And now...the rest of the story.
If you read yesterday's slice, you might remember that I was pretty frustrated during my writing lesson. I thought we were doing really well, thought the kids were on track and ready to go, and really, the weren't even in the ballpark. There was reteaching and discussion to try again. There were deep breaths to take. We started over. We made it through and were ready to tackle writing to a prompt today.
The bad news:
I have all of 4 students (out of 18) who consistently use spaces and punctuation when writing. It's March! I'm beginning to feel the end of year crunch on my shoulders and as I walked around and looked over shoulders today, I was a little disheartened to see so many who has so far to go with conventions.
The good news:
We began to write our bowling stories today and most of the kids remembered their plan from yesterday. The ones who forgot quickly remembered when given the chance to talk with a partner. As they shared their plans with their partner, I heard many children ask what details their partner planned to include in their story. They seemed excited to go off and start the drawing and writing. Most kids worked quietly while a few who have lower stamina levels needed a few reminders to stay on track. Many kids could be heard stretching out words and listening for sounds. Many kids had their mini word walls out and their letter charts at the ready. It was productive and there was a content buzz that filled the room. It was a good writer's workshop day!
Beautiful! I love that I could spy on the inner-workings of your kinder writing workshop! Isn't it like that? Somedays are homeruns and others are no where near. But, just like learning in our adult lives is messy, so it is for the littles that stream through our doors each day. Definitely not linear! Wishing you more hints of progress tomorrow :).
ReplyDeleteGood job staying the course! Your dedication and perseverance paid off. Nicely done.
ReplyDeleteHow early are they expected to master this? They will learn that when they are ready, but they will remember from you that writing is expressing, collaborating and risk taking. Nice job!
ReplyDeleteThis is the month I live for when teaching K, but this year could have been different for me too...so many snow days! It just doesn't feel the same does it? Glad the bowling stories surfaced today. Maybe it will be more like an April celebration this year. :)
ReplyDeleteGlad that you stories prepped yesterday worked out for more today, Robin. I read on someone else's blog that they had started using tongue depressors for spacers and they were working well. Hope that helps? I think you could also decorate them-fun!
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