Launching the Writing
Workshop
Elementary Curriculum Coaches
Monthly Writing PD
• One Tuesday each month 3:00-4:30
• 1st Tuesday-alt. loc.(AES, SES)
• 2nd Tuesday-alt loc. (McD, MES)
• 3rd Tuesday-CBMS (BFES, PHES,
KES, PES)
• 4th Tuesday-at WIS (WIS, WES)
• Will earn 60 renewal pts. for attendance.
Pause and Ponder
• Take a few minutes and write about
your experience in writing instruction
as a child. Were you explicitly taught
writing? How was it done? If not,
how did you learn how to write? What
is your comfort level as a teacher of
writing? Write for 3 minutes without
lifting your pen from the paper.
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Turn and talk
Today’s Agenda
• Essentials of Writing Instruction
• Detailed Look at Writing Process and
Workshop
• Read and Interpret the Common Core
State Standards for Writing
• Lucy Calkin’s Writing Frameworks
What if…
• Someone took the time to look at the
characteristics of teachers and
classrooms across the country who
consistently manage to get the highest
levels of literacy achievement for their
students year after year regardless of
socio-economic background, prior
achievement, or ethnicity?
What if…
• After closely examining hundreds of
these classrooms in different schools
in different districts in different
states across time, the folks doing
the looking were able to tell the rest
of us what the common
characteristics of these classrooms
are that set them apart from
typically-progressing classrooms?
And what if…
• The foundational element common to all of
these classrooms was something so simple
and so obvious that it seemed almost too
fundamental?
• Putting this one foundational thing in place
classrooms would significantly improve
literacy achievement…especially for
struggling learners?
What is foundational in
all of these classrooms?
• KIDS READ A LOT
AND WRITE A LOT
Facilitating Change
• For a typical 120 minute ELA
block, your goal is to have your
students engaged in reading,
writing, and researching at least
75% of that time.
CCSS: Tremendous
Emphasis on Writing
• If we were asked to describe the two or three most
striking features of the Common Core State Standards, one
of the things we’d say straight away is that the standards
place a tremendous emphasis on writing.
• …writing is treated as an equal partner to reading, and more
than this, writing is assumed to be the vehicle through
which a great deal of the reading work and reading
assessments will occur. The CCSS, then, return writing to
its place as one of the basics of education.
Pathways to the
Common Core
Calkins/Ehrenworth/Lehman in
Backwards Planning
• Where do we want to go?
• Read exemplar writing from your
grade level and make notes of what
had to be taught in order for that
child to write that piece
• How do we get there?
A Guide to the Common
Core Workshop
• Take about 20 minutes and read closely
chapter 2. Highlight, underline, make notes
of things in the margins that stand out to
you.
• Decide for yourself the point of having
writing workshop
• Questions? Reactions? Things that stood
out? Did you find out anything new? What
didn’t you figure out?
Written Conversation
• Write a letter to the person to your
right about any of the following:
• Things that stood out, your reaction
to specific things, an aha moment,
something you really liked, questions
you still have. Begin it just like a
letter…Dear Pam,
Essentials of Writing
Instruction
Managing Writer’s
Workshop
• Mini-lesson 10-15 minutes
(Connection, teaching, active
engagement, link. This is best done with
class gathered on carpet and you with
easel for demonstrating. Partners)
• Writing 30-40 minutes
of year. Will build stamina for this)
(shorter at beginning
(Teacher conferring ind/sm group)
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Share 5 minutes
(partner/sm group, 1-2 students aloud)
• Needs to be taught like any other skill-explicit
instruction and ample opportunity for practice
every day. Requires more than turning down the
lights and playing music.
• Tell yourself you will teach writing as many times
a week as you do math, ELA, etc.
• Allow children to choose topic most of the time.
• Should be able to look at a child’s writing and
know immediately whether they are being taught
writing or just “doing” writing.
Provisioning a Writing Workshop
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The Meeting Area: A space for gathering close together, sitting
beside partner: easel with chart paper to create charts, “author’s
chair,” markers, pointer, exemplar texts and examples of student
work on bulletin boards or nearby to refer to, meeting place near
the promethean board/document camera so it can be easily used
when needed. May only bring the students in back of room to front
Mini-lesson 10-15 minutes taught here
Charts
Writing Partners
Word Walls, Dictionaries, and Thesauruses-high frequency words
may be posted to a word wall. Add five new words to wall each
week, deleting a few that no longer retire attention.
Pencils or pens?
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Charts
Some charts one to two day charts
Others are “anchor charts.” Represent cumulative teaching points
across a unit and are added to over time
Make sure the heading names a big skill/goal so students know
purpose of the chart
Use visuals (photos, exemplars, etc.) to allow children to get a lot
of info at a glance.
