Tag Archives: Readers Writers Workshop

Multi-purposing My Quickwrites

Amy Rasmussen, AP English, Books, Readers Writers Workshop, Strategies to Add Some Zip, Writers Workshop December 2, 2013 Comments: 3

Photo Credit: Jennifer

At NCTE last week, Penny Kittle reminded me of the need to consistently share beautiful language with my students. If I ever want them to be able to read it, understand it, and use it in their own writing, I must make conscious choices about voicing that which is lovely. I do a fine job of this right until my students choose their own topics and begin their compositions. Then the room gets stale, and the feeling of “what a chore” begins.

No wonder. I stop sharing short texts and poems. I stop having students respond in their notebooks. I stop allowing them to share their thinking.

While in Boston, I stole a moment with Penny and asked her about my problem, and she simply said, “I keep sharing beautiful language every day.” I must do this, too.

I made a list in my notebook of the things I need to do better when I return to the classroom. Continuing to share poetry and short passages that students can respond to sits at the top of my list, but I want to try to multi-task this activity.

My students are in the process of writing a feature-length article. They chose topics and began drafting before the break. I want them to think about ways to make what they are writing pop into 3D on the page; I want them to see vivid verbs and colorful word choice, and all kinds of devices that they might include in their own writing. My goal is to use poems and passages from now on that will serve several purposes:

1) rhythms of beautiful language,

2) models for sentence structure,

3) examples of figurative language,

4) built-in book talks,

5) questions that aid student thinking about things that matter in their lives.

We will read, and we will respond. We will notice author’s craft as we craft ourselves.

I know, I know, I am slow on this boat. Good planning would make this possible with all my quick writes.  I get that. Thus far, I’ve been a bit disjointed because I struggle with doing it “all:” Independent reading time, quick writes, mini-lessons on craft, grammar, mechanics, student-to-student reading response, reading and writing conferences, book talks. . . I keep most plates spinning, but more and more are crashing lately. My #nerdulation is to do better. (Search that hashtag on Twitter if you don’t have a clue.)

Here’s the passage I will use today. I think it’s appropriate to read a beautiful passage about books since I got a ton of new ones at NCTE. My classroom library welcomes them, but it’s screaming “crowded.” I gotta get a new shelf.

From Broken by C.J. Lyons: 

Kids fill the hall from wall to wall. Despite the unfamiliar press of bodies, I don’t panic. Instead, I let them steer me, like running with a herd of wild, untamed horses. At the end of the corridor, the herd separates into two, leaving me alone in front of a high glass wall.

The library.

Footsteps and lockers banging and voices colliding barrage me. Then I open the door, cross over, and step inside. I’m greeted not by silence, but instead by a hushed burble, relaxing, like the sound of a water fountain. I stand, enjoying the sensations, and take a breath.

School smells so much better than the hospital. And the library smells the best of all. To me, a good book is hot cocoa on a stormy winter day, sleet battering the window while you sit inside, nestled in a quilt.

A room filled with books?

I inhale deeply, a junkie taking her first hit. Sweet, musty paper. Ebony ink so crisp it threatens to rise off the pages and singe my nostrils. Glue and leather and cloth all mixed together in a menage a trois of decadence.

Another breath and I’m drunk with possibilities. Words and stories and people and places so far from here that Planet Earth is a mere dust mote dancing in my rearview mirror.

Hugging myself, containing my glee, I pivot, taking in books stacked two stories high, couches and chairs strategically positioned to catch the light from tall windows lining both sides of the corner, like the bridge of a battle cruiser, broad, high, supremely confident, and comforting. In here, I dare to imagine that I might just survive high school after all.

Respond in your notebook:  Describe a place where you find  peace or refuge?

How do you revision your instruction when you know something isn’t working?

