School Talk. Writing. Content Areas

8/2/2019 School Talk. Writing. Content Areas.

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kind of writing they will have to do onstate tests and developing creativeassignments where student writers tryto show what they know (for example,having them write a poem about one of

the planets or a brochure advertisingthe Oregon Trail).

Suddenly even my strong writersget the Im done syndrome, says oneteacher. You know, they just want to do

the minimum. Thenlater I look at theirwork and realize Imnot even sure whattheyre learning fromthose assignments.The other teacherslook at me. What do

we do?Their appeal forhelp is an honest andimportant one. We allwant to know whatkinds of writing helpchildren become pas-sionate to share whatthey learn in theirinvestigations or theirresearch. What pur-poses and genres make

books that allow students to collect andorganize data from which they candraw inferences, reading responsesthat encourage students to get involvedin classroom discussions about social

studies. But when it comes to content-area writing projects, the teachersflounder, wandering back and forthbetween having students practice the

Between the Ideal and the Real World of Teaching

Ideas for the Classroom from the NCTE Elementary Section

Nancy J. Johnson and Frank Chiki , Coeditors

Writing in the ContentAreas: Making It Real,Making It Theirs

NATIONALCOUNCIL OFTEACHERS OFENGLISH APRIL2009 VOL. 14, NO. 3

S everal elementary and middle-levelteachers gather around the snacktable at a recent meeting. We dis-cuss the amazing work their studentsare doing in writers workshoppoetry

that makes the soul ache, book reviewsthat spark heated classroom debates,even comic books so popular that sixthgraders stay in at lunchtime to work onthe next episode. One teacherlamentsshe never seems toget that kind of engagementwhen it comes to writing inmath or science or social stud-ies. Suddenly theres a flurryof talk as everyone weighs inon their own struggles withthis challenge. Well, I ask,

what are they writing inmath and science and socialstudies?

As it turns out, theseteachers are like many Iknow. Theyre successful atshowing students how to usewriting as a tool for learning:explanations for mathemati-cal problem-solving that helpstudents become moremetacognitive, science note-

Building in Authenticityby Tracy L. Coskie, Western Washington University, Bellingham, Washington

Copyright 2009 by the National Council of Teachers of English. All rights reserved.


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Building in Authenticity

real purposes is a vital element in help-ing students to understand they have an

important voice in their own learningprocess (1988, p. 289). When studentsexplore mathematics or science or socialstudies through authentic writing oppor-tunities, they not only approach the sub-

ject from another angle and discovernew forms of written expression, theybegin to engage in the discourse of thediscipline and, perhaps, to see them-selves as part of that discourse. There isoften, however, a tension between devot-ing time to writing workshop and build-ing in time for writing in context. In thisissue of School Talk, youll hear fromclassroom teachers who have challengedthemselves to resolve this tension. Theyare teachers who care deeply about nur-turing young writers and who believe inthe power of audience and purpose.They are teachers who bring enthusi-asm to the subjects they teach and whowant to share that enthusiasm withchildren. And they are teachers who arewilling to help their students link whathappens in the classroom with whathappens in the world. v

(continued from page 1)

Real AudiencesMy husband is an aficionado of clas-

sic motorcycles. When our local historymuseum decided to present a retrospec-tive on motorcycles, Mark was thrilledto be asked to write the exhibit guides.He spent hours and hours researchingand drafting, and even more time revis-ing and crafting. It became important tohim that the museums visitors under-stood the historical significance of everypiece in the collection. When openingday arrived, Mark found the most satis-faction from listening to groups pause atthe displays and talk with each otherabout what theyd learned. Because heknew there was a real audience for hiswriting, Marks commitment to accuracyand clarity was heightened. Similarly,building in opportunities for children toshare what theyve learned in history (orany other subject) with an audiencebeyond the teacher gives new purpose totheir writing work.