Keep charts current and up during time students need them
Make charts interactive. For ex. Students add names (on sticky
notes) next to strategies tried.
Reread/refer to the charts often with whole class, small groups,
or partnerships
Periodically revise or retire them
Mentor/Exemplar Texts
• Effective writing curriculum includes immersion in reading
texts/stories like the ones you want your students to write
• Length
• Need to study them closely, not just graze, revisiting them
time and time again
• Same text can be used to teach leads, dialogue, character
development, showing-not telling, etc.
• What are you reading that is like what you’re writing?
• Can use past students’ writings as mentor text
• Lucy Calkins kits include 3-4 mentor texts to support
instruction
Sentence Stalking
• She reads, gardens (successfully),
and uses her time wisely.
• I rearrange books, sharpen knives the ones I am certain not to use- and
change knobs on dressers and
cabinets…..
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Why did the author use this punctuation? We can begin an anchor
chart of craft moves.
Writing Folders/Notebooks
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Each student will need a notebook and a 2 pocket folder
Specific type you use matters less than THAT you have a notebook that makes sense for you and
your students. Marble vs. 3 ring binder vs. spiral
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Number of sections/tabs you use matters less than THAT you show students how to use a
consistent and manageable organizational routine.
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Sections may consist of:
– Ideas Section (short writes, lists, sketches)
– Toolbox Section (High-Frequency word lists, personal spelling list, notes on punctuating
dialogue, handout with examples of strong leads/conclusions, etc, examples of various uses of
the comma, revision/editing checklists, ways to add voice
-Drafting Section
-Handouts Section
-Goal Setting Section
Don’t get too bogged down with notebook design. Purpose-for support
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During first week or two of a unit most writing done in notebook/can travel home
Allow child to personalize his notebook-emotional attachment
Write on right side of page/leave left side for revising
Date all writing-can readily see amount of writing done in day/week
Folders can hold drafts/mentor text exemplars that students have decided to revise and work on
more-taken from their notebooks
Volume and Stamina Matter
• Students need to write for long stretches of time
30-40 minutes. 3rd graders should be able to
produce one half a typed page at a sitting, 4th
graders are expected to produce one typed page
in a sitting; 5th graders two typed pages
• Can have students graph number of sentences
they write in a sitting—keep daily or weekly
records
• Can’t teach them to write better until they’re
writing more
Building Stamina
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Writing time generally 30-40 min. but you’ll need to build up to this
Start of year shorter writing sessions. Just don’t let these
sessions become the norm. Children will never write well if they
are accustomed to writing briefly.
Set a timer and gradually increase the amount of time students
write. Put on board so students are aware of this.
“I’m finished.” Doing everything but in an underdeveloped way. Will
need to give mid-workshop teaching points to sustain them for
several short intervals.
If a student finishes, he can read writing exemplars that you have
given them that are like what you’re asking them to write.
Students make a goal for their writing each day. Sometimes it
takes a while to get the words on the page. “May have to rearrange
day so they get a chance to write. “ (recess, etc.) Go after this
goal with tenacity!
While They’re Writing
• During first week or so of school-walking around
encouraging
• Compliment the students on things they’re doing well.
• Ask questions to help them get more detail.
• If you see some common mistakes, do a quick mid-workshop
teaching point of about a minute or so. “Excuse me writers,
I see that some of you are getting stuck with spelling. You
can circle the word and keep going so you don’t lose your
train of thought, then come back later to your circled
words. If you don’t know what word to use, draw a line and
fill in the blank later. “
• Before long, this won’t be enough and you’ll start the
individual conferences.
Conferring
• The HEART of your writing workshop will be conferring with
the students—the hardest part—but you won’t get the best
results if you don’t include this.
• Remember: What gets monitored, gets done. If you don’t
monitor their writing, then the writing becomes something
they do, but no drastic improvements will take place.
• Will need a notebook, clipboard or some method of taking
notes on each student
• Try to meet with every student once a week
• Don’t need to have read their writings ahead of time to
conference. Conferring has a somewhat predictable rhythm
to it but will detour as you see that student’s needs. (More
on this later)
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What ifs…
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“I left my writer’s notebook/folder at home.” If you comfort them “That’s okay, just
use this paper” you will find that many will begin to do this and not take writing
seriously. Make this a capital offense! Ask the class to focus all eyes on you and
discuss this. “Should we call your mother at work? Does she get a mid-morning
break?” You aren’t really going to do this but you want to communicate that’s it’s a big
deal to forget it. People can be lined up the next morning to ask that student if he
remembered the notebook. The bigger accomplishment? Now the whole class will
understand this matters.
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“My talking partner is absent.” Join a nearby partnership.
