Annenberg Video 3, Friday May 3

Program 1. Building a Community of Writers

As you watch, look for the following key practices:

•   Teachers model respect for writing and writers.

One thing I wanted to comment on during this section was the importance morning meeting played in a lot of the example classrooms.  It was often a way for students to get to know each other better, and to be involved in one another’s lives.  It also let the teacher know more about the students and struggles they may be having.  It is fascinating to me that, although this video discussed writing workshop, it started by talking about classroom community as a whole.  Teaching students to respect each other and to have a strong sense of community is where it begins.  The video mentioned a number of times that students need to feel safe with their writing and sharing, or they will not take risks.  As a writer myself, I know that that is crucial to sharing work, and to taking chances in that work. 

•   Teachers schedule adequate time for writing and writing instruction.

•   Teachers provide multiple opportunities for community members to talk about their lives and their writing.

These two points are interrelated.  I thought the emphasis the video put on collaboration was also interesting.  At one point, it mentions that workshops are a messy place.  I love the idea of kids getting to talk to each other about their writing, and helping one another in the writing process.  I am instantly worried about students not getting adequate work done and messing around.  One teacher shared his struggles with that as well, and his attitude was sort of that messing around IS going to happen, and it’s something you need to anticipate.  His students were not on task, but produced work that they were proud of.  He said that that would not have happened had they been at their desks.  I think that coming to terms with the fact that kids are going to mess around is wise, and that it must be planned for.  Second, time seems to be something that writing workshops require a lot of.  I think careful planning for the rest of the day is also imperative so that students, and the teacher, don’t feel rushed.

•   Writers share their work and celebrate one another's writing successes.

•   Teachers are active members of the community, writing alongside their students and sharing and taking risks with their own writing.

The importance the video had on teachers sharing their writing is something I haven’t heard a lot of previously.  The teacher I am currently with did it once, and I thought it was pretty cool to see.  My initial concern was that it would intimidate the students.  This might be true for some, but at least in my class, it was not a huge issue.  It is a great way to show students that editing is a process that everyone needs to go through.  Students in my room see editing as admitting they made a mistake.  I love the environment created, that revisions are human and that there’s no way for it to be perfect the first time.  In my experience, sharing work can be the most important part of the workshop.  Students feel truly accomplished when they can read what they’ve written for the class, or even just for the teacher.  It also increases that environment of support in the room.

The most important thing I learned from this video was that classroom environment sets the stage for a productive writer’s workshop.  The video showed a lot of ways to increase this.  I hope to learn more about it in the coming videos, and more strategies for creating a learning environment of support and collaboration.

Question of the Day

To follow up with Thursday's substitute on top of also having a sub for the afternoon on Wednesday, my question was: What is the hardest thing about having a sub for a day?

The first difficulty my teacher described was writing out as many details as possible.  She explained that there are so many things going on in the classroom, so many small procedures and class norms, that it's basically impossible to write out everything that the students are used to.  She said that it was helpful having someone like me there while she had a substitute because I am used to all of these things (or most).  The second challenge she described was not being able to see the students, and not being confident that they're behaving and getting what they need.  She said this is on both sides of the equation: are the students behaving as they should?  Are they messing around too much?  And: is the substitute doing what they need to do for the students?  Is the sub effective?  I also figured out how to FaceTime on Friday, so my teacher got to peek into the classroom and see the kids a bit.  She said this was also very helpful, and definitely fun for both her and the kids!