These chapters were really helpful and made me think about my writer's conferences in a very different light. Since I do not teach writing it is not expected of me to necessarily conference with my students and therefore it is not something I have necessarily done a lot of in the past. My team teacher who does teach reading and writing is awesome about taking the time to actually have meaningful conferences and conversations with my students about their writing and how it is coming along. When I read How's It Going I came across a quote on page 82 that said "first we need to immerse them in conference conversation at every opportunity." I never thought about this until I read this quote and realized that I can conference with them about their math or science writing simply by saying hey how's it going and hearing what they have to say. We do writing in math and science all the time and we talk about different ways to become better mathematicians and scientists and how our writing can express this - this is what writing conferences are all about. Our students are only going to live up to the expectations that we set for them. If we don't expect them to be master writers who are aiming to be published then they will never writer like master writers who deserve to be published. It is our job to help them realize their potential at all times in all subject areas through writing.
I realized that I ask the question "How's it going" a lot with my students and I think that with just a little more focus and direction that phrase can really do a lot of great things for my students in terms of their writing. I also think that when students are able to hear the feedback being given to other students (eavesdropping) that a lot of good can actually come from that. Think-pair-shares are great for if not other reason than it gives students a starting point and a place to begin thinking about things without the individual pressure - eavesdropping on conferences and hearing advice being given to other students in my opinion is the same thing.
I want to really focus on celebrating those students when I see the writing of scientists or mathematicians and really use that wording to help others who are struggling with it. I also realized that I need to do more referring back to previous things, especially previous connections and writing that have been done. This is their own work and we should really celebrate and build from what they have already done rather than thinking we have to start from scratch each time. I also realized that this is a great way to look at my morning work time. Instead of giving them a different prompt each day, I can give them a prompt or paper for the week and use that as a way for them to edit and revise and conference throughout the week.
The last thing that I really took away was the idea of writing mentors and having students use partners to really help their writing. I remember doing this in school when I was younger but have definitely not given my students the opportunity to really do it in my classroom this year. We talk all the time about CGI and math and how important it is for students to confer after they have solved a problem so it only makes sense that it would be just as important for their writing aspect as well. I am excited to really focus more on what I am doing and how I can take that and apply it in an even more focused manner
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ReplyDeleteKelsey- I really appreciate your reflection in how you can make writing work in your math and science classes. You're trying to make it work for you and your students, which I think is always what the ultimate goal we are striving for. Also- I really square with your thinking in wanting to have a more directed la gauge in your conference starters- I feel the same way! I think becoming more organized and clear in what my students are currently working on will help me with that.
ReplyDeleteI love how you are using the strategies across content. Realizing that we use literacy in every subject is key and we can support our students in all areas. I learned this week that I won't be teaching ELA writing anymore but I'll be teaching math and will continue with social studies. However, I believe that this book will still help me to support my students in thinking and writing like mathematicians. I also highlighted the same point about being more conversational with students instead of rehearsed. I think that with time and practice as students and teachers both get more comfortable with conferencing, more natural conversations will begin to flow.
ReplyDelete(Ashley above comment)
DeleteIntegration! LOVE IT!
ReplyDeleteThe repetition of language is so important because they internalize it and then can begin to use it with one another. As this happens more and more, students will get used to it and so will you! I love what you were saying about using it with CGI since the communication piece is so important to that. Students can use writing to express how they went about solving the problems and that can help them with their understanding and use of academic language along the way.
Kelsey F
Wow, your reflections on this post are very inspiring. I see you growing a lot and pushing yourself and your students, which is very impressive. I love how you're thinking about ways that you can confer with students, even if you're not the "writing" teacher. It's so easy to teach with the "all subjects are parsed-up" mindset. And I know that even though I teach writing, it's hard enough to find time to confer, so I'm sure it's even tougher if you don't explicitly teach writing! I love the idea of having students write for morning work. I also love the idea of you developing your students' scientific and mathematical writing -- how awesome is that!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you also talked about the peer-mentoring. I have been thinking about that and this is something that is very hard to teach. In order to successfully be a peer-mentor, students have to know how to communicate, how to problem solve, and a lot of other social/emotional skills that have nothing to do with writing. It is a slow, tough process sometimes to teach students how to work effectively with others, so having students be peer mentors is a daunting task! I'm glad that you're taking it on, though. You go, girl!