writing

Back to school books and activities

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by C. Elkins, OK Math and Reading Lady

As part of building a classroom community, you likely will have many discussions about diversity, friendship, and showing respect in various ways.  Here are some great resources for literature that might emphasize the point you are trying to make.

Weareteachers.com 14 books with great follow-up ideas.

  • This site is one of the best because it doesn’t just give a summary of the story, but it provides very practical follow up ideas include a get-to-know-you bingo, anchor charts, self-portrait, writing, posters, brainstorming, drawing, etc.
  • For the above book, “Dear Teacher,” she suggests writing a postcard to a friend or family member telling them about the first week of school.
  • For the book, “Name Jar,” the article suggests brainstorming and creating a poster showing different ways to greet a new student.  

5 Back to School Books for 3rd Grade (Pinterest from notsowimpyteacher.com):

  • There might be some new titles here that kids haven’t heard in previous years.

Back to school books for upper elementary (teachingtoinspire.com).

  • This teacher provides some printables to accompany the books she recommends. These deal with more advanced issues such as kindness, diversity, perseverance, homework and writing.
  • One of the books she features is “The Important Book” by Margaret Wise Brown. It’s been around for awhile (for a good reason). A perfect book for getting kids to write details around one topic. This can actually be used any time of year – not just the beginning. For the schools I visit, I have a set of these books you may borrow. Or send me a message and I will send you more information about this book and its link to writing possibilities! Or, of course, I can help you do a lesson using these any time of the year.

Don’t have the books mentioned? Your school library might be able to get it from another library. Or – check youtube.com.  Many books are shared this way!

Enjoy!  And please share some other titles and/or beginning of school activities you love.

Writing Part 8: Six Traits of Writing and Descriptive Model

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by C. Elkins, OK Math and Reading Lady

This will be the final part of my writing series. The focus today is on the Six Traits of Writing. The six traits are a tool for teaching writing, leading to a quality product.  They are not an organizational model (such as Four Square).  This model was originally developed by the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory in Oregon. Here is a link to their website which includes more resources, definitions, and research:  http://educationnorthwest.org/traits/

I will refer to the six traits, although Education Northwest added a seventh trait (presentation) and titles it “Six + 1 Trait Writing.” Keep reading to find some FREE RESOURCES.

So what are the Six Traits that define quality writing?  See full definitions by clicking HERE:

  • Ideas:  This is the main message or topic.
    • The message is written clearly.
    • It is interesting and shows understanding of the topic.
  • Organization:  This is the structure of the piece. Connections are strong.
    • Everything written links to the message.
    • A good beginning and ending grab the reader.
    • Organization is evident. (Link to text structures of sequence, compare-contrast, description, problem-solution, and cause-effect.)
  • Sentence Fluency:  This is the flow and rhythm of the writing.
    • Varied sentence beginnings and lengths.
    • Does it sound smooth and interesting, showing good use of transitions?
    • Are some words emphasized for effect?
  • Voice:  This is the writer’s personal tone coming through.
    • The writing sounds like the author.
    • The author’s feelings and style come through the writing.
    • It shows sincerity, honesty, and conviction.
  • Word Choice:  This is the vocabulary the author chooses. 
    • Selects the best words to fit the author and the message.
    • Does not repeat words too many times.
    • Replaces overused words.  (Search for “Said is Dead” on Pinterest.)
    • Natural, but precise and vivid.
    • Might include well-placed figurative language.
  • Conventions:  This is the mechanical correctness – the rules of language. Expectations should be based on grade level lessons and standards.
    • Spelling
    • Grammar
    • Punctuation
    • Capitalization
  • Presentation (the +1 trait):  This is how the writing looks on the page – the overall appearance.
    • text or font
    • neatness / handwriting
    • graphics
    • spacing and borders

Continue reading →

Writing Part 7: Four Square Writing Model

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by C. Elkins, OK Math and Reading Lady

One of my favorite models for organizing writing is the Four Square Model.  I got the chance to attend a workshop conducted by the author of these books and I have been a fan ever since. This organizational model can be applied from KG to 5th grade (and beyond).

