SARAH CRAIN K-12 LITERACY COORDINATOR STAFFORD COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS DR. NANCY GUTH FORMER SUPERVISOR OF LITERACY AND HUMANITIES STAFFORD COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS PROFESSOR, GMU & UMW EXECUTIVE CONSULTANT, RENAISSANCE LEARNING Writing in the Secondary Classroom

Objectives Participants will be able to: Distinguish between formative and summative uses for writing in the content area Apply “writing to learn” strategies to a content area Compare and contrast “on-demand writing” with other summative writing assignments Examine strategies and discuss best practices for grading writing Enjoy and be comfortable approaching writing….

Getting to know you… Please take a moment to consider the following: What would you like to learn about writing in the content area in today’s session?

Why Write? 1. Writing helps students actively engage in subject matter. 2. Writing helps students gain access to further education. 3. Writing leads to fulfilling employment. 4. Writing prepares you for active citizenship (Daniels et al., 2007, pp. 5 -6).

Formative Assessment Summative Assessment “Writing to learn” Primarily for the students’ benefit Short, first drafts only Can be used to inform instruction but are not “graded” Notes, lists, journals “Public writing” Primarily for an outside audience Several drafts and revisions, usually extended length For a grade Essays, editorials, reviews Different Types of Writing/Assessment

Why Write?

Why Write? Think about your five most important reasons for writing JOT DOWN YOUR MAIN FIVE REASONS…. SHARE WITH YOUR NEIGHBOR SAME? DIFFERENT?

Why do we write? To Remember (lists) To Learn To Go Somewhere To communicate feelings (cards) To communicate –tell a story

Writing: To Learn “In order for learners to understand and remember ideas, they must act upon them” (Daniels et al., 2007, p. 25). “To get learning power, kids need to grapple with ideas, transform them, and put them in their own words” (Daniels et al., 2007, p. 26).

Writing to Learn So what about: Taking notes during a presentation/lecture? Answering the questions at the end of a chapter? Copying information from the board? Consider: Are these good examples of writing to learn? Why or why not? Write your thoughts on a piece of paper.

Writing to Learn A Few of our Favorite Things: Writing Break Exit/Admit Slips Drawing or Illustrating Double - Entry Journal Written Conversations Carousel Brainstorm Photograph writing Take a minute and reflect in writing on how you might incorporate one or more of these strategies into a content lesson.

Favorite Things Turn and talk:  Share how you would/could utilize one or more of the strategies … NOT

On Demand Writing Other Public Writing Writing to demonstrate knowledge Limited audience Limited response Limited time Writing to persuade or entertain Authentic audience possible Invites student to discuss topic in depth Student can draft, revise, edit, and polish Public Writing

On Demand Writing (you know, “tests”) Best practices: Focus on “big ideas” Build in more time Ask questions that require students to demonstrate higher level thinking rather than recall Use engaging, relevant topics TEACH THEM HOW TO RESPOND

Easy as ABC… Kelly Gallagher (2006, pp ) A. Attack the prompt B. Brainstorm ideas C. Choose how to organize your response D. Detect mistakes

Ideas: But When Do I Do This? RAFT Web page Brochure Portfolios Multi-Genre Project I-Search Project Social Action Project In place of a traditional multiple choice/short answer assessment Small parts assembled throughout the course Culminating project post SOL’s Other Public Writing

Why does writing take SO MUCH time to grade?

Rubrics – the Key to Grading When grading an essay: as a content expert, what do you think is important? as a writer, what do you think is important? How do you balance these two roles as a content teacher? Take a moment to record your responses.

Myths About Grading Essays 1. Only full length essays should be graded and given feedback. 2. My rubric has to be specific to the exact essay I assign. 3. I have to grade for all elements on the rubric in each essay. 4. I have to correct all of my students’ grammatical and mechanical errors.

#1: Only full length essays should be graded and given feedback. Practice writing skills on a smaller scale first  Literary analysis paragraph BEFORE a full paper Use these small assignments to make detailed comments Quality over quantity Poetry Paragraph Journal *An “A” response consists of the following: ___ Clear topic sentence stating the main point of the paragraph ___ Several specific and persuasive examples from the poem to support the main point ___ A comprehensive understanding of the literary element discussed ___ A comprehensive understanding and explanation of the thought and feeling expressed in the poem including subtleties of meaning ___ Correctly formatted quotations and in-text citations ___ Little to no grammatical errors; those present are not distracting ___ Language that is clear, varied, and concise ___ Varied style and effective tone

#2: My rubric has to be specific to the exact essay I assign. Design a rubric with common categories that will work for multiple assignments Teach mini-lessons on specific features to help students improve Common Categories Content Format requirements Mechanics

#3: I have to grade for all elements on the rubric in each essay. Teacher Directed Assign a specific focus for a paper Grade only for this element Student Directed Student self- assesses his/her opportunities for improvement Writes with selected element as primary focus

#4: I have to correct all of my students’ grammatical and mechanical errors. Highlight sentences that you want students to revise Limit the number of revision sentences Ask students to use resources to figure out mistakes Write the sentence where the problem occurs here. Write the corrected sentence here. Circle the problem(s) here. Spelling Run-on Clarity Spelling Run-on Clarity Spelling Run-on Clarity Spelling Run-on Clarity Spelling Run-on Clarity Spelling Run-on Clarity

In Closing… The American Association for the Advancement of Science is quoted, saying: “Learning requires the student’s engagement in four activities, all intended to result in thinking: reading, listening, doing, and writing” (Daniels et al., 2007, p. 8). Notice it isn’t literature, math, science, and history…

References Daniels, H., Zemelman, S., Steineke, N. (2007). Content-area writing: Every teacher’s guide. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann Gallagher, K. (2006). Teaching adolescent writers. Portland, ME: Stenhouse

Disclaimer Reference within this presentation to any specific commercial or non-commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer or otherwise does not constitute or imply an endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the Virginia Department of Education.

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