Jordan Middleton Language Arts IMB Clinical November 6th 2013 Observation of a Lesson and Reflection During my time

visiting my placement school I observed writing instruction and workshop in a third grade classroom. I also got a chance to read multiple works that the students had written as well as conference with them about their work. This was a very informational time for me and I learned more than I could have ever imagined about writing in the classroom. One particular writing workshop that I observed that I found to be very interesting was a workshop that the teacher did over a three day period. The workshop was a Cartoon Drawing workshop. At the beginning of the class on the first day, the teacher guided the students in drawing two cartoon characters. The teacher and the class drew the characters together step by step. One character was a frog and one was a dog. Then, the teacher and the class named the two characters. Finally, the teacher had the class come up with a very short story about the characters that she wrote on large lined paper. The second day the teacher gave each student their own paper and she also gave them a blank sheet of computer paper. She encouraged them to redraw the characters and name them a name of their choice and then to write their own story about these two characters. She then let the students free write for the next two days. The teacher periodically had conferences with the students, encouraging them to add detail and elaborate. I thought this lesson was very powerful for the students. It allowed them to use their creative thinking and write about whatever they wanted to write about. This helped the students to write freely and not feel like they had to follow a certain mold. Although the teacher gave the

students free range of what they wanted to write about, she gave them the common thread of the two characters. I also liked how the teacher had conferences with each student about their writing. This helped the teacher to make sure the students were on task but also helped her to see what aspects of the students writing needed extra attention. For example, when reading one students writing the teacher noticed that they needed help with punctuation so she told me to aid that student in punctuation for the rest of their writing. One thing that I questioned was the length of the workshop. If I was doing this workshop in my own class I may have tried to make it a one day workshop in order to let the students feel like they could write freely and refrain from putting the pressure on them to perfect their writing. This observation influenced me as a future teacher in many ways. I had the opportunity to take what I had learned so far in the semester and combine that with real life classroom experience in order to begin to form my own opinions about writing workshop. This observation made me realize as a teacher it is very important to let the students write what they feel passionate about. After seeing how creative the students got with their free write stories, I realized that it is beyond important to make these workshops fun and exciting for students and that is what I plan to do in my own classroom. I also learned that it is absolutely fine if the students writing is not perfect. It is more important that the students are not afraid to try these new words and techniques as opposed to having every word spelled correctly. Although structure and spelling is extremely important, in writing workshop you must teach students that there is no right or wrong and you must not cap their creativity.

Teacher Interview 1. How often do you do writing workshop in the classroom? -We do some type of writing workshop every week. It is an important part of our language arts study. 2. How do you think that this benefits students? - Writing workshop allows us to understand what the students are grasping and what they arent. The school does not do a lot of testing so this is a way for us to assess and also for the students to practice skills. 3. Do you feel that this is a more effective strategy than testing? -Yes I do. This is a way for students to show creativity and learn important skills but it is done in a low stress environment. 4. What types of topics do you use for workshops? - Right now we are focusing a lot on nonfiction and fiction. So we have been doing a lot of workshops in which we have students make up their own characters and stories. We also have them read fiction stories and then write the stories in a different way. 5. During conference what types of questions do you ask the students/what do you focus on? - We try to focus on making sure their stories have a setting, characters, a problem, and a sight word spelling and punctuation as well.

6.

If students dont seem to getting the concept of the writing workshop how do you help them? - We try to have more one on one time when giving instruction. We also try to check on them throughout the time they are writing and make sure they are adding in the main parts of the story. We also having story mapping sheets that help the students to plan before they write.

7.

Has poetry been used in writing workshop? - We have not done a writing workshop with poetry yet this school year but we have read some poetry in language arts.

8.

What advice can you give for formulating a workshop? - Something that I always do is try to relate the workshop to something we are doing in other areas of study or something that is going on in real life.

Reflection: After interviewing the teacher I gained some important insight into how the writing workshops are set up for this class. The teacher and her assistant but a lot of thought into these workshops and how they are presented to the students. She picks the topics based on what the students are learning and what level they are at academically. The teacher also puts a lot of thought into each childs writing conferences. She described to me how she analyzes their writings and she also takes notes on what the students are struggling with and what they need help with. The teacher also seemed excited when I was interviewing her which I saw when she

was teaching. This excitement transferred over to the students which made them enjoy writing. The teacher was also very positive when talking about the students and their writing. I feel that from this interview, I could tell that this teacher puts a lot of emphasis on writing in the classroom. This was so thrilling for me to see because I know that this is not the case in all classrooms. One thought I had while giving the interview was that there were few cultural texts. I was only in the classroom for a very short time but I did not observe any texts for workshop that had characters of diverse cultures. Also, there was a large focus on fiction stories and I did not get a chance to observe a lesson on poetry or memoir. This interview impacted me as a future teacher because it helped me to see how a teacher thinks and plans for writing workshop. I learned that there is a lot of planning that goes into these workshops and that it is important to be prepared with topics when you go into guide students through a workshop. Each time that I structure a workshop in the future for my students, I will make sure that the topic makes sense and relates to what the students are learning. I also will make sure that the topics are relatable and important to students. As a teacher creating a writing curriculum, I would begin with poetry because I feel that this is a way for students to learn how to be creative and there are many mentor texts containing poetry that can guide students into the workshop process.