Reel Reading for Real Readers: Girl, Stolen

Amy Rasmussen, Book Trailers, Books, Readers Workshop, Readers Writers Workshop November 28, 2013 Leave a comment

ReelReading2I picked up this title at the thrift store, and the moment I talked about it in class a young woman grabbed it and wouldn’t let go. Later, I found out that this is a popular book in some of my colleague’s classroom libraries. I don’t know why teenagers like books with disturbing themes, but they do. I guess it’s part of the psyche trying to make the plight of others worse than their own. Or something. Right now there is a waiting list for it in my room for this book. Maybe someday I’ll get to read it.

Girl, Stolen by April Henry

Do As I Do

Readers Writers Workshop November 22, 2013 Leave a comment

The importance of modeling with students in the classroom.

Reel Reading for Real Readers: The Collector by Victoria Scott

Amy Rasmussen, Book Trailers, Books, Readers Workshop, Readers Writers Workshop November 21, 2013 Leave a comment

20130207-190708I’m really not sure what to make of this, but I think my female students are going to clamor for this book.

I got an email from my school librarians inviting me to bring my students to a panel discussion with YA authors who would be visiting the CFBISD Literacy Night. Of course, I said yes. I didn’t even care who the authors were. I did ask for a list of names though, and then I searched for their books.

This is the first cover I saw:  Can you hear the girls whispering?

Then I did a search for a book trailer and came upon this great site called the “Teen Fiction Fiend.” Although the book was released last April, it will be brand new to my students–my copy arrived from Amazon last weekend, and the clever reveal here will have my girls who loved Perfect Chemistry falling all over one another as they clamor for the check out clipboard.

See for yourself:  Alice Marvel’s for theTeen Fiction Fiend

From the back cover:  “Dante is the kind of guy I wish I’d met when I was seventeen. And the kind of guy I’d kill if my daughter brought him home.” ~Mary Lindsey, author of Shattered Souls

Oh, brother… to be young again. *scurrying off to read (this book)*

Finding the Gems at #NCTE13

Presentations, Readers Writers Workshop November 21, 2013 Leave a comment

Today is National Writing Project Annual Meeting in Boston, MA, and NCTE will rev up tomorrow.  Heather and I sit in the hotel lobby watching the time remaining tick on the “free” internet access on the public computers. We plan to meet our friend Donalyn Miller for breakfast in ten minutes. She’s famous in the Readers/Writers Workshop world now, especially with the publication of her new book Reading in the Wild. We first met Donalyn when she spoke when we were fellows at our North Star of Texas summer writing institute in 2009. We trust her.

Choosing conference sessions is arduous. There are  over a billion sessions at NCTE alone. It can feel like throwing darts in the dark as we try to select sessions in which we feel we’ll learn the most.

We thought we had a plan. First, we searched the program for our trusted and favorite presenters:  Penny Kittle, Cris Tovani, Gretchen Bernebei, Linda Reif, Kelly Gallagher, Terri Lesesne, and, of course, Donalyn. We used the nifty conference app and put those on our schedule. Some of their sessions conflict with others, so we are left to choose yet again. Dang.

We still have lots of gaps and time to fill in — knowing we must walk the exhibit hall at least three times so we can gather and gather books.

So, readers, if you are in Boston, or if you are a regular conference attendee, what are your tips for choosing which sessions to attend? How do you decipher and choose amongst all the billions of presentation offerings.

How do we find the gems?

Psst. We are presenting with North Star of Texas Writing Project site leaders on Saturday morning at 8:00.

Always an English Teacher: Have Red Pen Will Travel

Readers Writers Workshop, Writers Workshop November 21, 2013 Leave a comment

So Heather and I are eating lunch at a Chili’s in the St. Louis Airport because hungry.*  We are on our way to NCTE in Boston, and we haven’t been together in person for a couple of months, so we are talking talking talking about English teaching, YA books, best practices, job interviews, transformation, old practices, new practices, motivating the masses, and, of course, writing our book.

