1. Agenda 8:oo-8:30 Reading /Follow up Activity 8:30-9:00 Essay Activity
9:00-9:45 Lecture-Writing Traits
9:45-10:45 Break out Groups
10:45-11:30 Creative Writing Activity/Wrap Up

2. Recap Pick an overall reading expectation
Find a short story (one I gave you, cross curricular)
Develop a critical questions (and how you will assess it?) then opinion and fact questions that scaffold to each other (and how you will assess them?)
Develop a hook that integrates the arts
Decide how you will teach each part (differentiation, grouped by readiness, balance approach??)

3. Your Grade-Organization
4+ Add closing hanger off conclusion and rebuttal paragraph
4 Have a hook, and well ordered paragraphs
3+ Have an introduction with a claim. Have three paragraphs with data and a warrant in both. Each paragraph ends with a connection to the claim

4. Grading Process Leveled grading vs. number grade
65,68,72,75,78,84,89,95,100 OR an exact number grade
How to use it
How it should work…

5. Writing Traits Conventions Organization Voice Sentence fluency
Word choice
Ideas

6. Conventions Spelling tests (in context) DOL
Grammar lessons (in context)
One on one teaching

7. Organization Follows a predesigned pattern
Could cross curricular connects
Could in the form of essays, music scores, reports(science, humanities), short stories, poetry, brochures
Show examples
Break down stories, essays, poems…
Hint at creative ways to do this

8. Voice Show examples (text book, Dr. Zeus..)
Very short writing samples from students
Drama is a great springboard!
Say your writing aloud!

9. Sentence Fluency Provide examples
Be very specific about how many short, how many long sentences…
Practice with writing dialogue

10. Word Choice Word walls Vocabulary lessons Adjective and adverb lessons
Vocabulary and synonym games
Specific editing requirements

11. (Creative?)Ideas Brainstorming with partners Story boards, essay plans
Provide facts, information
Creative teaching methods to get good ideas going!

12. Writing lesson: set up
What overall expectation are you working towards?
Will this fit into a larger critical challenge/unit plan?
Links to a reading piece/Arts piece that demonstrates that trait (The Wife’s Story demonstrates good ideas by twisting the story…lyrics might demonstrate good word choice…essay with good organization…)
Usual techniques to make sure the reading/arts piece is understood
Specific expectations for assessment of the trait(s)

13. Writing lesson: During
Guided/shared writing for some?
Independent for others??
The writing is often done in the computer lab

14. Writing follow up
Re-submit work until the basics are correct? You can do this as a pass/fail option
Kids like to know that you have read what they have written. It is very important that you read everything the kids turn in.
Celebrate good writing
Try not to get bogged down with conventions all the time!

15. Teaching writing?
The kids need to write every day is some form!!

16. Grammar
Our research colleagues tell us that virtually no grammar is transferred to a students writing, if the grammar is taught, as a separate subject.
This does not mean that grammar is not taught!
It is taught in context with the students’ writing piece
Grammar is like the clothes we wear. (Like in “The Zoo”) It does not define the writing piece but it does make impressions…
Don’t correct grammatical mistakes, identify them and then talk to the kids!