Four Square Writing:

Order HERE.  It is developmentally appropriate to start with pictures for the youngest and gradually add sentences to explain the topic. For those who can write sentences, this model can help students build from a single five sentence paragraph (first and second grades) to the 5 paragraph essay (3rd and up). This model is great for expository, persuasive, and descriptive types of writing. For intermediate students, this format helps them organize the main idea, subtopics, details, and transition words.

  1. Students become better at seeing the relationship between the main topic and sub-topics such as: Fruit — apple, grape, cherry. I believe if students can write about a topic and the supporting details, then they can more easily recognize these in text. Description is one of the five main text structures.
  2. KG students start with pictures. Then young students (first or second) create a topic, 3 supporting details, and a beginning or concluding sentence to create a single paragraph.
  3. See this precious video from a first grade class showing how to use the four square method First Grade 4-Square Writing (Mr. Alba’s Class)

Thank you to teachers in Lawton for sharing some of the the work students did when I worked with them on use of this model. Here are a few samples (first and fifth grades): Continue reading →

Writing Part 6: Mini Lessons

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by C. Elkins, OK Math and Reading Lady

Thanks for hanging in there regarding my Writing series.  Today I will focus on using writing mini-lessons. The mini-lesson is the teacher’s chance to show children how to do all of the different things writers do — a little bit at a time.

Writing Mini-Lessons:

  • Mini-Lessons are meant to be short  – maybe 10-15 minutes.
  • They are meant to address student needs – so your decisions shouldn’t necessarily come from a sequenced list, but based on what you see the students doing (or not doing).
  • Focus on one topic per mini-lesson. Then practice that one aspect of writing.
  • Decisions on mini-lessons can be based on any writing students are doing (journal, prompts, reading responses, and other curriculum writing assignments).
  • How often? I would try 1-2 mini-lessons per week. Alternate days with handwriting instruction and journal writing if you only have one block of time for writing.
  • Writing mini-lessons can also be done as a part of your guided reading weekly routine. This means you can differentiate your instruction based on the group of students with whom you are working.
  • Always model and use think alouds. Your writing mini-lessons will be more effective if you have already been utilizing shared writing methods. Use some of your own writing to introduce a mini-lesson.
  • Don’t forget to praise when you notice a student who has implemented some of your mini-lesson strategies.  Give specific info to a student directly. Specific praise (not just “Good job”) will result in more consistent use of what you praised them for. Example:  “I noticed you have ending punctuation on all of your sentences. Keep it up!” 

Mini-Lesson Ideas: These are not listed in any particular order because you should select ones based on what students need. However, I did put them in a somewhat developmentally appropriate order from younger to older students.

Get your free printed PDF copy of these ideas (enough for a whole year) by clicking HERE. Continue reading →

Writing Part 5: Temporary Spelling and Word Wall

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by C. Elkins, OK Math and Reading Lady

Can u reed wut i am riting? Can u tel frum my riting that i no most uv the mane sonds in werds? I no sum site werds, i no the sonds in order frum left to rite as i strech them out. I no sum vowl paterns. I can evn spel sum 2 silubul werds by trying 1 silubul at a time. After i am dun riting, the teecher helps me pik out 2 werds to lern. Then i practis them a fu timez and add them to my speshul werd book so i can find and uz them agen.

This is an example of temporary spelling appropriate for a late KG-2nd grade student. The “student” was able to focus on the content of their writing using spelling strategies mentioned in my previous posts:

  • Stretch out sounds or use sound boxes.
  • Clap to hear the distinct syllables and spell each syllable separately.
  • Think about spelling patterns from known or rhyming words.
  • Use words posted on the word wall and/or in the individual word book.
  • Try words different ways to see which one looks right.

For this student, I would have selected these 2 words (werd/word and frum/from) for further practice because they were used often, close to the correct spelling, and only need minor adjustments. I usually have them circle the words we chose. These words only need minor tweaking and they are likely to be words needed often for future writing. When the words are added to his/her word book, they are there for reference and are more likely to be used correctly in the future. Continue reading →

Writing Part 3: Modeling and Shared Writing

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by C. Elkins, OK Math and Reading Lady

I will share several writing strategies via this series of posts on Writing. Part 1 was a focus on the continuum and word-writing strategies. Part 2 focused on the importance of letter formation and handwriting (printing) with a way to incorporate it with concepts of print, phonics, and composing sentences. In this part, I would like to focus on a modeling / shared writing strategy I call “Class News.” I utilized this strategy with KG-3rd grade classes and will share some pictures and ideas with you. I also wrote an article about this that appeared many years ago in the Oklahoma Reader, a publication by the OK Reading Association.