Real Connections

Recently a friend introduced me tofantasy football. She began by explain-ing that it was all based on the statisticsof various players. Olivia launched intostats about this player and that player,enthusiastically making her case for thelikelihood that her team would becomea winner. Her favorite part was bloggingabout it with other fantasy players inher leaguelooking at their stats andtalking trash about each others play-ers and teams. Chagrined, Olivia con-fessed that she often spends far more

time on fantasy football than sheshould. Who knew that something somathematics-based could be so exciting?In our classrooms, children also havepassions that can be genuinely linked towhat they are studying. If we can figureout how to blend choice and personalinterests into subject-area writing, ourstudents will be as fervent about theirwriting in math class as they are abouttheir out-of-school pursuits.

As educator Lisa Delpit explains,Actual writing for real audiences and

sense in the context of math or scienceor social studies? What have we learnedfrom writing workshop that mightinform us? The answers to these ques-tions often end up dancing around oneideaauthenticity.

Nell Duke and her colleaguesdescribe authentic literacy activities asthose that replicate or reflect readingand writing activities that occur in thelives of people outside of a learning-to-read-and-write context and purpose(Duke, Purcell-Gates, Hall, & Tower,2006, p. 346). In other words, in orderto qualify as authentic, writing projectsshould mirror the genres and formsthat students might encounter in thecommunity and should help studentsshare their ideas with real audiences. Iwould add that if we want students tosee their writing work as authentic, theprojects should also incorporate someaspect that allows them to connect on apersonal level. What might this looklike?

Real World WritingNot far from my home is a bird

sanctuary, a favorite spot for walking.There is a large glass-encased sign inthe parking lot, inside of which natural-ists have laid out a series of postersexplaining the importance of the egg-laying season for the many threatenedspecies that nest amongst the tufts of grass and along the water holes there.

As a result, I am careful about whenand how I walk in that area, not want-ing to damage the nesting grounds.This kind of informative public writing

could also be developed by students topresent their own science learning. It isbut one of the ways that naturalists andother scientists sometimes communi-cate with the public about issues of importance to their work. Bringing inother examples of real-world writinghelps students envision the applicationfor the writing they are doing.

If we can figure out how to blendchoice and personal interests intosubject-area writing, our students willbe as fervent about their writing inmath class as they are about their out-of-school pursuits.

Get Real!


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A s we walk the trail outside theschool, we search for third- andfourth-grade students. Jack is onhis knees, pencil in hand, finishing hissketch of the huckleberry leaf.Farther on, Jordyn is recording mea-surements of the width of a Douglasfir tree. Joshua and Cathy, down bythe bridge, are helping each otherdecide what precise color to call theleaves on the plants that they areexamining. We smile seeing that theyare all deep in thought as they writein their notebooks.

These students are researching towrite a field guide for our school cam-pus. We designed this field guide cur-riculum to integrate science and writ-ing. Like teachers everywhere, wehave specific state standardsin science and writing weneed to help our studentsmeet. We aim to teach solidscientific knowledge while stayingtrue to the writing process. Fieldguides are a perfect genre for such

integration, since field guide authorshave to be both skilled writers andknowledgeable naturalists.Throughout the process, we aredelighted to discover that our studentsnot only learn rigorous academic con-tent, but also begin to take ownershipof their community.

Budding WritersThis field guide unit provided

experiences in which students could

learn and then apply what profession-al writers and scientists do. To pro-duce an effective field guide for theschool community, the class followedthe writing process shown in Table 1on the following page. Students spentthe first five days of the unit readingpublished field guides to get familiarwith the genre. This week includedusing field guides to identify naturalobjects and compete in a plant scav-enger hunt. Then each student choseone plant to focus on and collected

detailed information about it. Thefollowing week, they drafted and

revised an entry, keepingin mind the effective

(and not-so-effective)descriptions they had recently

encountered while trying toidentify plants. And finally they

published a field guide that could beused by all the students at the school.