“I don’t know anything to write about.” Look in the Idea section of their notebook.
Look at the charts on the wall for ideas. Review their goal.
“I’m done.” There is no such thing as being done in writer’s workshop. If a student
finishes a piece they can study a few exemplar leads and try some of their own. They
can start another piece using ideas from their notebook. You want them to make
these decisions on their own instead of needing individual jump starts. You can do a
mini-lesson on what to do when you feel stuck, don’t know how to start a writing, etc.
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Upper-Elementary Grade Writers
and the Writing Process
• Pre-writing
A. Gathering Ideas-wide awake way of living. When
writers notice something they jot it in their notebooks
so they don’t forget it. In time, students come to
writing workshop already knowing what they want to
write about. (great garage sale of junk to spark ideas)
B. Determining which structure to write in- How does the
content I have fit into this structure, or another, or
another? Boston Tea Party…chapter book? Subtopics?
Do I have enough info for a subtopic on…?
C. Organize ideas into an outline, web, etc.
• Drafting- Take the pen and write-Make a
movie in your mind and keep your eye on
the movie. Fast and furious writing that
will be revised later.
• Revision- Pretend to be a stranger to your
draft, spying on it to imagine what the
reader’s reaction will be. Are there
sections that are unclear? Do I see the
qualities of writing that I was trying to
practice?
• Editing-Postpone this until the text is ready for
publishing/the main structure and content has been revised.
Will have editing mini-lessons and also within mid-workshop
teachings, share sessions, and homework assignments. You
will probably want to teach your students to read each
revised draft successive times, each time with a new lens.
(spelling, use dictionary/thesaurus, end punctuation, verb
tense agreement, variety of sentence structures, precise
words, pronoun references clear) At the beginning of the
year may only edit for high-frequency words, end
punctuation, and paragraphing. By March, checking for clear
pronoun references and varied sentence structure.
• Make decisions on what conventions to teach your students
in their independent conferences. Can’t tackle them all and
not everybody needs the same convention lessons.
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• Publishing not all writings students create
will be taken to the publishing stage
(performed in front of an audience). In
fact, most won’t. You may not publish but a
couple a month but make a big deal out this
when you do.
Common Core State
Standards for Writing
CCSS: Threads for Writing
Text Types and Purposes
containers for our writing
Production and Distribution of Writing
the process and the product
Research to Build and Present Knowledge
writing supported by research
Range of Writing
ample time for writing widely with a sense of varying audience
The Four Sections of the
Writing Standards
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Standards 1 through 3 deal with three umbrella modes and purposes for
writing: narrative, argument (opinion), and informational/explanatory.
Standards 4 through 6 deal with “production and distribution” of
writing—using writing process to create and publish your work.
Standards 7 through 9 deal with “research to build and present
knowledge.” This covers exploring ideas, gathering information, and
synthesizing that information in a way that makes large volumes of
information shareable.
Standard 10 deals with the “range of writing”—calling for students to
write in two very different contexts, both spontaneously or on-demand
(such as procedures in a science experiment or writing assessment) and
over extended time (as for a journal article, research project, or book).
• How are these standards different
from our past standards? Turn and
talk.
CCR Anchor Standard 3- Writing “ Write narratives to develop real or
imagined experiences or events using effective technique, well chosen
details and well chosen event sequences.”
What do you notice? Same across grade levels 3-5, action verb
“write,”descriptive details, clear, logical sequence of events.
Turn and talk about the changes you notice with standard 3.a. This
standard talks about the way you start your story.The term orient in 4-5
means you don’t just launch right into your story but introduce your
character, setting, and the problem.
Read over standards 3b-3e and highlight changes/make notes to the side and
share with your partner. What do you notice? There are more sophisticated
levels of description, going from literal to abstract.
CCR Anchor Standard 3- Language “Apply knowledge of language to
understand how language functions in different contexts, to make
effective choices for meaning or style, and to comprehend more fully
when reading or listening.”
• Appendix C- Exemplars of Students’ Writings
• Found on State Dept. website
Lucy Calkins Writing Kits
Overview and Content
All kits contain these 8 resources
• 4 grade specific Units of Study in Opinion, Information, and
Narrative Writing-each containing 18-22 sequential sessions
subdivided into 3 to 4 bends
• Book of If..Then Curricular plans for whole class and
individual/small group differentiated instruction for
alternative shorter units. Each has about 5-8 units of study
to teach before, after (or in-between) the core curriculum
based on your students needs.
• Resources for Teaching Writing CD
• Writing Pathways (rubrics, exemplars, student checklists,
etc.)
