1. W RITING … writing is a form of metacognition the act of writing often helps construct understanding some forms of writing are unique to content areas and help students move towards expert language and structure related to that content. can provide prolonged engagement in a particular topic

2. S TAGES OF WRITING 1. Prewriting stage Generating the ideas Brainstorming, Schematic webs, and free writing are all ways to help students generate ideas A typical problem is students think they need the “right” or “perfect” idea from the start and many do not know how to generate ideas Tips 1.Get students to simple write down ideas, and not worry about the quality at this point 2.Create a list of things related to a potential topic, or of topics in general to make early connections 3.Emphasis that not all ideas generated at this point need to be good

3. S TAGES OF WRITING 2. Drafting Stage Organizing Ideas Important place to check comprehension before final product Narrowing down and focus topic from prewriting stage Start to determine flow, order, and similar aspects of writing Tips 1.This stage still represents a draft, not a final product 2.Should be organizing like parts of the paper into groups and coming up with an order of some kind 3.Errors should be caught at this stage and should be expected

4. S TAGES OF WRITING 3. Revising and Editing Refining stage Should be one moving things around or changing parts of the script for improvement Check for errors in grammar and sentence structure End products of this stage should be the final product Tips 1.Depending on the writing assignment you may or may not directly teach this stage 2.Major work and critical thinking should be occurring before this stage 3.Most effective if end product is displayed or otherwise shown to an audience

5. T ECHNOLOGY AND L ITERACY Wikis Blogs

6. W HAT IS A W IKI OR A B LOG ? Blog - typically a blog is a type of webpage that contains news articles, summaries and opinions of articles related to a specific topic or topics, or a kind of personal journal. Many times these sites contain hyperlinks to other online resources Wiki - is a site run through your web browser that allows anyone or specific users to add, delete or revise content collaboratively. Such as Wikipedia. Content is produced by the users of the web page

7. T ECHNOLOGY AND L ITERACY Prepping Question What does technology literacy mean to you? Why would literacy with the use of technology be important? What are some common issues with writing on the internet?

8. T HE GOAL OF B LOGS AND W IKIS : R EADING Both wikis and blogs rely on creating a type of conversation This requires a purpose and a degree of freedom to express your ideas freely Blogs and wikis have 3 primary functions in the classroom 1. Reflection 2. Sustainedd involvement in a given topic 3.Engagement

9. P RACTICES THAT LEND THEMSELVES TO WIKIS AND BLOGS Student centered instructional methods, students create the content and drive learning These technologies require the building of a learning community where learners provide one another support Promotes multiple perspectives, seeing issues from more then one point of view Scaffolding lessons for increasing involvement and complexity

10. W RITING AND C OMPREHENSION Levels of understanding as they relate to writing

11. 4 LEVELS OF COMPREHENSION IN WRITING Language is the means from which we negotiate meaning Students need regular chances to talk, read and write in order to make sense of content Expressive language allows learners to come to term with new ideas As mastery occurs, less expressive language is used and more formal and specialize vocabulary takes its place

12. L ETS BACKTRACK … How do those 4 stages of writing relate to what you’ve experienced in the classroom? How do they relate to the use of blogs and wikis in the classroom? Why is vocabulary acquisition important to the writing process in content areas?

13. C OLLABORATION AND LEARNING

14. C OLLABORATION Provides a real world context In the world of work, projects are often collaborative Allows for more dialogue, or conversation both written and verbal Helps create connections and associations Helps foster a learning environment or community Learning moves beyond what is dictated by the instructor

15. U SEFUL TIPS Orderly Learning Environments – clear expectations A Clear Focus on Learning – high expectations Consistency – clear regular boundaries. Monitor but don’t hover Make the end product something that is presented or shared