The Daily 5 - Work on writing

This isn't going as well as introducing Read-to-self.  Anyone else experiencing this?  And I'm finding that I'm less patient and have corrected behaviors more with the writing than I did with the reading.  I was pretty much by the book with the reading component.  Hmmmm...

I have also introduced writer's workshop as a seperate component from the Daily 5.  I love it!  This way I can get in the "assignments" and get writing grades, yet they still have the "work on writing" component of the Daily 5 to get in their choice of writing activities.  And, my kids are so knowledgeable about the writing process and really seem to be fluent writers.  It is fantastic!  Way to go 4th grade teachers!  Way to go MRI trainer Susan for teaching us all wonderful things!

On another note...I've made it to page 10 of the CAFE book.  I hope to read a lot more this weekend.

I'm going to try this again...

Ok, I don't have a lot of time right this minute, but I thought I'd get it started so that others can add to it.  A bunch of us recently met to discuss how it was going with implementation of the Daily 5.  Here is where we can continue to share and collaborate.  Post what is working, what isn't, ask questions, etc.  And the great thing is, I'll add the link to my web site, http://www.mrspatton.com/ so that teachers around the world can contribute as well.  Below, I've added the link to the web site created by "The Sisters" as an additional resource.  I hope this is the start of something really great!!!

The Sisters

Where does the time go??

I cannot believe it is December already!!! I regret not being able to stay active with this new blog. I only have time right now because I'm home with a sick child. I'll take advantage of this quiet moment before it is gone. :-)

Reading and Writing workshops are going so well in my classroom right now. I am holding conferences with students (about 2 a day for reading and writing each) while the rest of the students are hard at work. It is wonderful. I have discussed DRA results, asked about the books they are reading, and made plans for "book shopping" and "just right" books.

In addition, I have met with students to look at their sketches in their seed notebooks, as well as plan for their writing time. My students are currently working on a narrative writing project. While I'm a little behind when compared to my peers, it has been well worth it. I owe my success to MRI training (Susan is awesome!) and resources that include Beth Newingham's blog and website (see link below). Beth, if you ever read this, you are amazing and I will continue to look for your guidance (even though we've never met!).

Of course, I also owe this success to my students, who have been open to new ideas with me and are willing to dive in and try them. I love seeing the excitement on some of their faces, and some act so sophisticated when it comes to reading and writing time. What an awesome sight!

I wish the best of luck to other teachers who are straying away from what you have always done in reading and writing instruction. For great resources, check out Beth's link below:

Beth Newingham's blog

Enjoy! Happy teaching and learning!

Just getting started

Finally! After weeks and weeks, maybe even months, I have started a professional blog. My hope is that I will reflect on what I'm doing in the classroom, changes I'm making, risks I'm taking, and so on. Others will then read it, hopefully, and make comments. Through it all, we will all grow professionally. That's what I'm hoping anyway.

To kick it off, I'm reading a book (for those that know me, this may be a shocker). It started when I attended an in-service over the summer. All of us that attended received the book. I'm sure some of us (like me) started reading it right away. It was summer. I had the free time then! Others put the book away, left it in the car, or tossed it in the pile of stuff brought home from the classroom. Well, if you are reading, What You Know By Heart, by Katie Wood Ray, then feel free to add your comments.

Let's start by sharing our successes or failures in keeping our own writer's notebooks. I LOVE TO WRITE. I'm not saying I'm good at it. I love to sing too, but I'm certainly not good at that. But I do love to write. This keeping a notebook thing is more difficult than I thought. Today, during a district in-service in which we followed up on our summer session, we wrote. I had fun. I enjoyed it. I even shared. It feels good to know what the kids feel like. Afterall, that's what this is all about. If we are going to teach writing, we need to think like writers (and act like them too...writing about anything and everything). I think the most important thing to remember is that we are busy, so we don't have to write very often. But when you write, try and make connections with what you are teaching. That way, what you do write is useful in teaching the curriculum. Try it. Get back to me. Let's make this work!