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The Intense Writing Workshop

2/27/2018

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The Truth Hurts

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I have to preface this post with a disclaimer:  I teach 4th grade writing in the state of Texas and, like many others, am always thinking about how to improve our expository compositions.  I realized this week though, after attending a writing workshop with Katherine Bomer, that I may have failed my students because of that initiative.  We began introducing expository compositions (AKA essays) months ago thinking that we needed to get a head start on essays so that students were well-prepared for the state-mandated writing test in the spring.  And, sadly, we've been rather disappointed with what they've produced.  However it is no fault of theirs.  We just haven't set them up for success.  The really sad part is that WE KNEW BETTER!  That darned test looming over our heads can get the better part of us at times.  

I knew from the moment Katherine Bomer started speaking about writing that we hadn't allowed the students enough opportunity to simply write without all the "rules".  That fact was further solidified when one of my students, after I shared that there were "no rules" for an "I wonder" piece, said, "I don't think I can write without any rules".  Yikes!!  That should be SO far from the truth.  Yes, you can and SHOULD write without the rules of how long it should be, or how it should sound, or what type of format to use.  Writing workshop should never be a time for teachers to sculpt little writing robots.  ​

So we came back from this workshop with the great Katherine Bomer with plans to hone our focus, improve our stamina, and broaden our expectations in writing workshop.  The results have been inspiring!  And the best part is that it has taken very little from us, the teachers...

Enter:  The Intense Writing workshop

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Like I said, this intense writing workshop took little effort on my part.  I simply had to set the stage for students.  I wanted them to have an arsenal of tools and materials at their disposal so that they were prepared for writing intensely.  These were things I gathered:
  • small bottles of water
  • small bags of popcorn
  • mechanical pencils
  • new erasers
  • pillows
  • plenty of mentor texts
  • dictionaries
  • thesauruses 

This is a day by day synopsis of how I got my students hooked on writing intensely:  

  • Monday:  We sat together and thought about memoirs after reading Memoirs of a Goldfish.  We also revisited memoirs we had read earlier in the year.  After creating an anchor chart together, students began brainstorming possible memoir ideas:  memories that are important and that hold significant feelings.  I allowed my students to begin crafting a plan for their memoirs this day.  They planned in any way that made sense to them, be it bubble maps, boxes and bullets, lists, etc...  And that was the extent to which we wrote on this day.
  • Tuesday:  This is where writing became INTENSE!  I had already prepared students to come ready to write intensely.  We gathered together closely after students had already noticed a grand central station full of the things they may be using during writing workshop.  I posted these pictures and asked students to think about with which picture they most identified:  sitting alone in the silence to write, sitting near others but working independently, or sitting with a crowd to continuously bounce around ideas.  Students turned to each other and shared their thoughts.  I then shared with students that when authors write intensely, they  usually have all materials right at their fingertips and sprawl out with a mental preparedness for the task ahead.  I wanted my 4th graders to write in this same way.  So we reviewed all the materials they might use or have nearby.  Students were itching to get off the rug and put their pencils to the paper.  So they each left, gathered what they thought they might need, and sat flexibly around the classroom.  Some chose to sit completely alone, huddled in a quiet space.  Some chose to sit near one or two other people.  And there were still others that craved that collaboration of a larger group.  With quiet music, our 45 minute non-stop writing time began.
  • Wednesday:  After students had experienced this intense writing workshop, they wanted MORE!  How could I not succumb to their requests to write intensely again?!  And so we did just that.  Before students began on this day, I shared how emotional their pieces had made me the day before.  I truly did have chills all afternoon!  Some made me cry, some made me laugh, some made me anxious, and so much more!  My goal now was to invite students to see the true art of writing, of painting a picture for the reader.  We read Crow Call before settling into our writing spots and began thinking about the crowd pleasers that help us see that clear picture.  Students also started searching their own writing for crowd pleasers as they began intensely writing again.
  • Thursday:  I had been so thrilled with the work students had completed and the crowd pleasers that had their readers "oohing" and "aahing" that I framed them shared them on this day for all to see.  I also heavily pushed the use of mentor texts and fellow authors.  We read some of Come on, Rain! which is just dripping with similes, metaphors, personification, and greatness.  I encouraged students to think about how to invite readers into the setting of their memories in the same way.  We also thought about how to invite readers to share our feelings from these memories.  
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And so it will continue...

