Write Your Own Ending

On page 290, it says, "When we are open to possibilities and committed to excellence, kids soar as writers." That pretty much says it all... :)

Chapter 12: Make Every Minute Count

I really liked the "Secrets of Good Writers". I thought having a list of those secrets for the students as well as giving them the opportunity to list their own secrets was a great idea!

I definitely am having my students write more in class and they are really enjoying it! It does not seem at all like work when they seem to love what they are doing. This past week, each student chose an animal picture they liked and then wrote a haiku about that picture. They were eager to show and share what they had accomplished.
They were proud of their work and I even had another student who wrote another poem and then shared it with the rest of the class.

Next week, we are going to do some free choice writing. I asked them to think about what story they would like to write over the weekend. Following Regie's advice, I will once again have my students talk with each other about the story they are planning to write. It is such a great way to get encouragement from others and even some good ideas or suggestions. Some students asked if they could write a biography of someone or maybe a non-fiction piece. I am not sure how that will all work out, but it sure sounds interesting!! I have a feeling it will be a fun week!

On page 284, Regie talks about how difficult it is to come to school excited about teaching when you have spent many hours the night before grading papers. I have noticed that on the nights I have not brought home a ton of papers to grade, I am so much more relaxed the next day and much, much more rested. It is nice to have someone write about that part of teaching that we can all relate to. :)

Even though this was a short chapter, I really enjoyed its message.

Chapter 11: Build on Best Practice and Research

I think this chapter had several statements that were definitely worth reading a few times over. This entire book has had several liberating statements about writing and some just about teaching in general. What a breath of fresh air!

I enjoyed the information on page 278 about persuasive writing. I think it was about a couple of years ago that Union Valley wrote letters to the state. The students tried to persuade the state to rebuild the bridge over 61 Highway once they widened the highway. Whether it was the student letters or some other influence, the state decided to rebuild the bridge after the highway work was completed. What an incredible way to show the power of the pen!

On page 270, Regie writes that "you achieve what you believe." This is so true and powerful.

Chapter 10: Make Assessment Count

I definitely liked the Good Writing rubric for third grade found on page 241. It is very simple, to the point, and easily understood by students as well as teachers.

The idea of naming the reader during assessments was really a great idea. It might be fun to go a step further and actually have a face (maybe a picture from a magazine) to go along with the name. Our class has pen pals at Morgan school and the last time they wrote, they included their school pictures in their letters. My class seemed to enjoy writing their pen pal letters even more when they were actually able to see the face of the person they had been writing to all year.

I liked her thoughts on giving students more of the responsibility of evaluating their own writing. It is just important to teach them how that is to be done.

Chapter 9: Conferences with Students

This was a great chapter for learning everything you always wanted to know about conferences but were afraid to ask... :) Wow! I loved all the different ways that conferences can be held. It is amazing how I have always had a type of conference in my mind and have tried hard to make that work. And then, I find that some of the other types of activities I have been doing during writing was actually conferencing.

I really could relate when she talked about students who think they are ready to conference but have not edited their paper as they have been instructed to do. Also, we use peer editing in class and there are times that I cannot even tell that someone else has read the writing piece and helped with editing. I liked the idea of making some very concrete, visual rules about editing for the writer and also for the peer editor.

I liked her statements on page 220 about simplifying writing conferences. I agree that sharing some positive comments about the students' writing is imperative. That one comment can sustain and motivate the student to move forward in his or her writing to continue to prove what a great writer he or she is.

I just cannot express enough how this book and Tamara's workshops have helped me relax in teaching writing and to enjoy the process even more!

Chapter 8: Organize for Daily Writing

• Great to know that Writing Workshop is not a linear process of prewriting, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing.
  
• Page 175: It is recommended that students write twice as much as they do now. I loved the fact that it was mentioned that some of that writing could be done at home. That would have worked great with a recent biography project the students wrote. Some of the research writing could have been done at home.
• I know that Regie Routman has mentioned this before, but I like the idea of teaching a writing technique first and then later labeling the type of writing that was done. I think students would then understand that particular writing better as they have already been exposed to that type of writing.
  
• On page 196, I liked the idea of teaching nonfiction writing while introducing text features. The students will get a double dose of understanding text features through both writing and reading experiences.
  
• I hope to use the snapshot idea at the beginning of the school year. What a great way to get to know your students as well as for them to get to know each other!

I really enjoyed this chapter!

Chapter 7: Be Efficient and Integrate Basic Skill

When I read this chapter, I felt a lot of relief. :) I think for awhile, we felt we had to teach each of the six writing traits (identify them with the students), have students rate some writing pieces, and concentrate on the writing terminology instead of just the fun and satisfaction of writing. I do feel there are some skills that can be taught in isolation but most can be taught and learned during the writing process. I think it would be a good idea to continue showing students examples of good word choice and voice. They would easily recognize the difference between the good writing pieces and poor writing pieces.

This chapter reinforced even more the importance of shared writing... In my opinion, a teacher can use shared writing to model great writing by reading, rereading, editing and improving the writing piece as a group. (And having fun in the process...:)

Mindy helped me set up my Wall Dictionary when I first started teaching third grade and my classes have always used this to help us spell during our writing. It is continually added to all year long so we end up with quite a collection of words at the end of the year.

I do not agree with Regie Routman on the use of the thesaurus. Kids love using those books and to me, it really helps expand their vocabulary. Some of the words they choose do not always work, but we talk about why another or a simpler word might be a better choice.