Slice of Life Story Challenge March 2 -The Quest For independence



Today I worked in a classroom where student writers were encouraged to think for themselves when it came to making writing decisions. As a consequence, the writing of these students was varied and exciting. Their engagement was heightened. The classroom hummed with possibility.

As I moved about I was able to see student writers choosing not only their topics, but also the genre for their writing. They were fully engaged in matching their words to the needs of their readers. They were exhibiting an authentic sense of purpose and genuine ownership of the writing tasks they had chosen.

Each writer knew what they wanted to work on and how to approach their own particular writing challenge. Workshop time had been  invested in identifying the purpose of their writing. Every young writer had been afforded an opportunity to talk about their writing intentions with a partner. They had been encouraged to narrow the gap between their intentions and actions. In this classroom self-direction is being actively nurtured. The teaching of craft sits comfortably alongside independent action. These young writers are being actively supported to believe- writers make decisions. The work of this teacher is mindful, explicit and effective.

Young writers do not achieve this state of being because teachers merely get out of their way. They achieve self-direction because teachers actively support and nurture student growth towards independence. For Independent writing to be true in name, students need to be trusted to choose topic and genre and provided with support to grow into self-directed writers.

It would truly make my heart sing if classrooms that actively nurture self-directed writers were commonplace, but at this point of time, unfortunately they aren’t.

When teachers choose to control topic and genre, they deny students choice. They silence voice and they shut down the essential element of rehearsal.

Such approaches were everywhere during my own student days. I have met far too many educators wedded to such approaches during a long teaching career. Control grows out of anxiety and an inability to trust the learner to exercise a measure of ownership for the task being undertaken. Sadly, such approaches embed student dependency. They also inhibit initiative, reflection and intellectual growth. I am always imploring young writers to be brave and fearless. Inexperienced writers need teachers who possess a similar mind set. Risk takers and writers!


 Today provided an uplifting experience. I came home smiling. The quest continues…


Comments

  1. Dogtrax2 March 2016 at 21:22

    Writers ask risk takers, in a supportive environment ... another post that reminds me to always question my own teaching practice. Thank you, Alan.
    Kevin

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anonymous2 March 2016 at 22:02

    "Control grows out of anxiety." So true! This topic has been on my mind a lot lately and I couldn't quite put my finger on the precise cause. Thank you for helping to clarify my thinking.

    ReplyDelete
  3. elsie3 March 2016 at 03:29

    This is how to make a writer's heart sing with joy! Oh, how I too, wish this were the norm for all students. Sadly it is more of a rarity. What a wonderful day for you!

    ReplyDelete
  4. LL3 March 2016 at 12:29

    Oh my! You spoke to my heart and soul. That anxiety and fear causing teachers claps their fingers around the throat of students writing is killing passion.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Ashley Brown3 March 2016 at 14:03

    yes. Yes. YES! This speaks to why I made the move to instructional coaching. I believe children are capable of so much more than we often give them credit for. Guiding teachers to see what happens when they step back and let learning be messy . . . that's why I do what I do! Teaching is not telling, and that gets confused so often. Thanks for speaking the words of my teaching heart!

    ReplyDelete

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