I should have been working with students like this all year, taking a week every so often to have an intense writing workshop with no writing "rules".  They have the potential to become true artists of the written word with the simple stroke of a pencil and just the write setting.  And so we will continue in this manner every now and then.  Next week we will take what we've done this week and apply it to an expository composition piece.  I'm so interested to see what success this week brings my students!  Please share your writing workshop successes!
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Myth Busters:  The Teacher Edition

2/17/2018

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In 2003, a show called "Mythbusters" started airing on the Discovery Channel.  Two scientists were out to "bust" myths about science.  There were many myths they busted, and some ended up being legit.  I'm sure there are many myths about a variety of things that could be busted.  Among them would be myths about teachers and the teaching profession.  Some of those teacher myths are believed by onlookers- non-educators.  And then many, unfortunately, are believed by those of us in the thick of education.  So what are the myths we, as educators, believe about teachers?  There are three myths that I think many, if not most, teachers believe about other teachers...

Myth Buster #1:  There exists a Perfect Teacher

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You probably know as well as the next person that there is no such thing as a "perfect" teacher.  This is the easiest myth-buster of them all.  Somehow, though, we tend to set whole-heartedly believe this myth.  While these teachers may seem "perfect", they likely are just really great at "faking it 'til they make it".  I'm also willing to bet that these teachers that seem perfect have a very small number of colleagues or friends to which they vent instead of spraying their strong feelings to a vast audience.  And more times than not, these teachers are positive about PD and work continuously to improve in areas where growth is needed, acknowledging that growth will always be necessary. 

​Such should be the habits of all teachers.  But many of us are quick to vent and, more than that, quick to vent to a wide audience that isn't always appropriate.   Many of us also tend to search for the negative aspects of PD or staff meetings, to which others (for some unknown reason) find easier to agree with than dispute.  So, yes, while the "perfect teacher" doesn't exactly exist, professional teachers do exist.  It should be our daily goal to perfect our professionalism while also realizing that there is always room for learning and growth.

Myth Buster #2:  Cuteness=Greatness

Let me start by saying that I am grateful for TPT and its many contributors!  At the same time...  I can't help but notice that teachers tend to equate cuteness to greatness.  We put so much value and worth into the cute fonts and overstimulating designs of classroom work products that we limit the creativity and authenticity of our students' learning.  We're printing gobs of "fill in the blank" worksheets and booklets that assume we work in a "one size fits all" industry.  This is simply not the case.  Somehow we have come to think that because a teacher has posted a (staged) picture of her classroom library in all its colorful and inspiring decor she must be a FANTASTIC teacher.  Yet we haven't heard her language with students or the language students are using when discussing their academics.  We haven't seen the fruits of her labor.  We cannot begin to peek into rigor and authenticity of learning taking place.  Let's work to BUST the myth that cuteness is equivalent to greatness.  Cute and creative classrooms and materials may lift a teacher's and/ or students' spirits and motivation.  But we must remember that great teaching does not rely on that alone.
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MYth Buster #3:  It can all be done

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​Because there is no perfect teacher, then obviously there is no teacher that is truly able to get it ALL done.  Teaching is hard and cumbersome.  In fact, there will never be a "to-do list" we create that will have a final item.  My "to-do lists" are filled with stars to designate the most pressing items to complete.  It is also covered in pen scratchings and little side notes.  That will never change.  While many teachers have posted ideas for systems that "work", each of us may need to adjust those systems to meet our needs.  Teaching is also cyclical in successes.  In other words, we will always cycle through things that we do really well and things that take a backseat.  I may get a kick-ass start (excuse the language, but I feel strongly about this myth) to grading papers and it may last a good, long while.  But at the same time, something else is likely suffering because of my focus on a new system that works for me.  AND THAT IS OKAY!  It is the nature of education.  If we expect any different, we are setting ourselves up for misery and the ultimate feeling of failure.  It is important that we embrace the idea that we can never get it all "done" and do it all "well".  We can rest in the fact, though, that we are not alone in this AND that others are gaining from our systems that have worked wonders and those that have failed.

