunately our reading curriculum (Open Court Imagine It!) includes a strong spelling program that encourages students to develop a spelling consciousness with an emphasis on word study.  My students are expected to use the various spelling references (wall charts, personal dictionaries, word wall, list of students’ names, and any print that is displayed in the classroom.) 


Below are two of the spelling sounds cards that are a component of our reading program.  We refer the first card as the "coil" card with the two main spellings for /oi/ noted belowed the card.  The second card is out "long a" card.  The four main spellings for the long a sounds are shown in the bottom section.  I feel that this program has helped my students become more conscious about spelling.  They don't guess near as often; instead I hear them asking questions such as, "Mrs Burdiek, I want to spell the word train but I am not sure if it is spelled train or trane?"  They are becoming better thinkers and are more aware that a sound can have more than one spelling.

Examples of two spelling/sounds cards from our reading series.

 At each grade level in our building, we have established a list of “no excuse” sight words.  Each day we review one of these words by writing it in our learning journals and talking about the “tricky” part of the spelling.  My first graders are also asked to write or share a sentence using the word of the day.  This word list is sent home for children to practice with their families.  I always tell my students that if they use any of these words in their writing that they must be spelled correctly.  Of course, they are added to the word wall as I introduce them.

This chapter, as the other chapters I’ve already read in this book, are filled with useful and clear ideas to help any teacher improve their writing instruction.  I can’t wait to read more.


Some of the ideas/techniques that I want to incorporate in my classroom include the following:
1.  Create specialized word walls
2.  Highlight words and features of words
3.  Establish a list of writing goals for my first graders
4.  Help improve my students' revision consciousness
5.  Do a better job of telling my students why I'm doing what I'm doing

This shows the framework for the specialized word wall poster that my students and I will be creating as they learn more about these American symbols next week.  We will add words below each of the symbols as the students learn about them.

Questions:

1.  Are other teachers using the Open Court Imagine It! Reading Series?  What are your thoughts about the program's spelling component?


2.  I need to do a better job of having my first graders make revisions . . . any suggestions?  I am struggling because I still have several students that have difficulty writing just four or five sentences - then I ask them to make revisions???