Teaching Revision using Student Examplers

Teaching Revision

I just love teaching revision in writing. But this year I am out for two months due to foot surgery. Thank Goodness for Pinterst (TGFP) & Teaches' Blogging! I just love reading and learning about what other teachers are doing. I am always learning! Life Long Learning(LLL) Even after 30 years of teaching! I become revitalised when I read your blogs!

I use a lot of Cynthia Rylant's books to teach revision. My whole province adopted Lucy Caulkins writing resources to teach the rigorous standards set for our grade 2 students in Reading and Writing. But my teaching of writing includes much more than that. The conferencing makes the writing mini-lessons so individualised. One child may need help including both a naming part and a telling part to make a complete sentences, while another might be working on including feelings in their story. I think I enjoy teaching the mini lessons on "Show not Tell" in writing.

I like to use a book of Rylant's like The Ticky Tacky Doll to introduce "Show not Tell." The favourite story is about a little girl beginning Kindergarten, who cannot bring her rag doll that her grammie made to school with her. The problem is the doll goes everywhere with her. This piece of Realistic Fiction  uses exact language "that make pictures in a readers mind" to explain how the little girl felt on the inside and how she acted. I ask the class or child to get the feeling inside them  they are trying to describe and them tell me about it. They all can make connections to the Ticky Tacky Dill and are able to understand how the girl in the story felt.

I model different scenarios with the class. Here is an example.
              " I am waiting and waiting for my grandma and grampie to arrive for Easter." I talk to the   children about i feel.  My heart is pounding and I keep going to the window to look for their car to drive up to our house. I act this out and demonstrate how I would run to the door when they arrived and smother them with hugs and kisses calling their names. Next I model write how I may have to add a flap to add more explanation with vivid details. I model how to staple this flap to the edge of the paper where it will be inserted with  detail.

I am working on a Freebie right now. I am nervous about uploading it, because I can't stop revising myself.  When I do finally think it is good enough, I will post it free here! Bye for now.



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I guess I need more work on placement and font size! LOL
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It's hard to believe but the 30C of snow we had here over Saturday night and Easter Sunday morning is almost gone! The crocuses, snowdrops and other early spring perienals are blooming.

Well it's that time of year again when teachers here start thinking about the upcoming provinicial reading comprehension/writing assessments for the grade 2 towards the end of May.
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if your interested in our Provincial Standards check out the following link.

Reading and Writing Achievement Standards-GradeTwo.pdf

In this post I will discuss reading. We are working hard on the Reading Goals of Comprehesion-focusing on the strategies of Inference & Mail Ideas and Detail and the Goal of Expanding Vocabulary. We continue to practice using the Context Cues Strategy to figure out what new and often multisyllabic words mean. I wanted to share a web site and some resource books I use in my class at this time of year.

These first resource for  comprehension is a  great collection from Scholastic to use as a moring activity. I usually give a short minilesson to review and clarify any skills they need to focus on.  Students can work with their partner and read, highlight sections and complete the activity. Then we all go over them together, either on my Smart boardSB) or an overhead(OH)

to practice the Goals of Comprehesion and Expand Vocabulary

/Reading-Passages-That-Build-Comprehension

The following is a great site with well designed interactive lessons and activites to provide practice on various components of Literacy. These could be used on a Smart board(SB) or a computer and projector.

My students love these!

Test Practice for grades Pre K-4

Elementary Test Prep-.studyzone.org/testprep/ela2.cfm

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Well my blog is finally up thanks to Erika and Misty at "Honey Bunch Blog Design." This  is my first post and I am a bit apprehensive about whether anyone will even want to read what I have to say.  I started following a few blogs about 8 months ago. I loved the sharing of ideas and wanted to join.

I have been teaching at the early years level for over 25 years. Several years ago I went back to take my masters. One of the courses I took provided me with my "Microsft Teacher's Certification." That was the beginning of my path towards using technology in the classroom.

I applied for a grant which would provide me with a Smartboard, if I was successful. I made a huge unit on Oviporous Animals and submitted this along with my application. I was awarded a Smart board about 4 years ago, which lead to me creating numerous lessons for my grade two class.  I became consumed by the excitement I felt when my notebook lessons were so successful with my students.  Mazano(2009) research found students taught an interactive lesson on the Smart board as compared to those who were not had a 16%  point gain in achievement. Marzano Research -youtube video

I feel it is my next step to make activities for students practice which will reinforce and support my interactive lessons.  Over the next few weeks I will be working on activities and will be posting them here and on TPT as freebies.  It is my hope that peers might provide both support and suggestions. Until the next time.

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