Heather takes a bite of her hamburger and notices that the couple at the table next to us is composing some kind of letter on the man’s cell phone. She mutters, “They aren’t doing a very good job of it, maybe we should help.”

I hardly notice as I continue scribbling notes of our conversation in my writer’s notebook with my favorite green pen. Until. . .

He says:  “I am writing this letter to inform you that. . .”

She nods in agreement.

He says:  “Words can hardly express my feelings about . . .”

She nods in agreement.

He says:  “I will certainly miss meeting with you to hear about all of the progress that is taking place within the company and its growth.”

[Heather and I both reach for my RED pen.  j/k — but we really wanted to]

We pay our bill and leave the restaurant before we can see the lady nod her head in agreement.

Heather:  “Quick, before we teach them how to write.”

Amy:  “No kidding, talk about wordy.”

Heather:  “Talk about how NOT to pass the STAAR writing test.”

Amy:  “They exceeded 26 lines.”

Here’s the thing:  Those people were practicing real world writing. But did anyone ever teach them how to write?

Although we are not questioning the ability of their 10th grade writing teacher, we do have to question what they took away from their formal writing instruction. As educators we must think about practical skills and strategies that learners can internalize, similar to universal truths, so when they need those skills, be it reading, writing, thinking, etc., they will be able to recall and then apply them to real world tasks— like writing a resignation letter in an airport restaurant.

Three simple tips that would help our new friends:

1. Purpose should be carefully crafted within the context of the piece, not explicitly and immaturely stated in the first sentence.

2. Word choice, even when saying meaningless nothings, matters. If words can’t express feelings, what can?

3. Say it, and say it as concisely as possible.

*See English has a New Preposition, Because Internet

Acceleration — Is Your Model Worth It?

Readers Writers Workshop, Writers Workshop November 18, 2013 1 Comment

Let me state the obvious: There are certain students who do not like school. You know some of them. I know you do. Maybe you were even one yourself.

There are numerous reasons for this dislike, and sadly, some of the negative feelings have their claws in deep by the time these students get to high school. In my experience, most students who claim to hate school are struggling readers; therefore, their writing suffers, and they score low on most assignments–if they are willing to do them at all. These students just don’t feel smart — or capable.

Every day I make a concerted effort to reach them, to help them like learning, to encourage them to practice reading and writing. And sometimes I succeed.

But success comes hard when outside forces inflict unnecessary roughness.

Take tutorials for example. “Mandatory” tutorials in order to “prepare” for standardized testing. You know the kind.

The date for the re-take of the STAAR EOC looms, so schools go into panic mode. Students need extra support, and the state mandates we give it, so schools figure out how to provide this accelerated instruction. In my humble opinion, the mode of this instruction does nothing but give students who already struggle, already dislike school, another bucket of reasons to hate the whole deal.

Pass out reminders during regular classes:  students feel dumb for being singled out.

Call students from class early to escort them to tutorials:  teenage students get angry for being treated like young children.

Pull students our of class during the day and put them in a room with a teacher they do not know:  students feel angst for being forced to be yet another place they do not want to be with a teacher that doesn’t know their names. The lessons are a whole other story.

I’d say we’ve done our duty. Not.

When will we change the model of this “necessary” tutoring? When will we put the student first instead of never?

The same old same old tutorial sessions just do not work, and they probably do more harm than good– at least when done like the model I describe. It’s painful for students who struggle anyway. All we do when we go through the motions of acceleration is hurt the young people we claim to be helping.

Okay, probably not every program, but that’s my take on what I’ve seen this year.

And it makes me very sad.

 

For a new idea check out how North Star of Texas Writing Project, in partnership with innovative districts, is figuring it out. See  Finding True North: Accelerated Camps for Students at NorthStarofTexasWritingProject.org, celebrating students’ writing instead of disparaging the student writer.

 

How does your school handle acceleration?

