Saturday, January 24, 2009
Writer's Notebook ch.1&2 group c 650pm
View the first sample chapters (available on line) Using the Writer's Notebook in Grades 3-8: A Teacher's Guide at (http://www1.ncte.org/library/files/Store/Books/Sample/35006chap1-2_x.pdf) and begin your writers notebook then post entries on Class Blog. Engage in an online discussion group on our class blog. Please read designated chapters and 1)propose “meaty” fat questions to discuss, 2) make connections to your teaching and work with students, and 3) make connections to your work as a writer (ie Keep your own notebook and share your response to it), 4)Please respond to two of your classmates’s entries in your study group, 4) Consider how what you have learned from this book might support the work of your integrated language arts unit.
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5 comments:
I enjoyed reading these two chapters. When Elliott stated that she began to think of herself as a writer through this process, I thought of my special ed students who struggle to write. If they had a chance to experience less restrictions and more freedom in their writing they may begin to enjoy the whole writing process. We've been pracitcing for CMT's and they have had to respond to so many prompts. I think that right after CMT's are over would be a great time to implement a writer's notebook in my small language arts group. I like the idea of a writer's notebook because it gives students the freedom to express their thoughts, opinions, reactions, and memories and at the same time it is a guided and structured activity.
I could relate to the author when she talked about saving the notebooks and how she wished she would have saved hers. I too wrote in diaries as a young girl and wished I would have saved them. I think our students are lucky because they will at least get the chance to think about it.
Over vacation, I brought my own writer's notebook with me on my trip to Texas, and I started it on the plane. It was nice to be able to put my thoughts down on paper. My grandmother is sick and it helped me to write down my feelings. I think this could also help students who may be going through an emotional time in their lives. When I taught middle and highschool students with emotional and behavior problems, the social worker always had the students writing in their "personal notebooks" as a way of expressing their emotions and feelings.
I agree Rene, with all of this CMT testing it will be great to just allow our students to write, explore their own ideas and think again!
I liked how Elliot described the excitement of picking out her writer’s notebook. I had a great time going to the store and thumbing through the notebook options when I bought my notebook as well. When I got home, I was excited to open it up and begin collecting artifacts and writing my ideas. When I taught writing I bought my student’s composition books and then let them decorate them in the beginning of the year. After reading this section I think that I will give me students the option of buying their own notebooks—I think this really does build anticipation and get students excited about beginning to keep the notebooks. Did you to enjoy the process of selecting your own notebook as well?
On page 14, Elliot discusses how some students ask about page length requirements and topics and sometimes have a difficult time getting started. I know that this can be a challenge for my students as well. I think that sometimes it can help students who need these structures to assign page requirements and topics to help them get started in the beginning of the year. Then, as they become more comfortable with the use of the notebook it works well to take away these guidelines and ask them to “just write.” I know that for some of my students it can be challenging to ask them to write about anything when they haven’t been asked to do this before. What do you think—do you have some students who tend to need that structure to get them started?
I feel like keeping a writer’s notebook is definitely helping me as a teacher. As a departmentalized reading/social studies teacher I don’t always think about teaching writing or writing with my students. The other day, I asked my students to write a journal entry in their social studies notebooks, pretending to be a soldier in the Revolutionary War. Usually when I do something like this, I monitor the room and see if anyone needs help-- but yesterday I sat down and wrote my own journal entry. I shared it with my students and it really made the experience more powerful. My students saw me as a writer and by sharing my writing with them they were more willing to share their writing with the class. I definitely plan on continuing to write with my students in the future and make more of a conscious effort to integrate writing into my social studies lessons.
I find that I am spending a lot of time writing about my dog in my writer’s notebook. Her name is Ireland and she is a Shepard mix. We got her about a year ago from the Humane Society. I found myself writing about how I wish more people would adopt dogs from shelters. I remember how sad I felt as I walked past rows and rows of forgotten dogs. It’s interesting how my notebook entry changed from being about how rambunctious Ireland can be sometimes to the ideas of animal welfare.
As I think about my integrated unit, I think that the performance assessment will be some sort of research and writing project. I think I will ask my students to take on the role of either a loyalist, patriot, British or American soldier, African American, Native American, woman or child and to research that person’s perspective of the Revolutionary War. I plan to ask them to share their learning through some form of writing-- perhaps a journal entry or newspaper article sharing this person’s perspective of the war.
