Nurturing Young Writers:
Supporting the Development of Dispositions, Process, and Craft
Angela Stockman WNY Education Associates stockmanangela@gmail.com
Coming Together as a Community
Photo by Silvia Tolisano
We Connect Through Our Stories
hat all t e v e i l e We b born e r a e l p o pe t the a h t d n a writers nables e g n i t i r act of w icate n u m m o us to c e our s i a r , s d our nee ct and e n n o c , s voice thers, o m o r f learn es as v i l r u o l and hea d. A t l r o w e h well as t rn how a e l e w , Studio upport s d n a r to hono r in the write ecause e, b everyon e the k a m s r e writ ace. l p r e t t e b world a
We All Need to Leave Our Mark on the World
http://tinyurl.com/27u6wa8
What Will Yours Be?
http://tinyurl.com/28xbnyz
What is the difference between real writing and‌.
functional writing? http://www.flickr.com/photos/sean002/2510540027/
WHERE
DO
YOU INVEST
THE MOST ENERGY?
THE MOST IMPORTANT WRITING INSTRUMENT TO PUT IN THEIR HANDS
BALANCE BUILDS BETTER WRITERS Being vs. Doing
What I’m learning about being a good writer: WE ACT AND WRITE WITH COURAGE
WE SEEK UNDERSTANDING BEFORE DOING
WE PERSEVERE
WE COLLABORATE
WE SHARE OUR EXPERTISE
WE GIVE OF OURSELVES AND ACT WITH KINDNESS
WE REFLECT ON WHERE WE’VE BEEN, WHERE WE ARE GOING, AND HOW WE PLAN TO GET THERE
WE KNOW THAT WRITING IS OFTEN A SLOW PROCESS
WE TRY TO DEVELOP BETTER AND BETTER AND BETTER STRATEGIES FOR IMPROVING OUR OWN WORK AND HELPING OTHERS
WITHIN COMMUNITIES, WE ARE ALL WRITERS AND LEARNERS
AND ALL OF US MUST TEACH.
“Real Writers” and “Real Writing” Have Certain Dispositions in Common....
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jefield/1119389/
E G A R U O C http://www.flickr.com/photos/whatmegsaid/3172360305/
UNDERSTANDIN G
http://www.flickr.com/photos/notsogoodphotography/770557316/
PERSEVERANCE
R E F L E C T I O N http://www.flickr.com/photos/tonythemisfit/3223459074/
EXPERTISE http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3461/3196112134_aa09fbfefa.jpg?v=0
They are…. CONNECTED COLLABORATIVE ENGAGED
http://www.flickr.com/photos/stuartpilbrow/3102888961/
Where Do Process and Craft Fit In? Envisioning a Year of Writing Together
Draw Your Writing Process
Growing the Good What do you currently do to support young writers well? Consider: Curriculum Instruction Assessment Management
THE WRITING PROCESS
Writing is a Process
Prewriting Drafting Peer-Review Revision Editing Exhibition Which parts of the process show up most in your classroom? Least? Why?
Make time for tinkering!
PREWRITING What does this look like? Strategies for Support: Prompts Artifacts Pictures Music Video Movement Equations RAFTS Conversation Web Tools
Traits to Focus on During Pre-Writing:
IDEAS ORGANIZATION
IDEAS • Invite or inspire pre-writing activities. • Come from our experiences, our connections, and our previous understandings. • May be generated from artifacts, photographs, movement, music, conversation, guided brainstorming and more….. • Require good writers to select appropriate MODES and to define their PURPOSES. • Move readers from general to more refined topics. • Inspire careful observation. • Require independent use of higher level thought.
Considering MODES and PURPOSE COMMON TEXT TYPES (MODES)
COMMON PURPOSES FOR WRITING
Narrative Text
To Persuade
Expository/ Informational Text
To Describe
Procedural Text
To Inform
Poetic
To Think
Functional
To Connect/Collaborate
Hybrid
To Build Collective Intelligence
How Do We Help Writers Generate Their OWN Innovative Ideas?