Students learned several craftingtechniques appropriate to the genre.For example, before they developedthe lead for their own entries, westudied leads in published fieldguides, such as the National

Audubon Society First Field Guides ,to see how authors entice the readerto learn more. We found that authorsoften use questions and answers inthe introduction. Our students emu-lated this technique. Shannon, for

example, wrote, Whats that shiny-petaled yellow flower in your garden?Is it a dandelion? No! It is a CreepingButtercup! Studentslearned to use preciseword choices todescribe plants.Some even includedsimiles and metaphors,which we also foundcommon in publishedfield guides. Part of Brians description

Science and Writing:A Powerful Combinationby Heidi Trudel, Leschi Elementary School, Seattle, WA, and

Michelle Hornof, Northern Heights Elementary School, Bellingham, WA

became The trunk of the Vine Maple is as smoothas a wet skipping stone.

BuddingScientists

In addition to help-ing students learn writ-ing techniques, the fieldguide unit also provided

the opportunity to teach sciencethrough active engagement in mean-ingful activities. For example, stu-dents acquired scientific vocabulary(lobed, pinnate, compound, sori , etc.)in order to effectively talk, read, andwrite about the plants in their area. Afavorite game we played was I Spy, inwhich students walked around theforest describing trees, shrubs, andother plants using the vocabularywords they learned in some of ourminilessons and from other fieldguides.

Students learned observationskills and the value of precise descrip-tion when they identified anddescribed plants by physical proper-ties such as shape, smell, and textureand then crafted scientific sketches of the entire plant and its parts,attempting to draw exactly what theysaw. They highlighted important

details of the plants by magnifyingthe plants identifying features in azoom-in box. We taught

students to takemeasurements of aplant and investi-

gate where it growsin the environment.

They recorded thisessential data in theirscience notebooks.

Field guides area perfect genre for

such integration, sincefield guide authors have

to be both skilled writersand knowledgeable

naturalists.


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Because they knew that this scientificdata would later be used in a fieldguide, our students took their job asscientists seriously.

Taking OwnershipOur school is nestled among tall

evergreen trees with a stream runningthrough plant species that are mostlynative to the Northwest. The schoolgrounds are heavily used but only occa-sionally studied. On any given day,

students run through the trees playingCapture the Flag, read silently scat-tered around stumps, or even searchfor the spiders they just studied in sci-ence. After school, the forest becomes aplayground for neighborhood kids andthose in the local childcare program.Whatever their purpose, most of theforests visitors pay little attention tothe trees and plants they sprint past,lean on, or evencrush. Butthrough the

production of thefield guide, thenatural environmentbecame an extension of

the classroom for our stu-dents as well as for visitorsto our campus.

As the third and fourthgraders selected and studiedtheir plants for the fieldguide, they developed apersonal connection tothem. Parker learned that SkunkCabbage lets off a foul smell whenthe flower is broken. He was afraidthat if he wrote this fact in his field

guide entry, some peoplewould want to go out andbreak the flowers off the

Skunk Cabbage at school toexperience the smell. Theycant go out and break themOFF! he insisted. Ebony,who studied the English

Ivy, found out that her plantcan smother other plants it climbs

upon. She worried that her plantwould eliminate other students plants

and she began keeping track of whereher ivy grew.

To celebrate the publication of their field guide, our students invitedfriends, family, and community mem-bers to the school to use the completed

guide and identify their chosen plants.Parents were thrilled to see the qualityof writing their children had produced,and siblings learned new things aboutthe plants they walk by every day atschool. This extended audience took aninterest in the wooded area around theschool, an unexpected result of our pro-

ject. The field guide unit allowed stu-dents to take their learning beyond thenotebook, beyond the classroom, andtowards a larger purposeempoweringthe greater community to take owner-

ship in their environment.v

Becausethey knew that this

scientific data wouldlater be used in a field

guide, our students tooktheir job as scientists

seriously.

Table 1. The Field Guide Writing Process. For a detailed version of thefield guide process, see Coskie, Hornof, & Trudel (2007), Field Guides: ANatural Integration of Science and Writing.