Yes Brianne, I agree that keep a writers notebook is helping me as a teacher-it helps me to think of creative ways to help my students enjoy writing. I definately think its important for the teacher to model the journal writing activites. I think that makes them feel like everyone is part of the "writing community".
For students who have a difficult time coming up with ideas it's a good idea to narrow the topic for them. The girls I work with can always think of things to write about but the boys have trouble getting started. I usually start by asking them what they did over the weekend,or ask about their pets, hobbies etc.
I like the idea of using the writers notebook for improving fluency. I have one student who struggles with getting his ideas down on paper. He verbally states his ideas but he looses most of his information before he can record it. It will be interesting to see if this helps his fluency.
I also plan on using a writing notebook for my cyberlesson. It's a great idea to use these notebooks to help with writing projects.
I also like the idea of using the writer's notebook to improve writing fluency. The writing teacher on my team assigns nightly writing in our student's writer's notebooks. Sometimes they have a topic and other times it is free choice. The only requirement is that they write for 15 minutes. I have to tell you that I definitely notice an improvement in our student's writing fluency because of this nightly assignment. When asked to write for any class, the students get started right away and rarely struggle with writer's block--I think that using the writer's notebook definitely does improve writing fluency.
I also enjoyed the first two chapters, in that they gave me more insight into what exactly a writer's notebook looks like both on the outside and on the inside. It also helped me to see the purpose of these tools: a place where a person is free to write whatever is on his/her mind at the time without any restrictions.
I saw some great connections between this book and helping my students to be more fluent writers. I find a little less than half my students (mostly boys) have troubles with writing...mostly just putting thoughts on paper. Several of these students need me to help them generate ideas before they put them on their paper. I feel like implementing a writer's notebook would be a great resource in helping those students build fluency and practice just putting thoughts on paper.
Brianne, you mentioned in your first blog that you worry about some of your students struggling with the "openness" of the writer's notebook, and I, too, fear the lack of structure may be an issue. I did like how Elliot gave a list of sample guidelines she used with her students on pages 11 and 13 of the text. I especially found it interesting that she did not allow students to erase anything they wrote or tear anything out. I think that is such a great message to students, that everything they write is important, and even if it wasn't what they initially planned to write perhaps, it is still something that was on their mind at some point and it deserves to be in the notebook.
Going along with what Brianne said, however, my biggest question is how to handle those students who will sit there and write nothing because they "have nothing on their minds". I know there will at least be one or two students in my class each year (that seems to be the way in fifth grade) who will insist they have nothing to write about because they have nothing in their thoughts. How do you still engage those students and motivate them to write, especially when this is something that isn't even getting turned it and reviewed by the teacher? I guess I just fear that some students will take advantage of the fact that I won't be reading each of their responses and either they won't write anything or they won't take it seriously. Any ideas/suggestions?
In terms of using it to help me as a writer, I have so far used it in a similar way to you, Rene. You had mentioned that you were able to begin recording your thoughts about your ill grandmother. I, too, am finding it to be a place to record questions and thoughts about others. Last summer, my best friend was killed in a car accident three weeks before my wedding. I think because of my wedding and the fact it was so sudden, I was in shock about it for some time and really was almost numb to what happened. Now, however, I find myself thinking a lot about it, and I'm finding my writer's notebook to be a great place to record my thoughts and even my anger about the whole situation. I am now thinking that some day these entries may become a nice story about the importance of friends and enjoying every moment of life.
I have also been giving a lot of thought to how to integrate a writer's notebook with my integrated unit. Brianne, since you and I are doing the same unit, I found myself having similar ideas to you. I first thought about having them respond about their thoughts on the war itself as well as putting themselves in the position of being a child during the American Revolution. I feel that will help deepen their understanding of the material, and it will provide some great connections for them. I also even considered having them take an entry they already recorded about their own lives and making a comparison between their lives and the lives of the people (i.e. soldiers or even just young townspeople) during the American Revolution. I guess I just wonder if that's an acceptable use of the writer's notebook, because if I were to do that for my integrated unit them I'm requiring them to share one of their personal entries in some manner. Is that acceptable? What are your thoughts on that?
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