WRITING CONVENTIONSP-12Loddon Mallee Region
Our purpose as teachers-
to teach the writer not the writing Lucy McCormick Calkins
Session Outline
• What are Writing Conventions• Are they important?• Writing conventions in context of AusVels
frameworks and standards• Delving deeper
Writing provides spelling with its context: without writing spelling has no purpose and no audience (Talk about)
Effective Writers Think about:• What to say and how to say it clearly
• How to write so the reader is interested and engaged
• Real life purposes for writing
• The important role of conventions
Need someone to talk to?• Using grid, network resource
Scope and Sequence Resources being used for Writing Conventions in our Schools
It is the teacher’s role to know what writing conventions the students have control over and what they need to learn through explicit teaching
Make informed decisions about learning needs of group and individuals
Check data against VELS
Writing conferences and guided writing groups personalise learning
20
GRADUAL RELEASE OF RESPONSIBILITY
MODELLINGThe teacher
demonstrates and explains the literacy focus being taught. This is achieved by thinking aloud the
mental processes and modelling the
reading, writing, speaking and
listening
The student participates by
actively attending to the demonstrations
SHARINGThe teacher continues
to demonstrate the literacy focus,
encouraging students to contribute ideas
and information
Students contribute ideas and begin to
practice the use of the literacy focus in
whole class situations
GUIDINGThe teacher provides scaffolds for students
to use the literacy focus. Teacher
provides feedback
Students work with help from the teacher and peers to practice the use of the literacy
focus
APPLYINGThe teacher offers
support and encouragement when
necessary
The student works independently to apply the use of
literacy focus
Role of the teacher
Role of the student
Pearson & Gallagher
DE
GR
EE
OF
CO
NT
RO
L
LITERACY ELEMENTS
• Read Aloud
• Shared Reading
• Guided Reading
• Independent Reading
SPEAKING & LISTENING
OBSERVATION&
ASSESSMENT
• Write Aloud
• Shared Writing
• Guided Writing
• Independent Writing
Reading around Grammar• A systematic approach to Grammar Instruction Joan
Berger
• Integrated Word study: Spelling grammar and Meaning in the Language Arts Classroom Marcia Invernizzi et.al
• To Grammar or not to Grammar: that is not the question Weaver et.al Part 1
• Putting conventions into perspective and helping students edit Weaver et.al Part 2
Process for Readings
• Form a group of 4• Choose text• Expert group
20 minutes to read• What is the text mostly about?• How is Grammar taught in the article? • Implications for different year level teaching?
(15 minutes)
Home group
Share a synthesis of your expert group discussion
(20mins)
Discussion to report back to home group
• What is the text mostly about?• How is Grammar taught in the
article? • Implications for different year
level teaching?
The big question…
What aspects of grammar…enhance and improve student writing and when and how can we best teach them?
How do you take information back to school?
• Talk at table• Report back to whole group• Record on chart
What are the challenges?
What could help?
2013 Time to Start Planning• There will be not external driver for Literacy
development beyond 2012
• What will our schools need from a network
Make a list
• Have us for one term• What would you like us to do to support the transition
The future• What do we have now as a collegiate group?• In moving forward what is our goal?• What method/approach will we use?• Resources available to us• How do you picture achieving dynamic equilibrium?
(sustainability)?
After School Sessions
• 3/4 at Newham – 22nd August• P-2 at Riddell - 29th August• 5/8 at Malmsbury – 5th Sept –
probably need to be changed as pending strike!
•FOCUS?????
As we work through these
Think about yourself as a learner – what knowledge you need
Think about a year level each activity could be used for
Think about a text that you know that could be used at different level
http://www.readwritethink.org/files/resources/interactives/word_mover/words.01.html
http://www.readwritethink.org/files/resources/interactives/multigenre-mapper/
One way of publishing
Activity 1.
Think about yourself as a learner – what knowledge did you need?
What year level this could be used for?
Think about a text that you know that could be used at different level
Activity 2.
Think about yourself as a learner – what knowledge did you need?
What year level this could be used for?
