Lessons that change writersprincipals

LESSONS THAT
CHANGE WRITERS
Fayette County Principals and Instructional Coaches

Summer Professional Learning Opportunity
Guided Reading 101: An
Introduction, July 14,2015
Audience: New teachers,
Schools interested in
Differentiating Reading
instruction using leveled
readers and small groups,
Instructional Coaches,
PGES Coaches, Special
Education teachers,
Interventionists
Register online

Roadmap for the Day
 Guiding Teachers to understand the
language of the writing standards and
progression of writing over time
 Instructional strategies for teaching writing
traits and skills to “gap” groups
 Classroom Look Fors

Percentage of elementary students in the Gap Group in KY

Possible Data Sources
 KPREP Results
 On-demand
 Extended Response/Constructed Response
 MAP
 Core Content Assessments (CCA’s)
 Program Assessments
 Writing Sprees
 CBM Group-Administered Probes

Universal Screening for Writing
 Screening for Letter Writing Fluency
 Screening for Word Writing Fluency
 Dictation Sentences Hearing and Recording Sounds in Words
(Observation Survey)
 Observation Survey Writing Spree by Marie Clay (Writing Fluency)
 Screening Written Expression
 Writing Probes
 CBM
 Rubrics

Lessons that change writersprincipals

Struggling Writers
 Are not thoughtful or planful when they write
 Spend less than 1 minute planning
 Approach as a single process---content
generation
 But writing lacks content
 Have difficulty accessing the knowledge
they have

The Areas of Need May be
Multi Layered

Three Modes of Writing
Located in Standards 1-3
Standards 4-10
How students should do
the work of Standards1-3
Where is it in KCAS?

Where is it addressed in the Standards?

Writing Progressions
Standard 2

“IN COMMON” PAPERS AND WRITING
PROGRESSIONS DOCUMENT

The Story of “In Common” Resources
 Created to supplement Appendix C in Common Core Standards
 Vermont Writing Collaborative and Student Achievement Partners
 Over 1600 pieces submitted
 Range of samples (writing over time and On demand)
 Three modes represented K-12
 Instructional resource for teachers, provide clearer understanding of qualities of
effective writing across content.

Grade Level Expectations of CCSS
How does writing change over time in Information Writing?

How might you use the
Vermont “In Common”
Papers with your
teachers?

What does
writing
instruction
look like in
your school?

Why Write in the Classroom?
“Writing helps students get more a______
en_______ in subject matter, understand
information and concepts more d_____, make
con_______ and raise questions more fluently,
re_____ ideas longer, and apply learning in
new s__________” (Daniels, Zemelman &
Steineke, 2007).

Core Writing Instruction
Writing over time (standard 10) Assessment Writing

Skills Students Need
Unpacking the Prompt
Analysis: Context, audience, role, topic
Selecting the best prompt
Marking the Text

Skills Students Need
 Qualities and Expectations of Good Writers
 Organization
 Understand the genre
 Writing good leads/ topic sentences/ opening paragraphs
 Idea Development
 Use examples and descriptive details to support their ideas
 So What?
 Word Choice and Sentence Fluency
 Effective use of transitions
 Sentence Fluency

Integrated Writing Instruction (MacArthur, Graham, & Schwarz, 1993 )
The instructor follows a uniform daily
instructional framework for writing instruction.
1. Status-checking (formative assessment 3D)
2. Mini-Lesson (3A directions procedures, intro of
content)
3. Student Writing (choice 3 C)
4. Peer & Teacher Conferences (teacher responsiveness
3F, 3D peers and teachers)
5. Group Sharing or Publishing

Filling the Instructional Toolbox

Sentence Frames
“Providing students with the beginning of an
academic response is a very effective tool for
increasing the quality and quantity of student
participation. Sentence starters serve to both focus
attention on critical content as well as provide
students with the language support needed to
engage in academic discussions.”
Kevin Feldman & Kate Kinsella

I believe ________________________
is the best season.
Reason #1 Reason #2

I believe ___________________________
____________________________________.
I think this because_____________________
____________________________________.
Also, ________________________________
____________________________________.
All in all, _____________________________
____________________________________.

Paragraph Frame for Opinion Writing
I like ______________ because ______________. The
first reason I like ____________ is because
____________. The second reason I like ____________
is because ______________. In conclusion, I feel that
________________ is the best due to the fact
_____________.

Think of a Time…One Minute Essay

Action Chain
I fell down the steps.

Word Choice, Voice and Sentence Fluency

Word Intensity Thermometers
 Elated
 Joyous
 Cheerful
 Glad
 Exuberant
 Thrilled
 Happy
 Content

Take a look at
Student Writing

Excellent Writing Instruction Includes
 Daily writing with a focus on grade level standards
 Mini Lessons and Mentor Texts to teach writing traits and strategies
 Specific Feedback
 A balance between assessment writing and writing over time
 Writing to Learn, Writing for Publication, and Writing to demonstrate knowledge
 Student Choice

Lessons that change writersprincipals

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