Writing

OK...SO WE WANT THEM TO WRITE...!
Teachers are always asking about ways to help their students become more tuned into their writing and the kind of words they use in their written discourse. Whether it's for a descriptive essay or a written response to a question in a history class, my workshop groups struggle with how to help their students realize that boring writing comes from using words that don't really say what you want them to. Blah words = boring writing.

Using Videos for Literacy Learning
Let's think about our students...they like video don't they...every important thing isn't in books. Watch this video and then let me know...how you might use it, say for writing, or even to inspire your students to make their own videos on issues important to them!   F.I.D.O.

WORDLE turned out to be a good way to help the students visualize what kinds of vocabulary they were actally using.

Working in small groups students pasted a file of what they had written into WORDLE and then examined the resulting "cloud" of words. Through discussion about these clouds of words, students began to see the patterns of their written vocabulary.


Digital Storytelling Anyone??Do you ever use "storytelling" in your literacy classrooms or instruction? Here's a great resource for Digital Story Telling. What we found out while using this site was that the students were drawn to what I call "photo journalism."  So we headed that direction in finding ways to encourage student writing.


USING PHOTOGRAPHS TO AWAKEN THE STUDENT WRITER.

 I am a camera bug. I truly believe that a picture is worth a thousand words and try to use photographs whenever I can to encourage the "writer inside" to break out. While looking through Reading Today I found and article about how, "reading photographs can lead students to better writing." The article's author suggests that, "photographs hold moments for us--moments we have lived, and moments lived by others...[they] draw us into and take us back... make small moments memorable... tell us stories, and...let us tell stories..."

The article talks about a new book, Reading Photographs to Write With Meaning and Purpose, Grades 4-12  which helps teachers use photographs to encourage students to write "poetry, dialogue, interviews, descriptions, memoirs, biographies, narratives, investigations, histories and summaries..."

 Take a look at the photos in this posting.  Think about how those pictures might draw students into any of the types of writing just mentioned!

I would encourage you to check out the idea of using photographs straight off the camera or,  perhaps after they've been "doctored up" with DUMPER. This is a wonderful site for playing with digital photographs..great to change the texture of the pictures and then use them as writing or story prompts..."remember...a picture is worth a thousand words..." Seems like a great place for reluctant writers!
SOMETIMES GETTING STARTED IS THE HARDEST PART!
Well once they find a topic or they've gathered the information, it's time to organize and get the writing started...

bubbl.us  is an easy-to-use, online concept mapping tool; great to use when introducing a topic and using an interactive whiteboard or in computer lab when students are starting a project .  Students can: (1)create colorful mind maps online; (2) share and work with friends; (3) embed mind maps in class blog or website; (4) email and print their mind map; and (5) save their mind map as an image.   One more thing... it's FREE!