What are other myths we could bust about teaching?  Comment below!

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Popcorn Thinking!

2/12/2018

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The Popcorn Thinking Lesson

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Imagine those nights that you wake up with an idea and say to yourself, "Self, don't forget this tomorrow!"  Inevitably, you go back to sleep and wake up having NO IDEA what that idea was, but you know it was a good one!  If only you had jotted it down in the middle of the night!!  That is exactly what happens with our students sometimes... but during the day... in our classrooms...

Last week my students planned new essays with "boxes and bullets", as they usually do.  Our prompt was very closely related to our science standards (historic scientists as contributors) and reading standards (biographies).  They were prompted to write about scientists and inventors and explain why they are so important.  After creating their plans, students moved into drafting and were encouraged to think about the content we had studied both in science and reading workshop.  While conferring, I noticed SO many students thinking about interesting ideas for their essay.  This is great, and all, but there was a BIG problem!  

THEY DIDN'T WRITE THESE IDEAS DOWN!!!
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I just couldn't let that happen!!  My initial reaction was to jump up and shout out, "NOOOO!!!  Don't let it go!!!  Write it down!!!"  Of course, I didn't do that.  But I DID pause students after a moment to have a mid-workshop mini-lesson.  The first thought that came to mind was that ideas had "POPPED" into their minds, much like popcorn.  It reminds me of those late night ideas we get in the middle of the night that we SHOULD have jotted down.  I wanted to be sure that students didn't let go of those ideas, but instead jotted them down quickly in their original plan.  
Because I wanted a tangible, concrete connection to this concept, I immediately thought about using popcorn.  I was really and truly so passionate about this popcorn idea that I started searching my cabinets for popcorn, as though I would right then and there have a mini-lesson with actual popcorn.  But, alas, I had no popcorn.  So I ended up using yellow and white pop cubes as a brief substitute.  It was fine for the purposes of this lesson, but I started thinking about other parts of our day where this lesson (with actual, buttery popcorn) might prove beneficial.

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The part of our day that POPPED into my mind was our interactive read aloud time.  Students always pull out a reading journal during this time to "stop and jot" their thinking about texts.  Some students produce amazing work both in quality and quantity during this time.  However, there are several that lack this skill or the motivation to produce.  Similar to their dismissal of ideas in writing, I think students often dismiss the ideas that POP into their minds as I or they read.  (My book of choice was Fox by Margaret Wild.)

To provide a concrete connection that encouraged participation and promoted accountability, I placed cups of popcorn in front of each child as they sat at the edge of the rug with their reading journals open and pencils in hand.  This is the "gist" of my mini lesson:

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"Readers, just like writers, often have ideas that pop into our minds.  Sometimes we may not even notice what our brains are naturally doing.  Today I want to teach you how to notice those ideas and, more importantly, how to hold tight to them.  In front of you are a few piece of popcorn.  As I read aloud, you will listen to your inner voice.  When you have an idea "POP" into your mind, you'll gently toss a piece of popcorn to the middle of the rug.  For every piece of popcorn you toss, you'll jot about your idea.  What expectations should we remember?"
After a few pages of reading, tossing, and jotting, students turned to discuss their thinking with partners.  We also thought about what we noticed this time that was different than our normal read aloud opportunities.  Students were quick to share that they noticed more ideas popping into their minds.  Following this discussion, we continued the read aloud.  However, this time, students were provided a new requirement.  Now, for every piece of popcorn tossed, students were required to jot at least two sentences about their thinking.  Students were up for the challenge and produced entries that were better in quality and, of course, quantity!  

