Reading: A Fresh Look At Writing by Donald H.
Graves
In
this week’s readings, Graves introduced us to his own strategies and how he
helps children to write. He
addresses the discovering of a writing topic, how he conducts writing
conferences, and how to share children’s writing in the classroom. He begins with a simple conversation
[with both primary and intermediate students] and guides them with simple
questions. This demonstration
shows students how writing topics can develop from actual events and life
experiences. To continue, he
models his own writing process—how he begins his writing with telling a story,
drawing a picture, and then transitioning from oral telling to written. It is easier for students to understand
the process and what is being expected from the activity when a teacher models
for them.
Something
else really stood out to me when reading A
Fresh Look at Writing. Every
education class taken, every textbook bought, and every strategy book read
reiterates and emphasizes how important it is to KNOW YOUR STUDENTS. It is important to recognize what
skills your students have and what they are struggling with. Knowing where they are at academically
and developmentally will make it easier for you to assess and plan out what
they next steps are for their learning.
Reading: Conditions for Effective Writing
·
Create a classroom that encourages writing.
·
Provide enough time and opportunities for
writing—give yourself enough time to conduct conferences, mini-lessons, and
demonstrations.
·
Your classroom should feel comfortable—students
should be open to sharing their writing and talking about their topics.
Maddie, I really enjoyed reading your post! I totally agree with you in your first paragraph; I think it is so, so important to model for your students exactly what you want or else they will never know what you expect from them. Yes, you can tell the students what you want but physically showing them makes things a lot more clear and easier for them. I also really like what you said in your second paragraph about knowing the students. Every student is different, and some things that work for one student may not work for other students in the classroom. Knowing each and every one of your students in the classroom and what they struggle with will allow for a much more effective learning atmosphere for them. It will also help us as teachers run things more smoothly in the classroom. Thank you for sharing!
ReplyDeleteHi Maddie!
ReplyDeleteI love what you said about knowing our students- I have been thinking a lot about how education really must be individualized to be effective. This is something we learn over and over again in our program, and it also seems to be a big focus in American education in general. However, I feel like I lack management strategies for this. How can teachers be organized enough to gather so much data on each student and give them so much individual instruction? I think some of assessment ideas in the "Classroom Reading Assessments" are very practical but I would love more resources like this. Have you observed any ways that your classroom teacher manages to collect and keep track of information on student?
Maddie,
ReplyDeleteI agree that it is so important to know your students! Also also agree with Lucie about differentiating instruction and remaining curious about management strategies. Classroom management in neral is something I feel like we do not learn about very much in class. This might be because it is not something you can easily teach, but something that you just pick up. Either way, I think learning about this in class would be very helpful in the area of knowing students.