Writing
Grade 3:
Strategy 1: Sentence Combining
Struggling writers often write in short simple sentences. To help students begin too write extended sentences, use kernel sentences in which the teacher gives a simple subject and predicate (e.g. The tree stood.). Then, the teacher models one or more of the following steps with the students. This strategy can be used in grades 2-5. Primary students can do the first steps, but five through seven are intended for upper elementary students.
Strategy 2: Noun Stories
Before reading a book with students, choose 7 to 10 nouns that appear in the story. Write the nouns in a column in the sequence that they are found in the book, but keep the book's title a secret. Have students write a story using the nouns in the same order. After students share their stories, read the book so they can compare their stories to it.
Strategy 1: Sentence Combining
Struggling writers often write in short simple sentences. To help students begin too write extended sentences, use kernel sentences in which the teacher gives a simple subject and predicate (e.g. The tree stood.). Then, the teacher models one or more of the following steps with the students. This strategy can be used in grades 2-5. Primary students can do the first steps, but five through seven are intended for upper elementary students.
- Insert adjectives and adverbs (words that answer what kind, how many, which one, whose, when, how, and where). Ex. My neighbor's old tall oak tree on the hill stood swaying in the wind.
- Produce compound subjects and objects. Ex. The oak tree and elm tree stood erect and waved to all the children.
- Create compound sentence with coordinating conjuction. Ex. The oak tree stood erect, while the weeping willow stooped over in the wind.
- Add possessive nouns. Ex. My neighbor's oak tree stands at the edge of our property.
- Create complex sentences by using subordinating conjuctions. Ex. Because our neightbor's oak tree stands on our property line, they allow me to climb it.
- Add relative clauses to show relationships. Ex. The old oak tree that stands in my neighbor's yard is one hundred years old.
- Add appositives. Ex. The oak tree, my neighbor's "friend," shades him during the hot afternoons.
Strategy 2: Noun Stories
Before reading a book with students, choose 7 to 10 nouns that appear in the story. Write the nouns in a column in the sequence that they are found in the book, but keep the book's title a secret. Have students write a story using the nouns in the same order. After students share their stories, read the book so they can compare their stories to it.
Grade 4:
Strategy 1: Classroom Alphabet Books
Share some alphabet books featuring states (e.g. M is for Magnolia: A Mississippi Alphabet Book [Shoulders, 2003]; B is for Bluegrass: A Kentucky Alphabet Book [Riehle, 2002] with the class. Each student chooses one letter of the alphabet, finds a point of interest from the state that corresponds to it, and researches it. They write a short paragraph and draw an illustration that supports their fact. You may also create class alphabet books about national parks, sea creature, or the national monuments in Washinton D.C., by having students choose one alphabet-related aspect of the large topic, research it, and write one page for the class book. This strategy can be modified for grades K-6.
Strategy 2: Fibbin Poems
Students from grades one through eight often enjoy working with a pattern in poetry, such as a numerical sequence. They can write about any topic. The older students' poem will tend to be more sophisticated than younger students' poems. The Fibbin poem follows a number sequence:
Line 1: one syllable
Line 2: one syllable
Line 3: two syllables (the sum of lines one and two)
Line 4: three syllables (the sum of lines two and three)
Line 5: five syllables (the sum of lines three and four)
Line 6: eight syllables (the sum of lines four and five)
Line 7: thirteen syllables (the sum of lines five and six)
Line 8: twenty-one syllables (the sum of lines six and seven)
And so on.
After completing eight lines, students can reverse the pattern by having line nine contain twenty-one syllables, line ten contain thirteen syllables, and so on until the poem ends with the last two lines of each one syllable. This strategy can be used in grades 1-8.
Example:
Pete
Sprete
Athlete
Plays baseball.
Best pitcher in town!
Easily strikes out ten batters!
Twas only in his dreams that he was such a great star!
Strategy 1: Classroom Alphabet Books
Share some alphabet books featuring states (e.g. M is for Magnolia: A Mississippi Alphabet Book [Shoulders, 2003]; B is for Bluegrass: A Kentucky Alphabet Book [Riehle, 2002] with the class. Each student chooses one letter of the alphabet, finds a point of interest from the state that corresponds to it, and researches it. They write a short paragraph and draw an illustration that supports their fact. You may also create class alphabet books about national parks, sea creature, or the national monuments in Washinton D.C., by having students choose one alphabet-related aspect of the large topic, research it, and write one page for the class book. This strategy can be modified for grades K-6.
