1. TEACHING WRITING WITH “MORTAR” Ellen Levy Santa Cruz County Office of Education Wednesday, March 16th

2. Today’s Plan “Mortar” for explicit writing instruction “Mortar” in note-taking “Mortar” when summarizing “Mortar” for longer compositions

3. What is Mortar? Not the language we are drawn to teach Driven by function or purpose Yet it is essential… Because it connects topic-specific vocabulary in a way that conveys the conceptual understanding; the purpose for communication

4. 4 Informal and Formal Writing Informal Writing Writing to learn Everyday writing Less structured Deepens content understanding Formal Writing Learning to Write Final product Structure matters Correct counts Demonstrates content understanding © E.L. Achieve/2010

5. Ask Yourself What do I expect of my students when it comes to informal and formal writing? How do I prepare students to meet those expectations?

6. Writing to Learn This is low stakes writing. The goal isn’t so much good writing as coming to learn, understand, remember and figure out what you don’t yet know. - Peter Elbow

7. 7 The critical need for Low-stakes Writing Writing to learn activities provide non- threatening opportunities to practice the language of new learning and new ideas. The act of writing requires that students practice crafting sentences and transforming thought to print.

8. Note-taking Tools Note-taking is a critically important skill and can have a strong impact on student achievement (Marzano, 2001).

9. 9 Note-taking vs. Note-making Note-taking at the surface word-for-word directly from text at the literal level Note-making below the surface requires reflection promotes questioning supports summarizing at the interpretive level

10. for summarizing Cornell Notes

11. 11 Dialectical Journal provides clear purpose and focus structured to support movement between direct quote and response offers language appropriate to citing text and responding to content

12. 12 Says-Means-Matters models the process of quote selection, interpretation, and explanation mirrors the structure of an analytical or persuasive paper supports critical thinking and discussion

13. 13 S.O.A.P.S. outlines components of analysis suggests language for each component prepares students for writing longer pieces

14. Try it On Which of then note-taking tools could you use in your classroom? How might you modify or change the tool to work in your classroom?

15. Learning to Write Academic writing draws together and applies listening, reading, and speaking to articulate the writer’s insights and communicate to other readers.

16. Summary Frames Analyzing text and isolating critical information is the pre-work of summarizing. Actually creating a summary requires reassembling the identified critical information into a new structure with different language.

17. 17 The ability to summarize information requires readers to sift through large units of text, differentiate important from unimportant ideas, then synthesize those ideas and create a new coherent text that stands for the original. This sounds difficult, and the research demonstrates that, in fact, it is. - Dole, et al,1991

18. 18 The Skills of Summary Summarizing relies on the ability to condense information consolidate information discern essential details simplify language restate language

19. Using a Summary Frame identifying the components of a summary offering appropriate language choices for synthesizing information providing a paragraph structure for drafting modeling academic syntax

20. Try it On Which of then note-taking tools could you use in your classroom? How might you modify or change the tool to work in your classroom?

21. Drafting Templates Strong academic writing is the hallmark of a successful student. The ability to compose clear prose, discuss abstract ideas, and organize complex thinking symbolic of a student’s success with language. Schleppegrell, 2004

22. 22 Academic “moves” What makes writers masters of their trade is not only their ability to express interesting thoughts, but their mastery of an inventory of basic moves…less experienced writers are often unfamiliar with these basic moves. - Graff & Berkenstein, They Say, I Say © E.L. Achieve/2010

23. 23 Character Analysis offers a organizational model and appropriate language divided into three sections: introduction, body, and conclusion Provides options for use of functional language.

24. 24 Article Review Rreview Eexamine Vverify Iinterpret Eexplain Wwonder

25. 25 Lab Report demystifies final product by breaking it into discrete sections, each with a list o components to include and sample language to use allows students to accurately document a process and analyze results

26. Try it On Which of then drafting templates could you use in your classroom? How might you modify or change the tool to work in your classroom?

27. Planning Time