Choice, Voice and Publishing With Grade 2 Writers

I have recently been involved with four teachers from Cairnlea Park Primary School  in Melbourne's west and their Grade 2 authors. The primary focus of their work had been on writing and publishing narratives.

The work has required much persistence and patience from all concerned. This project began at the commencement of term 3 and culminated early term 4 with a publishing celebration.

The relative inexperience of these student writers proved to be no impediment to their zeal,  persistence and all round ‘stickability.’ While they faced a the multitude of writing challenges, they effectively stared down those challenges as they arose.

Why?

These young writers were afforded both voice and choice in their writing. They had a strong sense of ownership over the writing task –and the task they were given was authentic. They were working towards publishing their own books in their own way. It was a chance to make a host of important decisions along the way.

 They were supported by teachers who shared aspects of writing craft, alerting student writers to the work of favourite authors and encouraging these developing writers to ride on the wings of their heroes. Writing under the influence of writers they admired, students worked through the various processes of writing to arrive at a place where they had crafted unique compositions. They quite rightly felt ‘smart’ and feeling smart provides one with much energy. Energy necessary to keep striving.

The creative chaos of work in progress

They were alerted to the important text features and structures pertinent to narratives. They investigated aspects of character, setting, plot, tone. they understand the importance of identifying a problem to give their story an element of tension. They looked closely at ways other authors dealt with beginnings, middles and ends. They were exposed to examples of other student publications. This gave them ideas. It also gave them hope.  A number of these young writers included dedications, end papers, ‘about the author’ sections in their books. They incorporated a range of illustrating techniques and mediums to enhance their publications. They gathered examples to act as exemplars. They were clearly inspired to emulate such  words and deeds. They talked about their ‘readers’ as they worked, displaying an awareness of audience, essential to good writing. Full credit to their supportive teachers for laying such great foundations to build this writing upon.

Black line illustration as seen in the work of Terry Denton
My weekly visits provided insights and revelations uncovered as everyone journeyed through this valuable learning experience. For the teachers, it broke new ground. This was slowing down the speed of the teaching, allowing the learning to go much deeper. This was publishing as they had not previously taught it.

Student voice was foremost in this sustained teaching focus. It challenged the dominant images of students as compliant, passive recipients of what others define as education. These classes were abuzz with energy and action.
A student organizes (story-boarding) the pages of her book ready for assembling

Close up view of illustrations
When students are encouraged to speak out on their own behalf, and when what they say shapes learning action —student voice becomes a powerful force in an inquiry process. It invites teachers’ involvement as facilitating and enabling partners in learning. The practice of these teachers was enhanced because they were prepared to listen closely to what students were saying about their learning.These young writers now understand exactly what is required to publish a piece of writing.
 
This young authors included numerous 'flaps' to reveal extra
 information about characters in her illustrations

Opportunities to make decisions, to learn from your mistakes and reflect on your new knowledge, have made this a rich learning experience. Grade 2 writers, independent and self directed. Provided with choice, the voices of these writers have emerged.
The attention grabbing cover of 'Pizza Man.'



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular With Other Visitors

Writing Opposite Poems

Image
 O pp o s ite  P oem s In his book, ' How To Write Poetry,'  Paul Janeczko presents the idea of opposite poems. Paul suggests they could also be referred to as antonym poems. This is wordplay and it's fun to try. Here are some examples Paul provides to help us see very clearly how these short little poems work. I think the opposite of chair Is sitting down with nothing there What is the opposite of kind? A goat that butts you from behind Paul Janeczko You will  notice the poems are written in rhyming couplets. They can be extended so long as you remember to write in couplets. Paul shows us how this is done. What is the opposite of new? Stale gum that's hard to chew A hot-dog roll as hard as rock Or a soiled and smelly forgotten sock You might notice that some of Paul's opposite Poems begin with a question. The remainder of the poem answer the question posed. Opposite poems are a challenge, but it is a challenge worth trying. Not every thing has a
Read more

Writing About Reading - Reading Reflection Journals:

Image
UPDATED February 2022 Writing in response to literature can be a great way for students to organize their thoughts, explore what they think, and generate ideas. One of the strengths of writing in journals is that it allows students to capture all of those great ideas that generally float off into the air during the discussion.  Journal writing can also become drudgery if students are asked to write too often, given little choice or inspiration in what to write, or if they simply don't have anything to say. While some students eagerly share their impressions about selections they have read in class discussions, others are less comfortable and keep their thoughts to themselves. In an effort to encourage all students to think more about what they read and confidently share their observations and opinions, some teachers are turning to the reading reflection journal and are gaining insights they never anticipated.  The Value of Reflection Journals   Journals assist teachers to gain i
Read more

Learning How to 'Zoom In' When Writing

Image
It is important for young writers to understand that not all parts of a story are equal. There are parts through which a writer moves quickly, and important parts where the writer slows down and lingers a while. This is where the writer might intensify the action or reveal the character’s reactions in greater detail. Young writers need to know that this is a deliberate strategy on the part of the author. The author consciously zooms in. The writer uses a magnifying glass to view a part of the story more closely; to focus on a moment and to slow down time. When an important part of the story is enlarged upon, it   is a signal to the reader, that this part of the story is important. The strategy of ‘zooming in’ goes by many names: ‘exploding a moment’ ‘magnifying a moment’, ‘hotspot’ ‘snapshot’, ‘adding detail’ or ‘slowing the action.’  What ever the name, the idea is the same. The author writes in a way that expands a significant part of the story with the intention of drawing t
Read more

Answering Questions Posed by Young POETS

Image
UPDATED, May 2020 As a frequent visitor to schools I have the great pleasure of working with groups of young, enthusiastic poets and their teachers. When I arrive in a classroom, young poets are often pre-loaded with questions, and most keen to have them answered.  I try to answer as many as I can, but we frequently run out of time, and the poetry caravan moves on to the next classroom. So I am here to answer some of those questions -right here, right now. So here goes: When you were little did you love writing? The short answer is yes. I have always enjoyed words and language. I can't recall a time when I wasn't doing some kind of writing. When did you write your first poetry book? I have had poems published over the years, but it wasn't until 2014 that I had an entire book of poems (an anthology) published. When I looked back through all my notebooks I realized I had hundreds of poems from which to choose. So, 'Searching For Hen's Teeth-Poetry From The
Read more

Slice Of Life Story-The Trials Of A Left Handed Writer

Image
Amazingly I learnt to write using my left hand. An achievement against the prevailing beliefs of the day. My very first teacher saw it as her mission in life to ‘fix’ the poor, wretched little boy suffering from what she clearly diagnosed as left handed disease. She must have thought, 'This child must be re formatted! If he remains left handed he will be forever condemned to writing in a scrawl that no one will be able to read. Ugly hand, ugly hand.' ...They tried to say it couldn't be done, it mustn't be done. They took the pencil out of my left hand and placed it in my right hand. It felt unnatural. It felt weird. It was not right. More to the point it was not left. I was not about to conform. At least they didn't try tying my hand behind my back. Watch me I said. I may be an oddball, left handed scribbler but I am a determined oddball. I mean how boring would the world be if everyone wrote with their right hand? So I dug my toes in –and my hands to
Read more