Strategy 2: Fibbin Poems
Students from grades one through eight often enjoy working with a pattern in poetry, such as a numerical sequence. They can write about any topic. The older students' poem will tend to be more sophisticated than younger students' poems. The Fibbin poem follows a number sequence:
Line 1: one syllable
Line 2: one syllable
Line 3: two syllables (the sum of lines one and two)
Line 4: three syllables (the sum of lines two and three)
Line 5: five syllables (the sum of lines three and four)
Line 6: eight syllables (the sum of lines four and five)
Line 7: thirteen syllables (the sum of lines five and six)
Line 8: twenty-one syllables (the sum of lines six and seven)
And so on.
After completing eight lines, students can reverse the pattern by having line nine contain twenty-one syllables, line ten contain thirteen syllables, and so on until the poem ends with the last two lines of each one syllable. This strategy can be used in grades 1-8.
Example:
Pete
Sprete
Athlete
Plays baseball.
Best pitcher in town!
Easily strikes out ten batters!
Twas only in his dreams that he was such a great star!
Grade 5:
Strategy 1: Webquest
Webquest is an inquiry-oriented lesson format in which most or all of the information students work with comes from the web. It has six essential parts that include introduction, task, process, resources, evaluation, and conclusion. The task is the formal description of what the students will produce in the WebQuest. It should be meaningful and fun. The process is the steps that the students should take to complete the task. The resources list the resources that the students should use. The evaluation is the way in which student performance will be assessed. The conclusion is the time set aside for reflection and the discussion of a possible extention. The website address typically explains what type of writing the students will be doing (e.g. persuasive writing, story writing, literary responses to novels, research reports about topics, writing folktales, and so on). Teacherweb (www.teacherweb.com) offers excellent resources for webquests. The websites walk students through five steps of the writing process and give a number of questions for students to research regarding the topic. Students can publish their final composition on the internet. This assignment makes good writing purposeful by providing an audience that reachres beyond the classrom. You may also visit www.webquest.org to find and create webquests.
Strategy 2: Digital Storytelling
Digital storytelling is one activity that could motivate struggling writers to create dynamic stories because they get to combine traditional story writing with new literacies. Most students, even reluctant writers, know how to
use computers, video games, digital music players, cell phones, digital cameras, and other electronic devices. Encourage students to use their technology skills to create digital stories using with Windows Movie Maker or Apple's iMovie. Using the writing process a student begins writing a story, which eventually becomes the projects narration. After the story is complete, the author decides how to divide it into scenes and which photographs or clip art or draws illustrations to compliment each page of the text and scans all illustrations to get them into digital form. Next, the student records the story using expression that conveys the story's mood and action and that will captivate the listeners. When the story is recorded error-free, the student is ready to make the movie. Some students may want to enhance their movie by adding appropriate music and/or sound effects just like a real movie. The last step is for the student to add a title frame, transitions between frames, and rolling credits that cite all the sources for their clip art, photographs, and so on. Finally, the student publishes his/her work by inviting peers to watch his/her movie either online or on an interactive whiteboard. Some tools that help to create digital stories are
Strategy 1: Webquest
Webquest is an inquiry-oriented lesson format in which most or all of the information students work with comes from the web. It has six essential parts that include introduction, task, process, resources, evaluation, and conclusion. The task is the formal description of what the students will produce in the WebQuest. It should be meaningful and fun. The process is the steps that the students should take to complete the task. The resources list the resources that the students should use. The evaluation is the way in which student performance will be assessed. The conclusion is the time set aside for reflection and the discussion of a possible extention. The website address typically explains what type of writing the students will be doing (e.g. persuasive writing, story writing, literary responses to novels, research reports about topics, writing folktales, and so on). Teacherweb (www.teacherweb.com) offers excellent resources for webquests. The websites walk students through five steps of the writing process and give a number of questions for students to research regarding the topic. Students can publish their final composition on the internet. This assignment makes good writing purposeful by providing an audience that reachres beyond the classrom. You may also visit www.webquest.org to find and create webquests.
