1. F IRST G RADE W RITING W ORKSHOP – U NDER THE INFLUENCE OF MATT GLOVER July 25, 2012

2. M ATT GLOVER Early childhood educator and principal Co-authored Already Ready: Nurturing Writers in Preschool and Kindergarten with Katie Wood Ray Authored Engaging Young Writers: Preschool- Grade 1 Consulted for Parkway with Early Childhood and Kindergarten – Study Group/Action Team December 2010 – all EC and K invited March 2011 – snow day make-up with two teachers (K and SSD/ESOL) per school January 2012 – full day with ALL Kindergarten teachers

3. B IG I DEAS FOR N URTURING Y OUNG W RITERS Image of Self as a Writer Honoring Approximations Nudging vs. Pushing Stages of Word Making Development Composition Dimensions Vision - Importance of Making Books Reading Like a Writer

4. B IG I DEAS FOR N URTURING Y OUNG W RITERS Image of Self as a Writer Honoring Approximations Nudging vs. Pushing Stages of Word Making Development Composition Dimensions Vision - Importance of Making Books Reading Like a Writer

5. A GENDA Composition Dimensions Nudging vs. Pushing Reading Like a Writer

6. S TARTING WITH STUDENT WORK : LETTING OUR CHILDREN LEAD US Imagine you are conferring with Max. He is writing “The Day I Got Cricket.” Using the small sticky notes on your table, record THREE possible teaching points, each on its OWN sticky note.

7. A FFINITY M APPING IN SILENCE put all sticky notes on chart paper. REMAINING SILENT organize the teaching points into “natural” categories. Then place the sticky notes on the chart paper in neat columns. Discuss the categories and come up with a name for each one.

8. B ALANCING COMPOSITION AND CONVENTION COMPOSITION Thinking-Realm Planning out the book, what to include, what to leave out, and how to write the book More difficult to see and support CONVENTION Spelling, letter formation, conventions, and mechanics Word-Making Realm Easy to work on because they are so evident

9. P ROFESSIONAL R EADING : FROM A LREADY R EADY BY R AY & G LOVER Composition Dimensions 1s – Understandings About Texts (58-73) 2s – Understandings About Process (73-79) 3s – Understandings About What it Means to Be a Writer (79-83) Jigsaw Read and record 3-4 most important points (MIPs) from your section. Gather in like-numbered groups and come to consensus on what will be shared. Regroup in mixed groups of 1, 2, 3’s to share new learning.

10. T AKE -A WAYS ABOUT C OMPOSITION D IMENSIONS It is developmental and continues throughout our lives. Is the book about something? Is the book focused? Is the book organized-list book vs. storybook? Does the child read the book the same way each time? Is the child intentional about what is being represented on the page? (with craft as well) Does the child engage in revising? Is the child showing stamina when he/she writes?

11. M ATT ’ S M ESSAGE REGARDING “C OMPOSITION ” Composition is a WHOLE way of thinking He equates “writing” to words and “composition” to “putting words and pictures together to make meaning” Honors both actions children may be taking during writing workshop writing words illustrating May not sound natural to use the word, but what matters is the meaning behind it, the message related to supporting children in their illustrations, too.

12. D RAWING IS COMPOSING Drawing is an essential component of a young child’s composition. “Drawing the pictures” is not a reward to be saved until the “real work” of “writing” is done. Drawing IS “writing!” Honoring the child’s history of writing as a Kindergartner will be essential in getting to know them as a writer.

13. N UDGING VS. P USHING Conferring with Writers

14. CONFERRING Supporting both composition and convention The difference between nudging and pushing Integrating mentor texts

15. C OMPOSITION -M AKING BOOKS Storybooks Earthquake List books Feelings Nonfiction Shapes

16. C OMPOSITION -G ENERATING IDEAS Conferring is NOT the best time to generate topics Planting seeds all day, every day “You could make a book about that!”

17. N UDGING VS. P USHING “When working side-by-side with young writers, teachers want to nudge development along, not push it or force it. The goal of the teaching, in addition to moving development forward, is to leave children with energy and enthusiasm for the whole idea of making books.” ~ Ray and Glover

18. I T ’ S A FINE LINE … Watch for verbal cues and body language. Make sure the child is happy and comfortable with the interaction. If the child seems frustrated by the questions you are asking or the suggestions being made, the line has most likely been crossed.

19. A NTICIPATING THE BOUNDARY Knowing your children Their interaction styles Their learning styles Assessing what they already know and can do Taking them the next step

20. R EADING LIKE A WRITER Using Mentor Texts

21. M Y M AMA H AD A D ANCING H EART BY L IBBA M OORE G RAY

23. S TACK OF MENTOR TEXTS My Mama Had a Dancing Heart by Libba Moore Gray Nana Upstairs and Nana Downstairs by Tomie dePaola The Honey Makers by Gail Gibbons Grandma’s Records by Eric Velasquez A Bad Case of Stripes by David Shannon The Relatives Came by Cynthia Rylant The Gardener by Sarah Stewart Stone Soup by Heather Forest So Much by Trish Cooke Frog, Where are You? By Mercer Mayer

24. T IME TO DISCOVER, COLLECT, AND REFLECT Explore the texts at your table. Find the texts that you can collect and use as mentor texts for the upcoming school year. What are the teaching points that each book has? Did you select books with balance? Do you have books that model both conventions and composition?

25. W HAT ARE THE CHARACTERISTICS OF MENTOR TEXTS ? A text used to teach about or demonstrate an aspect of writer’s craft The best ones can be used numerous times throughout the year to demonstrate many different craft moves. Most mentor text mini-lessons fall into one of three categories: Idea: the text inspires the writer to create an original idea based on one from the text. Structure: the text presents on organizational structure that the writer tries to emulate using original ideas. Written Craft: the author’s writing style, ways with words, or sentence structure inspires the writer to try out these techniques. Remember - we are teaching a particular strategy or craft move – we are not teaching the book.