Of course, we just HAD to enjoy (clean) popcorn during independent reading!  May the smell, taste, and site of (popping) popcorn always remind them to hold on to the ideas and thoughts that fleet through their minds!
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Grab A Quote!  Inspiration for writers

2/6/2018

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If your students are anything like mine, they often get in a habit of writing in a certain style, where their writing almost becomes formulaic.  Or perhaps you have students that may have some great ideas for the body of their essay, but the introduction or conclusion are lacking a certain "je ne sais quoi".  Enter stage left:  'Grab a quote' lesson!

This lesson stemmed from a few different resources and clashing of ideas that constantly pop around in my brain.  We are always looking for ways to help our students write engaging, interesting essays that readers simply don't want to put down.  We also want to give our students a plethora of strategies and crafts to use so that they can put into place what works for their topic, their essay, and their style as an author.  As is often said, "to each his own". (Get what I did there?? Hehe.)

So, as can be seen in this super quick and easy flow chart I created via lucidchart, there were multiple factors involved in my brainstorming session.  I'll give the detailed version of the steps taken that I believe made this lesson successful, as well as ways that I will adjust in the future.
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Because I'm a "boxes and bullets" kind of gal, that's how I'll take you through the steps of this lesson.

PictureQuote of the week posted in our daily morning message...
Set Students Up for Success
  • Begin implementing "quote of the week" with your students.  ​
  • I usually think about what my students and I have been studying or what we will be studying in the future to help determine the quotes I choose.  I also might think about quotes that support social and emotional development.  OR you can snatch quotes from Comprehension Connections (McGregor, 2007).
  • I often give a brief background history of the person from which the quote is derived, but sometimes I find that the best quotes are written by an "anonymous" source.  We will ALWAYS discuss the meaning behind the quote.
  • Hearing the quote often allows students to ponder the quote, commit it to memory, and apply it in the future.  Therefore, I may use our quote as a transition between activities.  For example, I might say, "When you hear the quote of the week, leave the rug to gather your materials."  Or, "When you hear the quote of the week, safely line up at the door."  
  • Every week when we get a new quote, we post the previous week's quote on a designated door or wall space in the classroom and refer back to them continuously.  A few students have added quotes on sticky notes that they have found in the books they've read!  How cool is it that they are watching out for powerful quotes from authors!

Mini Lesson(s) Time!
  1. Crunchtime (Bernabei, Candler, and Hover, 2009) is a great resource for planning writing workshop lessons!   Within this book, a fantastic lesson on truisms is introduced.  I used truisms as a segue into the "Grab a Quote" lesson. 
  2. Once they were familiar with truisms and could generate truisms for many different pictures, scenarios, and prompts, we thought about how quotes might be similar to or different than truisms. 
  3. The students generated definitions for 'quotes' and 'truisms'.  THEY came to the conclusion that, while most quotes could be considered truisms, not all truisms are quotes.  THEY decided that quotes are well-known sayings from (generally famous) specific individuals and truisms could be written by anyone, at anytime, and by no known author.  
  4. After generating these definitions, I introduced the use of quotes in writing by simply stating, "You have stated that truisms and quotes are very similar.  Therefore, if truisms can hold such powerful meaning in our writing, could quotes do the same?"  Students obviously decided that, yes, quotes could engage readers and maintain their attention throughout our pieces.  
  5. At this time, we went out to search the classroom and the biographies we'd been reading to see where we noticed quotes.  This idea came directly from Jeff Anderson in his book 10 Things Every Writer Needs to Know. (BTW, if you don't have it already, GET IT!!  So worth the purchase!)  Students immediately shared that we could use the quotes we've been collecting over the weeks (duh!).  
  6. Finally, I shared pictures and examples of flyers with perforated or stripped edges designated for valuable information.  We each created a "Grab a Quote" flyer and added quotes to each strip.  The requirements were: neat handwriting, correct spelling, quotation marks, and credit to the quotation-er.
  7. Students posted their flyer in any appropriately accessible location along the classroom walls.  During our writing workshop time, students were encouraged to try using a quote within their writing.  If they were having a hard time determining just the right quote, they had the option of perusing our flyers to grab the perfect one!
This has been, by far, one of the most successful lessons I have implemented!  It was relevant, exciting, active, and inspiring all at once.  Students are continuously approaching me with new quotes they have noticed both in and outside the classroom.  ​
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Student-Led Parent Conferences