The Last List of Apps You’ll Ever Need

Readers Writers Workshop November 11, 2013 Comments: 5

appsLet’s face it there are so many apps out there that can be used for education. It really is quite over whelming. If you are paying any amount of attention, literally every where you go you will be inundated with suggestions for apps to use in the classroom. Spend five minutes on Twitter and you will come across at least ten different tweets offering some insight into the best apps for whatever it may be. Spend five minutes on Google searching and you’ll come up with at least ten million suggested sites. Spend five minutes in a room of educators talking about technology and there will be at least 10 questions about the best apps to use in the classroom.

While people have made a solid attempt to provide some suggestion or organization to apps, the sheer volume of the lists that are out there really is just as overwhelming as the amount of apps that are available. And it concerns me that anyone would rely on an arbitrary list of apps without other considerations in mind. What if we only allowed learners to read books of the Newbery Award list. Granted there are some amazing books on that list, but what about all the other amazing titles that are not on that list.

So we are effectively back to square one.
What apps should I use with my learners in the classroom? 

My list really is simple:

1. Take the pressure and responsibility off of you as the educator and let the learner decide what tools, apps, and resources they want to use to demonstrate their profound learning of the skills or concepts.

I know that this may seem like a radical notion, but if we want learners to take ownership of their learning we have to also include them in the design process by allowing them to have voice and choice in the ways the go about doing their work. In order to allow learners to have a say in their learning, we as educators need to be willing to take a step back and allow the learners to take some of the lead.

Still not sure if learners can be empowered to take charge of their own learning experiences? Check out this pretty amazing Ted Talk.

When a Student Tells You What to Teach: Sweet

Amy Rasmussen, AP English, Books, Readers Workshop, Readers Writers Workshop, Writers Workshop November 4, 2013 1 Comment

I mentioned before that I gave a Pulitzer Prize winning novel to one of my AP English students recently. He gave it back to me three days later.

“Did you read it?” I asked.

“Well, I tried,” he said. “There’s just too much description. I couldn’t get into it.”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“I don’t know exactly, but it’s the kind of book you should pull passages out of and teach with,” he said.

Okay, then.

I still haven’t read the novel Tinkers by Paul Harding, but I did take a look to see what Levi meant. (He’s a bright young man–taking both AP Lit and Lang his junior year.)

Just read the first page. You’ll see what I did.

Yes, I can teach some skills with this. It’s beautiful, and now I’m reading it– on the lookout for mentor slices that engage and inspire great reading and writing.

Screen Shot 2013-11-03 at 10.02.26 AM

In an AP English Class, Shouldn’t It Be about the Reading?

Amy Rasmussen, AP English, Books, Readers Workshop, Readers Writers Workshop October 23, 2013 Comments: 24

This is my fifth year to teach AP English Language and Composition. Every year I can pretty much predict during the first grading period which students will pass the AP exam with a qualifying score. See, my campus practices true open enrollment: any student that wants to challenge herself with PreAP or AP classes may. We have no prerequisites. Any student that demonstrates a strong work ethic, attends tutorials, and tries hard can pass my class, but she may not pass the AP exam in the spring– if she is not already a reader.

Photo by Seasonal Wanderer

It’s a lack of reading skills that gets students every time. The multiple choice portion of the test is a killer with four to five passages and usually 55 questions, which must be answered in 1 hour. I can teach test-taking skills that will help my students do better on this part of the exam, but if a teen is not already a reader when he comes to me, I can rarely help him learn the vocabulary and critical reading skills needed to score at least 50% of the questions correctly (the minimum goal for the mc portion of the test). I’m a pretty good teacher, but the AP exam is difficult, and my magic wand only has so much power.

Many of my students do not come from homes with reading role models. Their parents are hard working immigrants who do not have funds to invest in books. Quite simply, most do not identify themselves as readers. Of course, there’s the few. The students who had an older sibling or a teacher or a librarian (or sometimes a parent) push books into eager hands. These are the students I predict will find success on the AP test come May.