Think about a text that you know that could be used at different level
USING VERB GROUPS TO BRING TO LIFE THE ACTIVITIES IN THE STORY
• Action verbs• Action verbs tell about something a person,
animal, force of nature or thing can do or be
After lunch they went to the reptile house. It was cool and dark in there, with lit windows all along the walls. Behind the glass, all sorts of lizards and snakes were crawling and slithering over bits of wood and stone. Dudley and Piers wanted to see huge, poisonous cobras and thick, man‐crushing pythons. Dudley quickly found the largest snake in the place. It could have wrapped its body twice around Uncle Vernon's car and crushed it into a trash can‐‐but at the moment it didn't look in the mood. In fact, it was fast asleep. Dudley stood with his nose pressed against the glass, staring at the glistening brown coils. "Make it move," he whined at his father. Uncle Vernon tapped on the glass, but the snake didn't budge. "Do it again," Dudley ordered. Uncle Vernon rapped the glass smartly with his knuckles, but the snake just snoozed on. "This is boring," Dudley moaned. He shuffled away.
After lunch they went to the reptile house. It was cool and dark in there, with lit windows all along the walls. Behind the glass, all sorts of lizards and snakes were crawling and slithering over bits of wood and stone. Dudley and Piers wanted to see huge, poisonous cobras and thick, man‐crushing pythons. Dudley quickly found the largest snake in the place. It could have wrapped its body twice around Uncle Vernon's car and crushed it into a trash can‐‐but at the moment it didn't look in the mood. In fact, it was fast asleep. Dudley stood with his nose pressed against the glass, staring at the glistening brown coils. "Make it move," he whined at his father. Uncle Vernon tapped on the glass, but the snake didn't budge. "Do it again," Dudley ordered. Uncle Vernon rapped the glass smartly with his knuckles, but the snake just snoozed on. "This is boring," Dudley moaned. He shuffled away.
What next?Think about yourself as a learner – what knowledge did you need
Think about a VELS level this could be used for
Think about a text that you know that could be used at different level
Harry lay in his dark cupboard much later, wishing he had a watch. He didn't know what time it was and he couldn't be sure the Dursleys were asleep yet. Until they were, he couldn't risk sneaking to the kitchen for some food. He'd lived with the Dursleys almost ten years, ten miserable years, as long as he could remember, ever since he'd been a baby and his parents had died in that car crash. He couldn't remember being in the car when his parents had died. Sometimes, when he strained his memory during long hours in his cupboard, he came up with a strange vision: a blinding flash of green light and a burning pain on his forehead. This, he supposed, was the crash, though he couldn't imagine where all the green light came from. He couldn't remember his parents at all. His aunt and uncle never spoke about them, and of course he was forbidden to ask questions. There were no photographs of them in the house.
Harry lay in his dark cupboard much later, wishing he had a watch. He didn't know what time it was and he couldn't be sure the Dursleys were asleep yet. Until they were, he couldn't risk sneaking to the kitchen for some food. He'd lived with the Dursleys almost ten years, ten miserable years, as long as he could remember, ever since he'd been a baby and his parents had died in that car crash. He couldn't remember being in the car when his parents had died. Sometimes, when he strained his memory during long hours in his cupboard, he came up with a strange vision: a blinding flash of green light and a burning pain on his forehead. This, he supposed, was the crash, though he couldn't imagine where all the green light came from. He couldn't remember his parents at all. His aunt and uncle never spoke about them, and of course he was forbidden to ask questions. There were no photographs of them in the house.
Let’s remind ourselves
Think about yourself as a learner – what knowledge did you need
Think about a VELS level this could be used for
Think about a text that you know that could be used at different level
Resources• ACARA- AustralianCurriculumwww.acara.edu.au/verve/_resources/Australian_Curriculum_-_English.pdf
• AUSVELS http://ausvels.vcaa.vic.edu.au/
• LATL First Steps• VCE http://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au/vce/studies/english/English-ESL-SD-2007.pdf
• VELS- Writing Continuum http://www.education.vic.gov.au/studentlearning/teachingresources/english/englishcontinuum/writing/default.htm
• Writing Essentials, Regie Routman• Language conventions P-10 planning & teaching
Diane Snowball and Faye Bolton• NAPLAN marking guide