Oh! I also really like how your MT uses delicious hamburger as a graphic for a great paragraph. As I was reading Writing Essentials, I realized that students are not getting a big picture why they are learning those different skills to write. Students are just write because that is what the teacher told them to do or what the test booklet told them to do. I as a student, I also just did whatever was told me to do. Also, including audience in all writing is essential because then students will know it is not just for the teacher to read and to grade them. So students will put more effort to provide background information that the reader will need to know when they read which will lead to quality writing.
I have not seen much writing in my classroom yet. Only writing that I have seen was for social studies class. Students had to write persuasive paper about whether school should allow students to play dodge ball at school. My MT went through writing process and with students on the white board. So as a class, they made a T-chart and gave reasons if they agree or disagree. It was a good modeling how she drew the T-chart and made everyone copy it down and decide which side they are on. However, at the same time because they did everything together, there was no creativity in their writings. It was all similar what they wrote in there paper.
I totally agree with in essential writing that writing requires a daily commitment and if we value writing then we will make time for it. It is sad that my 5th graders are not writing as much as they need to. It is because there are so much to cover in their curriculum and also they do a lot of MEAP preps which are reading and grammar lessons. So hopefully students are done with MEAP test, they can do some more writing!
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