For four years I’ve tried to figure this out:  If it’s the readers who can pass the exam, how can I get more students to be readers? It should be simple.

I tried the classic route. It simple didn’t work. I used to assigned six novels, all the best-loved American literature; and just this summer in a brief Facebook exchange, a former student confirmed what I already knew. She said, “I loved the class, but I didn’t read one book.”

She was not the only one, and my feeble attempts year after year to get students to read, and their feeble attempts year after year to pass my assessments, proved that the classic route was not taking my students on the road they needed to go. They still weren’t readers.

I assert that most high school students do not read the assigned texts, especially classic novels that they can read about online–learning just enough to join a class discussion, write an essay, or pass a test. They might learn the gist of the novel, maybe even get the jokes alluded to in pop culture, but they are not reading.

And that is what I want:  I want to foster readers.

Yesterday I sent out a tweet:

I’m spending grant $. Please, what are the hottest reads in your HS English class library? Thanks for sharing titles. #engchat

Many people responded with several titles i didn’t know, and my shopping list got longer. But I also got this response:

XXXXXXXXXXXX 21 Oct (I deleted the name to protect the not so innocent.)

@AmyRass My Juniors are reading: Huck Finn, Moby Dick, Scarlet Letter, The Road, Gatsby, Things They Carried, Other Wes Moore, Catcher

I responded with this:

@xxxxxx Thanks for sharing. Great books. Are they reading those titles as free choice? If so—impressive.

And the answer was this:

@AmyRass They are chosen from a list we gave them. I also am fortunate to teach some very bright students.

Hmmm. I wish I could poll those students. I’d bet my farm, if I had one, that very few are actually reading those books. To roughly quote Don Graves: “Choice without [a kind selection] is no choice at all.”

I do things differently. I’ve abandoned the whole class novel like I allow my students to abandon books, (although I know there are some cases when reading the same text can lead to useful instruction. Don’t hate.) My students read during the first 10 minutes of every class. I talk about books as often as I can. I add new books to my shelves that I know students will read. (I bought three copies of Allegiant this afternoon because I know Ashley, Kathryn, Sierra, Adrian, and Diego are waiting. There will be a clamor in the morning.)

Is it hard to devote 10 minutes of a 50 minute class period to reading? Yeah, at first–when the traditionalists tried to drag me back to the dark side. Then I had my students blog about their reading lives over the last seven weeks. So many of them wrote about how they’ve read more books in seven weeks than they read the whole of their sophomore year. Three, four, five books. Already.

I am glad they are reading YA literature. I know it doesn’t have higher-level vocabulary. I know that it doesn’t have sophisticated syntax. I also know that my students like it; they are reading after all.

This quarter I will push students into harder texts. Just yesterday, I put a stack of memoir, historical fiction, non-fiction, and classics on every table, and I talked books. I challenged students to add to their What To Read Next list, and I gave descriptions of characters and hints at plots. I’d like students to read a sampling of different genres–try a graphic novel or a NY Times Bestseller–because so many teens don’t know what they like–yet.  If they don’t meet the challenge? It’ll be okay, as long as students keep reading.

Today Yulissa asked for Cut. Luis asked for Unwholly. Esmeralda read A Child Called ‘It’ in 24 hours and went straight to A Man Called Dave when she walked in the door. Anthony started reading The Lord of the Flies, and Stephany asked for an award winner, so I gave her a stack of six to sort through–all had Printz or National Award or Pulitzer emblems. Tomorrow will be similar. We’re nine weeks into the year, and reading’s become routine.

I may not be able to give all my students the skills they need to master the AP Lang exam, but I am giving them the time they need to plant the seeds of those skills. They’ll sprout and take root and begin to grow, and maybe, just maybe, my students will have the stamina they need to succeed in college, and, maybe that stamina will help them succeed in life.

That’s more important than an AP exam anyway.

I’d love to know the reading habits of the AP English students on your campus. Are they (fake) reading? or really reading?