Day Step Description

15 Immerse Read published field guides. Use texts toidentify objects and plants.

612 Collect Gather data and information about plant.Sketch, observe, measure, and research.

1316 Draft Write each section of the entry. Includedetailed sketch and photograph.

1719 Revise Make sure entry has enough details to helpreader identify plant. Change as needed.

2021 Edit Use partner to edit for conventions.

2223 Publish/Prep Small groups write table of contents,introduction, and dedication. Design cover.

24 Celebrate Invite guests to use your field guide. Enjoy!


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Why do we have to learn about history? No one cares what kids think anyway!

T hese are the cries that come frommy fifth graders when its time forsocial studies. Trying to makesocial studies relevant to a fifth graderin this age of video games and instantaccess to information is one of the great-est challenges I face in my classroom.Trying to engage them in writing abouthistory and geography and civics is aneven greater challenge. I wonder how Ican get them to see that their ideas andthoughts matter.

My love of history compels me tofind meaningful, purposeful projects formy students. I know Ive got it rightwhen they forget that were in socialstudies classand theyre writing! Oneof my favorite projects is writing persua-sive essays about a public policy issuebecause it challenges students to find anissue they believe in and to defend itusing facts, not just emotions. We learnthis is an important goal for historicalthinking as well as persuasive writing.When students research a topic theyvechosen, it allows me to connect to eachstudent individually, discovering whatmatters to them and how they beginthinking about their role in the commu-nity.

Ive learned to approach this writ-ing focus by appealing directly to mystudents needs. I lead them into itgently by telling them that we can usewriting to persuade their parents to givethem something that they really want.That usually captures their interest.

We start out by listing the top threeto five things they would really lovea

cell phone, a puppy, the chance to stayup late on Friday nightwhatever theirtop desires are, they list them. The listis narrowed and prioritized until theyvesettled on the first item on their wishlist. During this process I include termslike prewriting and drafting so they canstart to see that we are in the midst of alarger project. The next phases coverdrafting their letter, peer editing,rewriting, and finally mailing the letterhome to their parents. Then we discussits impact. Were they persuasive enough

to convince their parents to get the

requested item or dothe requested activity?We spend some timediscussing what workedin their letter or what theycould have revised to be moreconvincing.

The transition to writing a letter oressay about a public policy issue is nat-ural because we keep the focus on topicsthat affect them and we work from aprocess similar to the one we used forthe letters to parents. We brainstorm tofind topics, issues, and public laws thatinterest them. Students find it helpfulto hear what others care about. Topicsare usually issues that hit close tohome, such as recycling, bike helmetlaws, or smoking in public places (seeabove).

Once each student settles on some-thing he or she believes in strongly, werevisit the process used for the letters

home. The students are required tohave a minimum of three reasons toback up their ideas. I teach them aboutdifferent approaches to create a convinc-ing argument, such as using statisticsor appealing to tradition. After studentslist the three reasons for their position,they must explain each one and showwhy it is important. This is often a diffi-cult process because they arent used to

justifying their desires. The studentswork together to help each other try outtheir arguments and make them

stronger.

When the letters are completed wemail them to the appropriate local,

state, or national official. We oftenreceive good responses. For example,last year a student wrote to the localtownship board regarding the 10 p.m.curfew and requested that it be changedto 10:30 during the summer. The boardresponded with a letter explaining thereasons why they felt this wasnt a safeidea, specifically citing dwindling lightat that hour. The students were notthrilled that the curfew wasnt going to

be changed, but they understoodthe reasons for the decision.

This hands-on histo-ry and civics lesson

teaches my fifthgraders the value of their opinion, showsthem that people will

listen to their ideasand concerns, and even

motivates some to keep onworking for their cause. For

instance, one student was concernedover the school policy to give leftoverfood to local farm animals to eat. Thisbothered her because the school had notthought about what the animals couldsafely consume and she was worriedthat the animals might get ill from thewell-intentioned program. Sheresearched what the animals could eatand then wrote her letter to the schoolprincipal. The principal arranged ameeting for her with the custodians, andthey worked out a bin system to sepa-rate the food appropriately.