And how do we intervene when writers struggle to generate their own ideas?
Organization “Organization is what you do before you do something so that when you do it it’s not all mixed up.” http://blog.wired.com/geekdad/books/index.html
Winnie the Pooh
Organization • Requires that writers develop an INVITING lead for that provokes questioning and curiosity. • Inspires a body of work that attends to these questions and curiosities in a logical manner. • Relies upon smooth transitions and the articulation of turning points and resolutions. • Requires a conclusion that satisfies the questions and curiosities provoked by the lead and may inspire new ones. It does not, however, introduce new information.
ORGANIZATION WHAT IT IS…. A lead that “hooks” reader and provokes questions. A core that provides details in a logical manner and transitions between them smoothly. An ending that satisfies the questions raised within the work.
HOW WE SUPPORT IT… Mentor Text Tear Downs Writing on the Grid Story Boarding
Traits to Focus On As We Draft
IDEAS ORGANIZATION VOICE
VOICE • The “sound” of the writer or the speaker. • Tone that is appropriate to the task. • Commitment to the piece—involvement. • Attention to the topic.
Voice • Requires that writers shift the way they speak in response to MODE and PURPOSE. • Invites diversity and complexity. • Built when students take RISKS. • Thrives in a comfortable atmosphere. • Suffers when we overemphasize formulaic processes or models.
Exploring mentor texts leads endings in-betweens
Writers Need STRATEGIES That Help Them CRAFT Voice • Hearing Voices • Give-Aways: • Add-Ons • Messing With Sentences
“The race in writing is not to the swift, but to the original.” ----William Zinsser
WORD CHOICE
Word Choice • Original words • Precise words • Engaging words • Varied words • Attention to dialect and formality
Post-It Poetry
Sentence fluency • Fluent sentences appeal to the ear and the eye. • They vary in length and structure. • They convey character, emotion, and reveal voice. • Rhythm, rhyme, and repetition of vowel and consonant sounds effect fluency.
Beyond Peer-Conferencing: Peer Review Processes Modeling With Fishbowl Assessment Intervention Coaching With Push/Pause
Traits to Focus On During Peer-Review IDEAS VOICE ORGANIZATION WORD CHOICE SENTENCE FLUENCY
EDITING How are YOU strong as an editor? Differentiating the peer-editing process
Traits to Focus On As We Edit IDEAS VOICE ORGANIZATION WORD CHOICE SENTENCE FLUENCY CONVENTIONS
CONVENTIONS: THE LAST CONVERSATION • Attending to conventions happens at the END of the writing process. • Effective writers understand why editing is necessary. Strong writers know that editing isn’t merely about “fixing up” writing. • Edits are intentional, effective, and do not strip the work of voice, ideas, or fluency. They BUILD it.
Coaching Creative Theft
Find the Assessment
What Does Effective Assessment of Writing Look Like?
What Makes for Adequate Practice? What Makes for Suitable Practice?
Let’s Play Use the materials provided to explore and design instructional approaches that will meet the needs of your students. Be prepared to share your work during peer-review, gather feedback from your colleagues, and share your growing expertise with others.
References Gray, Theresa (2006). Slideshare. Writing Frameworks. Retrieved January 21, 2009 from: http://www.slideshare.net/TGray/writing-frameworks Martin-Kniep, Giselle O. Communities That Lead, Learn, and Last: Building and Sustaining Educational Expertise. California: Jossey-Bass, 2008. National Board for Professional Teacher Standards. “What Teachers Should Know and Be Able to Do: The Five Core Propositions.” Retrieved Aug. 21, 2008 from http://www.nbpts.org/the_standards/the_five_core_propositions Stockman, Angela (2008-Present). WNY Young Writers’ Studio. Presented at Daemen College, Amherst, NY and the Kenan Center, Lockport, NY. Unless otherwise noted, all photographs were taken by Angela Stockman, who was given permission to use them by the subject and parents, when necessary.