Student Interview 1. What types of writing do you do in the classroom? -We have been writing nonfiction stories in class. 2. What is your favorite type of writing to do in the classroom? -I like to write about anything buy mostly stories about myself. 3. Do you like to do writing in a group setting or on your own? -I like to do writing on my own. 4. What is one piece of writing that you have done that you really loved? - Once I wrote a story about my DS game (video game). I really liked that story because I love video games. 5. Have you ever read a book, poem, or story and used it to write? Did you like this? -Yes we read stories and then we wrote in the same way. I liked this because it helped me think of things to write about 6. If you could lead your class in writing or pick a topic to write about, what would you pick? - I would tell the class to write a fiction story. I would make them write a story about bacon and eggs. Maybe I would have them write a story about bacon vs. eggs and what is good and bad about both of them.

7. Do you like for the teacher to read your writing out loud or post it on the bulletin board or do you like to keep it to yourself? - I like for the teacher to read my work aloud so everyone knows that I wrote it. 8. Do you like to do writing outside of school for fun? With your parents, teachers, or friends? - I only do writing at school normally. I dont really write at home.

Reflection: From conducting this interview I observed that the student definitely had a certain type of writing that he enjoyed. The student did not seem to respond much during the first part of the interview but when I asked the student what piece of writing that he had done that he enjoyed the most he became much more intrigued. He talked about his video game that he had written about for a while and he told me that he had written multiple stories about it not just the one required for class. Also, when I asked the student what he would tell the class to write about if he had the opportunity, he said that he would have them write about bacon and eggs. You could tell that the student had a very imaginative mind and was not afraid to speak about ideas he had or writing that he thought would be fun and interesting. The student also proclaimed that he liked his writing to be displayed. This was surprising to me because often times you will find that the student is embarrassed or shy and likes to keep their work to themselves. While interviewing the student I found that the student was extremely creative and this came through in his answers about writing. This really spoke to me because it shows that the

teacher has been successful in helping the students find their writing voice. Also, while interviewing the student it seemed that the student did not really have a structured writing workshop and the workshops were presented in various ways. Some of the workshops were over the course of a week or maybe just a one day workshop. Another thought that I had while interviewing was that the student did not have a program set up in which they wrote at home or with their family. When asked if she student did any writing at home, he said that he did not and he only participated in writing at school. This student interview influenced me the most out of all of my observations of language arts. I feel that getting a private insight into how the student truly feels about writing can give a future educator so many ideas about what they want to do as a teacher in their own classroom. After seeing that the student really got excited when talking about their own ideas about writing, I had an idea that I would do a short workshop experience where each student got to give the class a topic for writing. This would make the students feel special and also give them a chance to unleash the ideas they have that they may not be able to discuss elsewhere. Also, in my classroom I want to set up a system in which the student is writing at home and at school. It is very important to keep that momentum going with writing so that the students realize that it is an ongoing part of life and not just an assignment. In order to do this, I would have conferences with the parents and make sure they are aware that there is a writers notebook that should be written in once a week or over the weekend. This would solidify the relationship between the teacher, parent, and student. Writing at home can also be a source of inspiration for the children. They would be able to use their home, neighborhood, or even their dog to spark an idea that they could use in their writing.

Overall Reflection *For my reflection on my clinical experience I chose to do a list of beliefs about teaching writing after spending time in a third grade classroom. -Students should do writing workshop three to four times a week. -Students should focus on one writing for one to two days. -Writing workshops should be done in a calm atmosphere and in a low stress environment. -Teacher should never make students read aloud or display their work if they do not want to in order to avoid embarrassing or making the students feel self conscious about their work. -Topics for writing workshop should give the students a chance to be creative and write about what they want to write about. -Students should be able to choose their own topics for some writing workshops in order to make them feel connected to the writing process and to their peers. -Topics for writing workshop as well as mentor texts should include various cultural influences. -Topics for writing should relate to real world issues and/or topics being studied in other subjects. -Writing topics should be geared towards the students and their culture, race, economic status. -Mentor authors used in writing workshop should be of various ethnicities, genders, and socioeconomic statuses in order to relate to all students. -Writing workshops should focus more on creativity and less on structure.

-Conferences during writing workshop should be one on one and they should be frequent. -Teachers should use one on one conference with writers to better understand what students need to work on (spelling, punctuation, and parts of a story). -Writing workshops should include many different genres (poems, memoir, and letters). -Teacher should communicate with parents or caregivers about writing workshop. -Students should have a set schedule of writing during the school day and a schedule that includes writing at home. -Teachers should strive to make writing fun!