As we wrap up this unit on letterwriting, I explain that we have just takena step toward a place in history. My fifth

graders have taken a stand and followedthrough on their ideas. They have fol-lowed the same steps that many famouspoliticians, patriots, and statesmen havefollowed. I use the example of thePatriots writing the Declaration of Independence or the Constitution they,too, planned, drafted, justified, and final-ly convinced people of their beliefs. Of course, my students are usually stunnedto realize that they have been writing insocial studies . . . and enjoying it! v

by Lynn French, NICE Community Schools, Ishpeming, MI

We HAVE to Write in Social Studies?

My love of historycompels me to find mean-

ingful, purposeful projects formy students. I know Ive got it

right when they forget thatwere in social studies class

and theyre writing!


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School Talk (ISSN 1083-2939) is publishedquarterly in October, January, April, and Julyby the National Council of Teachers of Englishfor the Elementary Section SteeringCommittee. Annual membership in NCTE is$40 for individuals, and an individual sub-scription to School Talk is $15 ($7.50 forstudents). Institutions and nonmembersmay subscribe for $45. Add $5 per year forCanadian and all other international postage.Single copy: $7.50 (member price, $4). Copiesof back issues can be purchased in bulk: 20copies of a single issue for $20 (includes ship-ping and handling). Remittances should bemade payable to NCTE by credit card, check,money order, or bank draft in United Statescurrency.

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Coeditors: Nancy J. Johnson and FrankChiki. NCTE Production Editor: Rona Smith.Designer: Pat Mayer.

2009 Elementary SectionSteering Committee

Debra Goodman, ChairJeff Williams, Assistant ChairFrank ChikiDanling Fu

Andrea GarciaNancy J. JohnsonBarbara LehmanKatie Wood Ray

Rebecca McCraw, Elementary Level Representative-at-Large

Copyright 2009 by the National Council of Teachers of English.Printed in the U.S.A. All rights reserved.

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Works CitedCoskie, T., Hornof, M., & Trudel, H. (2007). Field guides: A natural

integration of science and writing. Science and Children, 44 (8), 2631.Delpit, L. (1988). The silenced dialogue: Power and pedagogy in educating

other peoples children. Harvard Educational Review, 58 , 280298.Duke, N. K., Purcell-Gates, V., Hall, L. A., & Tower, C. (2006). Authentic lit-eracy activities for developing comprehension and writing. The ReadingTeacher, 60 (4), 344355.

Recommended ReadingBomer, K., & Bomer, R. (2001). For a better world: Reading and writing for

social action. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.Cruz, M. C. (2004). Independent writing: One teacherthirty-two needs,

topics, and plans . Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.Harvey, S. (1998). Nonfiction matters: Reading, writing, and research in

grades 38 . Portland, ME: Stenhouse.Portalupi, J., & Fletcher, R. (2001). Nonfiction craft lessons: Teaching infor-

mation writing K8. Portland, ME: Stenhouse.Ray, K. W. (2006). Study driven: A framework for planning units of study in

the writing workshop. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.Wilson, L. (2006). Writing to live: How to teach writing for todays world.

Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Recommended Field Guides for Kids Fandex Family Field Guides. These are die-cut cards with visual keys and

additional information. National Audubon Societys First Field Guides. Each guide includes a gener-

al overview section, identification section, and a separate, laminated spot-ters guide.

National Geographic Societys My First Pocket Guides . Kid-friendly languageand layout.

Peterson First Field Guides by Roger Tory Peterson. Houghton Mifflin. Smithsonian Kids Field Guides . DK Publishing.Young Naturalist Field Guides . Designed for younger children. Gareth

Stevens Publishing.

Next Issue: The July issue of School Talk will focus on the Donald H. Graves Award for Excellence in the Teaching of Writing. NCTE Website: www.ncte.org.

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School Talk. Writing. Content Areas