• A Guide to the Common Core Writing Workshop
• Set of Trade Pack mentor text books
• 3rd Grade:
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Unit 1 Crafting True Stories (extends students work with personal narrative while engaging them more
fully in the complete writing process with emphasis on drafting/revising their work
Unit 2 The Art of Information Writing (students write chapter books on their own topics synthesizing
a wide variety of info and learning to section into topics/subtopics)
Unit 3 Changing the World: Persuasive Speeches, Petitions, and Editorials (rallies kids to gather and
organize info to persuade people about causes the children believe matter-bullying, recycling, saving
dogs, etc.)
Unit 4 Once Upon a Time: Adapting and Writing Fairy Tales (uses familiar fairy tales to explore
techniques of fiction writing such as writing scenes, getting an omniscient narrator to orient readers,
how to create tension, using figurative language to convey mood)
• 4th Grade:
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Unit 1 The Arc of Story: Writing Realistic Fiction (develop believable characters with
struggles/motivations and rich stories to tell)
Unit 2 Boxes and Bullets: Personal and Persuasive Essays (students learn the value of organization and
form as they gather evidence to support and express and opinion on topics they know well)
Unit 3 Bringing History to Life (tackles historical fiction research in which they collect evidence and
use details to describe people/events long ago and far away
Unit 4 The Literary Essay: Writing About Fiction (builds on their learning on writing fiction and applies
it more sophistication to a unit on literary essays
• 5th Grade
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Unit 1 Narrative Craft (helps students write more focused personal narratives)
Unit 2 The Lens of History: Research Reports (Westward Expansion-students draw inspiration from
mentor texts, historical accounts, primary source documents, maps, timelines to write focused reports)
Unit 3 Shaping Texts: From Essay and Narrative to Memoir (teaches students how to write memoirs
with rich details and insights)
Unit 4 The Research-Based Argument Essay (students learn to build powerful arguments that balance
evidence and analysis to persuade readers)
Generating Personal Narratives-5 Days
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Lesson 1 Teaching Point: Start with Turning Point Moments; create chart “Strategies
for Generating Personal Narrative Writing”
Lesson 2 Teaching Point: Writers generate ideas by thinking of places that matter to
them and the episodes that occurred in those places. Also, before the writing, you’ll
teach them to re-experience the episode, relive it so that readers will be able to
experience it. Will add to yesterday’s chart; create new chart “Techniques for Raising
the Level of Narrative Writing”
Lesson 3 Teaching Point: Writers read great stories in order to write great stories.
In other words, writers allow another author’s words to spark ideas of their own.
Have a memoir text to share. Chart from yesterday.
Lesson 4 Teaching Point: Build on earlier lesson, reminding students to experience the
moment as they write so readers, too, can experience it.
Lesson 5 Teaching Point: Writers sometimes pause to take stock, using a checklist to
assess their own growth and set new goals. Copy of Narrative Writing
Checklist/Poster size, too. Copy of Goosebumps for each student/poster size, too.
• Lesson 6: Flash-Drafting
• Lesson 7:What’s my story really about? Draft revising.
Create chart “Thinking Up a Whole New Way to Tell a
Story”
• Lesson 8: One way to revise is to bring out the story
structure. Already prepared chart “How Stories Tend to
Go.” Book Peter’s Chair. Story Mountain charted out.
• Lesson 9: Elaborating on Important Parts. Create chart
“Strategies for Elaborating on Important Parts.”
• Lesson 10: Adding Scenes from the Past and Future
• Lesson 11: A final revision strategy; writers don’t just end
stories; they resolve problems, learn lessons, and make
changes to end them in a way that ties back to the big
meaning of their story. End of Charlotte’s Web pre-written
on chart paper
How Do I Begin?
• Plan to teach management lessons on Wednesday and
Thursday.
• Give the On-Demand Assessment Friday and score it
according to the rubric found on your CD. Record scores on
data sheet that will be emailed to you.
• On Monday, begin the first lesson in Unit 1 of your Lucy
Calkins kit
On-Demand Assessment
(see handout)
Need to capture what your students can do at the beginning of the
year. Cannot teach well unless you take the time to learn what they
already know.
Use this in October parent-teacher conference to show student’s
growth in writing to a writing they have done just prior to conference.
• “Cliff Notes” version of some of the
lessons in Unit 1 Narrative to help
get you started
• Read the first lesson in Unit 1 along
with the cliff notes version located
on the P drive in folder labeled
Writing Resources
Homework!
• Our next session in September will be on conferring and
record keeping.
• Read chapter 8 of A Guide to the Common Core Writing
Workshop and be prepared to share your
successes/struggles/needs in this area.
• Bring your management notebook or method of record
keeping. We will learn and get ideas from each other.
• Bring 2 writing samples from your On Demand Assessment
Survey