What is it?  I called students together each day for math talk time. After this, we held a class news session. Writing the date was part of the routine (but it doesn’t have to be). Students took turns sharing news of importance to them – and sometimes some other news about the day was added. For younger students it was a definite time to emphasize a variety of concepts of print:

  1. Directionality and return sweep (going to the next line from left to right)
  2. Spacing within and between words (see part 2 reference to “spaghetti and meatballs”)
  3. Letter formation – tall letters vs. short letters vs. below the line letters
  4. Use of capitals and punctuation
  5. Noticing the difference between letters, words, and sentences
  6. The opportunity to think aloud about letter sounds and sight words

After a sentence was orally agreed on, I wrote parts of it and solicited help from students for parts I felt they could be successful with. This often varied depending on what I wanted to emphasize. At first it was beginning letters or ending letters. Then I would try leaving out the vowels for students to work on. Gradually, different word parts or whole words were left for students to complete (usually with a different colored marker). All the while I was right next to them guiding them.

I also kept a few learning aids handy (alphabet chart with pictures, letter formation chart, vowel pairs chart, etc.) so we could reference them when needed. I have linked some FREE mini charts at the end of this post. Example:  A student is finishing the word “toad” and is thinking of the correct vowel pair, so I show my vowel pairs chart and point to the word “boat” and say, “Do you see a word / picture that has the same middle sound as the word toad?” . . . child finds boat to see the letters oa.  I also kept a small white board (or clip board) handy. For example, if the child came to write the sight word “have” on the chart, I might ask them to write it on the white board or clipboard first to check their thinking – that way all the kinks were worked out and the news chart stayed in a non-smudged condition. I also used the whiteboard to make sound boxes for a student to work out the sounds (like for a cvc word). Continue reading →

Writing Part 1: How to get students to write

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by C. Elkins, OK Math and Reading Lady

So many teachers have asked for assistance with writing – so here is Part 1. Stay tuned for more parts devoted to helping students become better writers.

Sometimes it’s hard to know where to start with writing. Do you have these thoughts?

  • What type of paper is best? Lined, unlined, wide rule, college rule, dotted lines?
  • How much should I help them with spelling? Does it need to be spelled correctly?
  • Should I use prompts or free choice journaling?
  • How do I get students to space correctly?
  • How do I get students to stay on a topic?
  • How do I get students to use the conventions we have worked on (capitalization, punctuation, etc.)
  • What do I do about handwriting issues?
  • How can I connect it with reading, math, or other subjects?

At the root of all of these issues above, I believe the following are musts for any grade level:

  1. Students must be exposed to quality literature which highlights a variety of writing styles. This is accomplished through the books you use in guided reading, whole group reading, and especially your daily read aloud time. Through this rich exposure to literature students become familiar with various authors and their styles of writing, as well as how authors use their “voice” to relay their message. Voice is the ability to project the way you talk into print. (More info in later posts about books that really show different types of “voice.”)
  2. Students can’t be expected to write if they don’t see the teacher model writing. Through modeling, teachers can use dozens of “think alouds” to share the decisions they are making. In this way, the strategies a writer (the teacher) uses are being exposed. Then the students are more likely to emulate these strategies.
  3. Writing needs to be scaffolded in the same way as other lessons: I do – we do – you do. Students observe and watch the teacher as he/she models various writing strategies. With shared writing, the teacher and students work together to “share the pen.” Then we gradually release students through guided writing sessions before expecting independent writing. This is a year-long process.
  4. Sometimes your writing strategy lessons might best be accomplished through your small group literacy time. Students are probably grouped based on their reading needs, so they likely have similar writing needs. From my experience, it’s a lot easier to monitor 4-6 students’ writing than a whole class. In this case a  goal could be to write once a week as part of your weekly routine. (Example: Monday and Tuesday are spent on the guided reading text for the week, Wednesday on word work, and Thursday for writing.)

Continue reading →