Writing to Learn or Learning to Write?

     It's comforting to realize that I am not alone when I say I did not receive good writing instruction for the majority of my school years. It's actually the other way around. Good writing instruction is hard to come by. But why? My guess is that teachers aren't aware of all of the strategies that Ray presents in her book. Five categories, that's how Ray helps her students to understand what the layers of teaching a writing workshop will be:

1. how we set up the room to teach (environment)
2. how we live in that room (demonstration)
3. what we teach in focus lessons and conferences (direct instruction)
4. what investigations we plan (inquiry)
5. what we require as writing homework (the potential of the world)

     Not only should our students understand these five ways of thinking about learning but we as teachers should understand them to create an active learning space. Reading through the chapters, I can't help but think back to my experience as a young student. I see how beneficial a good writing workshop can be and I know that I did not partake in a classroom that had this. I almost feel as if I was cheated out of experiences and an appreciation for literature and writing. Sure, I enjoy reading and writing now, that has come from within myself but a little outside help and motivation would have been nice. This only makes me realize how important this will be when I am designing my own classroom. It will be my job and my most important goal to create a dynamic learning environment for my students.

As Ray states, "Everything we do in our writing workshops, every move me make, teaches students."

Concrete Poem

     Today in my LLED 4120 class we were asked to create a Concrete Poem to illustrate what "Writing Workshop" is. The pencil represents characteristics of an unsuccessful writing workshop and the writing represents important characteristics of a successful writing workshop. 

Writing Workshop Initial Thoughts

     I'm always apprehensive to start a new textbook. They seem so boring and daunting to read and write responses on, especially since I have been doing so since the beginning of time, or so it feels like. But when I opened this book I immediately was comforted by the familiar voice of conversation. Katie Wood Ray is just like any other teacher trying to figure out what works and what doesn't work in a classroom. It's also nice to feel like I have a partner trying to investigate the scary task of Writing Workshops. To quote Ray, "The most important goal is that (her) students write with purpose and intention first-to enrich their lives in significant ways-and that out of this they learn to write well."This is what gets lost in translation I feel. With such strict standards placed upon our students and ourselves, we lose sight of the most important goal. It is not simply to have our students learn how to write, it is to instill in them a sense of pride and need to write. 

     Since this is my last semester before student teaching, I have been placed in a third grade classroom two days a week. I can see a stark contrast between my classroom and the way an affective writing workshop plays out. The students in my classroom seem to have no respect for writing, I understand that they are third graders and I'm sure that when I was that age I had a lack of interest in writing as well,  but something has changed inside of me since then and I couldn't imagine having a classroom of my own where writing was thrown to the curb. I'm only 5 chapters in to this book and I can already tell it will have a major impact on the way I implement strategies to creating effective workshops. The main component that I have taken away so far have been the essential characteristics of writing workshops, which are...

1. Choices about content

2. Time for writing

3. Teaching

4. Talking

5. Periods of focused study

6. Publication rituals

7. High expectations and safety 

8. Structured management

     In my opinion this should be used as a checklist and if you can check all of these characteristics off, then you should have one heck of a successful writing workshop.