Strategy 2: Digital Storytelling
Digital storytelling is one activity that could motivate struggling writers to create dynamic stories because they get to combine traditional story writing with new literacies. Most students, even reluctant writers, know how to
use computers, video games, digital music players, cell phones, digital cameras, and other electronic devices. Encourage students to use their technology skills to create digital stories using with Windows Movie Maker or Apple's iMovie. Using the writing process a student begins writing a story, which eventually becomes the projects narration. After the story is complete, the author decides how to divide it into scenes and which photographs or clip art or draws illustrations to compliment each page of the text and scans all illustrations to get them into digital form. Next, the student records the story using expression that conveys the story's mood and action and that will captivate the listeners. When the story is recorded error-free, the student is ready to make the movie. Some students may want to enhance their movie by adding appropriate music and/or sound effects just like a real movie. The last step is for the student to add a title frame, transitions between frames, and rolling credits that cite all the sources for their clip art, photographs, and so on. Finally, the student publishes his/her work by inviting peers to watch his/her movie either online or on an interactive whiteboard. Some tools that help to create digital stories are
- Mac or PC computer
- Flash drive to save story pieces
- Headset/microphone for recording narrative
- Digital camera if students want to include photographs
- Windows Movie Maker or Apple's iMovie
- Microsoft Powerpoint or Photo Story or Apple Keynote to create story slides
- Audacity, an open source audio utility, for recording and editing
- For beginners, one Microsoft website makes digital storytelling easy...click the button below to see how!
Grade 6:
Strategy 1: Quick Writes (Writing on Demand)
Many students struggle with state mandated writing tests that require them to write to a given prompt for a predetermined amount of time. If students are used to the writing workshop, they may have difficulty time writing under those circumstances. Select a topic and give the students 10 minutes to complete the task using the POW or TREE strategy as described below.
POW
POW can be used when the prompt asks students to write what they know about a certain topic. POW stands for
TREE
When student need to respond with a persuasive passage, they can use TREE. Tree stands for
T= write a topic sentence that states your point of view;
R= state the reasons, at least three, for your stance;
E= explain each of the reasons with details that have been learned from the reading material; and
E= end your passage by writing a good summary sentence.
Strategy 2: Wikis
Wiki is a type of website designed using server software so the site's content can be edited by anyone who accesses it. The most famous wiki is Wikipedia, the free, collaborative internet encyclopedia. Some wikis, such as Wikispaces, however, are more geared to classroom use. Students can post information on wikis and then have others edit the post by adding or clarifying the information; or they themselves can edit a posting. Wikis are great tools for teaching critical thinking skills- is the information presented factual, truthful, speculative, or erroneous? Anyone can post anything on these sites, so students must be armed with the ability to tell the difference between good and bad information. This strategy can be used in grades 5-8.
Strategy 1: Quick Writes (Writing on Demand)
Many students struggle with state mandated writing tests that require them to write to a given prompt for a predetermined amount of time. If students are used to the writing workshop, they may have difficulty time writing under those circumstances. Select a topic and give the students 10 minutes to complete the task using the POW or TREE strategy as described below.
POW
POW can be used when the prompt asks students to write what they know about a certain topic. POW stands for
- Pick your own ideas,
- Organize your thoughts, using notes, and
- Write your ideas
TREE
When student need to respond with a persuasive passage, they can use TREE. Tree stands for
T= write a topic sentence that states your point of view;
R= state the reasons, at least three, for your stance;
E= explain each of the reasons with details that have been learned from the reading material; and
E= end your passage by writing a good summary sentence.
Strategy 2: Wikis
Wiki is a type of website designed using server software so the site's content can be edited by anyone who accesses it. The most famous wiki is Wikipedia, the free, collaborative internet encyclopedia. Some wikis, such as Wikispaces, however, are more geared to classroom use. Students can post information on wikis and then have others edit the post by adding or clarifying the information; or they themselves can edit a posting. Wikis are great tools for teaching critical thinking skills- is the information presented factual, truthful, speculative, or erroneous? Anyone can post anything on these sites, so students must be armed with the ability to tell the difference between good and bad information. This strategy can be used in grades 5-8.
Assessment
Portfolios
An authentic way of documenting students growth in writing are portfolios. They should contain writing attitudinal surveys, writing self-assessment surveys, spelling inventories completed periodically throughout the year, and samples of the students work with scoring rubrics. The rubrics should be both assessing the writing process and the writing products. Students can be included in the selection process when choosing which pieces should go into the portfolio. Have the students choose one or more and explain why they think it is a good piece to be included.
Portfolios
An authentic way of documenting students growth in writing are portfolios. They should contain writing attitudinal surveys, writing self-assessment surveys, spelling inventories completed periodically throughout the year, and samples of the students work with scoring rubrics. The rubrics should be both assessing the writing process and the writing products. Students can be included in the selection process when choosing which pieces should go into the portfolio. Have the students choose one or more and explain why they think it is a good piece to be included.