2/2/2018

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So it's that time again...  time to gather all of your documentation on students and meet with parents.  Sometimes it can be overwhelming.  A dreaded event.  A day that we are watching the clock and impatiently awaiting dinner and drinks with our teacher friends.  And if I'm being honest, there don't seem to be too many significant changes in our students after the conferences.  But I'm here to tell you that it doesn't have to be this way!  Yes, parent conferences can be AWESOME! 

Whaaaa???  I know what you're thinking.  I'm crazy for even hinting that parent conferences can be (might I dare say?) fun.  Simply putting your students in charge of leading their conferences can...
  1. Take a load off your shoulders 
  2. Hold them accountable for their successes and areas for growth
  3. Provide a stronger, respectful relationship between parent, teacher, and child
Let's take a deeper look into each of these benefits...
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Take a Load Off!

Obviously it is time consuming to filter through student work to find what you think shows students strengths and areas needing improvement.  It is even more time consuming to brainstorm and note all the things you plan to bring up at each conference.  While you should still have a few ideas of important things you'd like to be addressed as a teacher, why not put some of this workload on the students?  It is their work, their grades, and their behavior being discussed.  Allowing students to lead their own conferences requires them to reflect on their grades and the work samples that reflect those grades.  Chances are that the student will end up noticing and bringing up most, if not all, the significant points you had planned to discuss anyway.  This eliminates the need for teachers to spend excessive amounts of time preparing for conferences that only last about 15 minutes each.

Hold Students Accountable

What better way to hold students accountable for their growth and success as learners than to put them in charge of their own conference?  Last year was the first year I implemented Student-Led Conferences.  Before trying it out, I had always led parent conferences on my own without the child present.  The problem is that the child never really knew exactly what the parent and I discussed.  Where is the accountability in that?  The parent cannot be held solely responsible for the student's improvement.  In addition, how are students to feel valued and respected as a learner if they cannot share about themselves in a reflective and honest way?  After trying out this new method, I found that students took ownership of their learning, were more aware of their academic strengths and weaknesses, and became more thoughtful about their actions and attitudes in school.

Build Stronger Relationships

As aforementioned, students deserve the opportunity to feel valued and respected as learners in the classroom.  Student-led conferences can bring about a level of maturity and responsibility that might not be noticed on a day to day basis.  

How to Implement Student-Led Conferences

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student-led_conference_process.pdf
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Step 1:  Discuss with students the process of a student-led conference.  Provide this information to parents as well so that all parties involved are prepared for the structure of this conference.
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student-led_conference_plan.pdf
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Step 2:  Gather student work samples (possibly in a binder or organized folder) and invite students to review the samples.  They might also search through notebooks used for classroom to determine which samples are representative of their strengths or areas of growth.  Introduce the planning sheet that students will use as they conduct the conference.  *Side note:  I usually set expectations for how to complete this honestly and appropriately.
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Step 3:  Invite parents to join and prepare to be "WOWed" by your students!  I usually start the conference by reviewing the process we will follow:  "Jane Doe will lead the conference today.  If you need help, Jane, I can step in and guide you.  When Jane finishes we will provide comments or questions."  The student then begins with the subject of their choice.  They share what they jotted on their plan and accompanying work samples.  Every now and then I, the teacher, may ask a clarifying question.  Otherwise, the students take the charge.  And they truly do measure up to the task!

Leave your thoughts below!

Have you tried student-led conferences?  Are there other things you've tried that you'd like to share?  Let us know!
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