• The use of practicing all standardized areas in writing: Narrative, Opinion and expository, etc..

• Dedicated instructional time to learn skills and strategies necessary to become effective writers.

• Usage of Graphic Organizers

• Peer discussions and conversations

• Usage of sentence frames and modeling

• Giving time to practice and share time with others

• Usage of google slides and other scafolds to learn how to be better writer

• Usage of rubrics that grade level all agreed on.

• Setting writing goals and clear expectations (clear, complete, consice and correct)

• As teachers the sharing of exemplar and non-exemplar works helped give a better understanding of what is expected. It brought cohesiveness consistency and unity to the grade level

-integraded across curriculum was helpful to teach

( hitting reading/ writing/ social studies/ science)

-standards aligned

-explicity taught writing process

-mentor texts and modeling

-offering student choice and voice

-provided feedback

-scaffold supports for ELLs

-enjoyed culmination of writing process

-grade level planning- including weeklyf updates of student writing

-sharing exemplars

• continue with writing samples ( notes / graphic organizer and then writing sample)

-cycles with beginning and end

-backwards mapping

-note taking skills embedded across content

_Time to plan, collaborate, implement, and reflect

_Graphic Organizers, sentence frames, oral rehearsal...

_Need at the beginning of the school year as opposed to after winter break.

Adapt the pace so we target the strategic and intensive students.

*Planning Time (full day) with resources provided

*Flexibility with writing evidence brought back

*Teachers had high expectations for student writing in each genre

*Completion of 3 writing pieces (different genres)

*Reviewing what a super writer is- List and talk about expectations (rubrics)

*Using thinking maps and sentence starters to help student with writing

• bigger focus on science integration for writing ( solar system, energy , ecosystems)

• improve the end of writing celebrations with a hands on activity / make it feel more like a celebration

• cycles in this order for 5th

  1. informational ( science -solar system)

  2. opinion ( energy )

  3. narrative ( ecosystem)

• start with writing for TRT- ( AUG - DEC)

• start Math TRT - (JAN - MAY)- Fractions

*Simplify writing assignment a little more.

*Enhance Vocabulary lessons. More vocabulary lessons to see in writing pieces. For example; word banks, word lists, suffix/prefix, etc...

*Examples of what each writing standard looks like before starting an assignment. Use reading to use as example and integrate genres."Read informational text and write a narrative out of that"

*Emphasize conventions, word choice and sentence fluency.

*Teach more lessons on focus on including more dialogue

*Needed more time for feedback. 3 Stars and a Wish for Student self reflection or peer reflection

*Slow down and do less assignments to focus on skills that we want to see in the writing. Example: Vocabulary... See certain vocabulary the words in the writing.

*Need time to practice TYPING. Our students need to learn to type for all tests and need to learn how to use keyboard. Example, some of our students did not know how to punctuate on keyboard or use quotation marks, etc...

*

The GLAD strategies to help our ELLs students.

Abandon the weekly (students work) pacing, and instead on week 2 use the time to focus more on our strategic and intensive students.

*Do not rush through all assignments. Maybe give more time depending on the assignment. (quality vs. quality)

*In between cycle have one week to mix genres so the students get used to writing different genres.

*New strategy- Self Reflection and peer reflection with rubric and student reflection sheets.

*New strategy - Checklist for self or peer reflection. Teach students how to use this ... takes time.

*New strategy - Give scenarios and have them write like the way the test is written. It would be better practice.

*Whole day planning time would be more productive.

*Abandon one size fits all. Every grade level has different needs

*Maybe do writing every other week slow down the process a bit.

-need variety in reading, for example mix literature and nonfiction in same cycle

-use a performance test as an initial assessment and give the same one as a final writing assessment for the cycle

-mini lessons should include more sample, structure

-use 3 "review" weeks before state testing to revisit all 3 genres. for example use student publish pcs and have student analyze structures - looking at characteristics of each genre

-focus on producing responses that will support all 3 genres abandon exercises that do not support writing structure

-artifacts more focused on structure

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*having more exemplars for each genre

*more meaningful celebrations

-author's chair in class

*word bank

-allow for flexibilty for each grade level _ let grade levels choose the genre they would like to focus on

• Breaking down components of genre types and teaching strategies for them. 

• One genre at a time

• Graphic organizers

• Use of rubrics

• Collaborating with colleagues

• Sharing and analyzing weekly student work samples

• Writing celebrations got students excited about writing

• Start the year with teaching sentence structure, conventions, and spelling for the first weeks and throughout school year

• Writing opinion pieces first, then informational, last narrative would be best for 1st graders

• Allow inclusion of mentor texts.

• Abandon book of the month in favor of Scholastic news which is grade level appropriate and aligned to standards

-consider a 3 week approach with in the cycle for example

wk1 look at non-exemplars, discuss needs and create skill based lessons, share best practices

wk2 follow up on skill lessons , continure sharing best practices

wk3 look at exemplars to measure growth

-avoid too many school wide focuses for example multiple assessments due in the same week