Hey y'all! I'm excited to bring you a GUEST POST from my friend and teacher Noelle from the Frizz!
**********************************************************************
Hello!
I'm here to tell you all about how I plan on
launching my Writer's Workshop this year.
First Day of School:
I give my students a blank piece of copy paper
(I purposefully give them paper without lines in order to see who draws a
picture and who gets right down to writing. Later, the paper will scaffold the
writing!)
I then explain to students that I will set a
timer and they are to write for ten WHOLE minutes. (gasp!)
I do not give them a prompt or any ideas.
I simply ask them to write.
I explain to them that I will be walking around
the room taking notes and should not be disturbed.
The guidelines for this activity are:
-No talking
-No walking
-If you run out of room on your paper, raise
your hand for a new piece
-You may not ask the teacher for help.
Just do your best!
While the students are writing their little
hearts out or staring at the ceiling, picking their nose,
raising their hands to ask you what to write about or how to spell a word,
drawing a picture, I have my clipboard in my hand and am walking around the
room writing furiously.
This is my chance to take notes about what kind of
writers I have this year!
I have my class list next to my notes page to
easily help me remember which student goes with which number on my clipboard.
This saves me time and energy when I am taking
notes!
I might write things like this:
1. hasn't written anything down after 8 minutes
2. drawing very detailed picture
3. uses complex sentences
4. tying his shoes for most of the time
5. needed 2nd piece of paper
6. struggled to get started
7. drew lines for himself on paper
Basically, I am writing down anything and everything
that will help me get to know my students as writers and help me further plan my writing
mini-lessons.
As the weeks pass and we
build our stamina in writing, I continue to use this clipboard to take notes.
I also use another document to help me plan my lessons in the future. After our writing time, I will quickly jot down
things I noticed students do or not do on the "Yesterday while you were
writing I noticed" section.
Okay. That was just day one. Are you
still with me?
Day 2: All About Me Bag Introduction
I read aloud Wilfred Gordon McDonald Partridge
and share my Me Bag. Be sure to read more about that here!
Day 3: Who is a writer? and What do
writer's do?
During this lesson we talk (and make an anchor chart) about all the people who
need to write (mom and dad, teachers, doctors, my older sister, and even 2nd graders!)
and what writer's do (WRITE! draw pictures to help them write, brainstorm, read
lots of books, jot down ideas, etc.)
After the mini lesson I will have a few students
share their All About Me bag with the class.
Day 4: What do writer's write? and Why do writer's
write?
During this lesson we talk (and make an anchor chart) about all the things writers write (lists, notes, thank you cards, stories, emails, directions, etc.) and I read Read Anything Good Lately? We also brainstorm all the reasons why writers write!
Again, students will share their bags with the
class.
Day 5 (is a BIG ONE!) First Day of Writer's Workshop:
This is where I launch my Writer's Workshop!
With my coffee mug in hand, I pull out the
folders, fresh pencils, crisp paper, and my fancy No Walk! No Talk! anchor
chart.
I explain to students that the time has finally
come for us to have our first Writer's Workshop (insert blank stares
here cheers and applause here!)
The class will brainstorm the behaviors and
expectations as I make the anchor chart.
I make sure the chart includes things like:
-Get started quickly
-Stay in one spot
-Silent voice
-Do what writer's do: WRITE!
Then, I send students off to start
writing.
I follow the Daily Five routine of
building stamina.
If I noticed a student not following the
directions above, I ring my bell for cleanup and everyone meets back on the
carpet.
We discuss as a class why we came back (by this
point, my class has already mastered this routine through read to self!)
We read over the anchor chart again, possibly
adding new ideas that might help the class build stamina.
We continue this routine each day until the
class can successfully write for 20 minutes.
I call this time "No Walk! No Talk!"
WHEW! That concludes my first week of
Writer's Workshop! After day five, you might need to celebrate with one
of those cold adult beverages or a box of brownie mix....if you know what I
mean!
What's next? Have no fear! That first day of Writer's Workshop will give you PLENTY of ideas for what to teach them next! It's so awesome- albeit also scary! You may find that you need a mini-lesson like Writer's Gum! Let the students writing guide you to the next (and the next and the next) mini-lesson!
Now I will kick up my feet and enjoy the
weekend!
Want some of the forms I talked about? Need to see more details about No Walk/No Talk or Writing Rules? Want a form to keep track of your writing conferences?
Click on the link to purchase our
Launching Writer’s Workshop pack!
