1. Session 1, Planning Skills Instruction
Section 4, Skill Practice and Instruction 1 session
Session 1, Planning Skills Instruction
45 minutes
Considerations for This Section
Ideally, this session would be offered after most teachers have taught at least the first two units of Being a Writer. You might consider offering this session in conjunction with the “Skill Practice and Assessment” session in Section 3 if you have extended time (or before/after that session) for a focus on skill and convention instruction in the Being a Writer program.
Facilitator Materials
“Session 1, Skill Practice and Instruction” slide presentation
Being a Writer classroom set for your reference
Pads of self-stick notes
Participant Materials
Being a Writer Teacher’s Manual
Skill Practice Teaching Guide
Student Skill Practice Book (1 copy)
Samples of student writing (from recent instruction)
Notebook or journal
Do Ahead
Download the “Session 1, Skill Practice and Instruction” presentation from the CCC Learning Hub (ccclearninghub.org) and preview the content, including the commentary in the “Notes” field of each slide. Pay particular attention to slides 6–8 of this session, where you will be directly sharing information about the skills and conventions instruction in the Being a Writer program. You may want to familiarize yourself with the concepts presented on these slides in order to speak more confidently about this instruction.
Set up the necessary equipment (computer/projector, screen, speakers, etc.).
Place pads of self-stick notes on tables for the participants to use during the session.

2. Learning Goals
Reflect on the challenges of helping students use skills and conventions in their writing.
Understand how skills and conventions are taught and supported in the program.
Learning Goals
(1–2 minutes)
Read the slide aloud.
Explain that during this session, the participants will work with partners and in small groups. Have each participant identify a partner to work with during this session. Establish a signal (such as a raised hand) for coming back together at the end of partner or small-group work.
Transition to the next slide by telling the participants that they will have time now to review their students’ writing and reflect on how their students are doing with skills and conventions.

3. Reflection
What do you notice about your students’ knowledge of skills and conventions?
What evidence of understanding have you seen in their writing?
Reflection
(5–7 minutes)
Read the questions on the slide aloud.
Allow a few minutes for the participants to reflect and to review their students’ writing.
Scan the room; when most participants are ready, prompt them to share their reflections with their partners.
Explain that they should keep their reflections in mind as they explore skills and conventions in the Being a Writer program.

4. Writing Skills and Conventions
Review the “Skills and Conventions” chart and read the “Skills and Conventions” section in the Introduction of your Teacher’s Manual.
Discuss with a partner:
What did you read that will be important to remember?
Writing Skills and Conventions
(3–5 minutes)
Direct the participants to locate the “Skills and Conventions” chart in the Introduction of their Teacher’s Manual and give them a minute to look over it.
Have them locate and read the “Skills and Conventions” section in the Introduction.
Allow a few minutes for the participants to talk with their partners about the important points.
Scan the room; when most participants have finished, signal for their attention and go to the next slide.

5. Writing Skills and Conventions (continued)
Kindergarten teachers:
Read the “Stages of Early Writing Development” chart in your Assessment Resource Book.
Grades 1–6 teachers:
In your Skill Practice Teaching Guide, read the Introduction on page vii and the “Language Skills Support in the Being a Writer Teacher’s Manual” section. Find and review the chart showing the skills correlation table for your grade.
Discuss with a partner:
What did you read that will be important to remember?
Writing Skills and Conventions (continued)
(5–7 minutes)
Direct the participants to locate the section listed for their grade level on the slide.
Allow a few minutes for them to read. After most participants have finished, signal for their attention and ask them to discuss with their partners what will be important to remember.
After 1–2 minutes, signal for their attention and go on to the next slide.

6. Grades K–1: Skills and Conventions
In early grades of the Being a Writer program:
Students are supported in learning the basic skills needed for writing, such as writing letters and words, using letter-sound relationships to spell words, using a word wall, and using standard sentence punctuation.
Writing skills and conventions are taught cumulatively and sequentially across the units in grades K–2 during the shared or modeled portions of the lessons.
Grades K–1: Skills and Conventions
(1–2 minutes)
Read the slide aloud.

7. Grades 2–6: Skills and Conventions
In later grades of the Being a Writer program, writing skills and conventions:
Are taught after the students have had ample time to draft their ideas
Are discussed during the revision and proofreading phases of the writing process
Are taught when they naturally lend themselves to a particular genre
May be taught or reviewed as needed
Grades 2–6: Skills and Conventions
(1–2 minutes)
Read the slide aloud.

8. Grades 1–6: Skills and Conventions
The Skill Practice Teaching Guide mini-lessons:
Provide additional skills instruction and practice
Can be taught anytime during the year
Are brief 10–15 minute lessons
Can be taught to small groups or to the whole class
Include whiteboard activities to increase student engagement
Can be reinforced using the activities found in the Student Skill Practice Book
Grades 2–6: Skills and Conventions (continued)
(1–2 minutes)
Read the slide aloud.

9. Grade K With your partner:
Identify the Unit Overviews in the manual and mark them with self-stick notes.
Revisit the “Skills and Conventions” chart in the Introduction of your Teacher’s Manual.
Using the Unit Overviews and the chart, determine when during the program you will be teaching the skills and conventions of writing.
Grades K–1
(1–2 minutes)
Explain to the participants that there are two activities, one for teachers of grades K–1 and one for teachers of grades 1–6.
Note: There is overlap across these two activities for grade 1 teachers. Invite this grade-level team to divide between the two activities and allow extra time for them to share what they noticed during each activity.
Read the slide aloud and ask the K–1 teachers to quietly get started with the activity. (They may wish to jot down notes to remind them of the instructions as you will be going on to the next slide to provide instructions to the grades 1–6 teachers.)
Once you are sure that the K–1 teachers are settled into the activity, go to the next slide.

10. Grades 1–6 With your partner:
Identify the Unit Overviews in the manual and mark them with self-stick notes.
Find the chart of skills for your grade level in the Skill Practice Teaching Guide to determine when skills are taught and when it might be appropriate to practice them using the mini-lessons provided.
Using the Unit Overviews and the chart, think about when (during which unit) you might teach each skill that is not taught in the day-to-day instruction, and where in the unit you would place that mini-lesson. You might also scan for Skill Practice Notes throughout each unit.
Mark the spots in your manual with self-stick notes.
Grades 1–6
(10–12 minutes)
Read the slide aloud.
While the participants work on their respective activities, walk around and offer support as needed.
Survey the room; when it looks like most partners have finished, signal for their attention and go to the next slide.

11. What questions do you have?
What did you discover about the skills and conventions instruction in the program?
Based on what you have observed in your students’ writing, how will this component of the program be helpful?
What questions do you have?
End of Session
(3–5 minutes)
Read the first question aloud and have the participants summarize what they have learned.
Read the second question aloud and have two or three participants share their thinking.
Allow time for additional questions.