Embracing Embracing Imperfection:Imperfection:

Ideas to help build on the Ideas to help build on the strengths of imperfect strengths of imperfect

writingwriting

Ruth Ayres

rayres@wawasee.k12.in.ushttp://twowritingteachers.wordpress.com

Writer’s Notebook Entry

Write the name of a teacher who influenced you.

Jot down a list of everything you remember about him/her.

Perfection is Overrated

“One of the things I share in my workshops is the idea that it is OK to let go of that high-school English teacher who lives in your head. The one who's always correcting your sentence structure, making sure you have a proper noun and verb in every sentence, reprimanding you when you don't follow the 'rules.' Maybe it's even time for you to have a short conversation with that teacher (in your own mind, of course). “Mr. Or Mrs. So-and-So: Thank you for your time, but I am done with your services now.”

-- from Life Artist by Ali Edwards

Invite Imperfection

What can you do with the physical space in your classroom to make it a refuge for your students?

How can we make students feel that they are okay just the way they are?

Physical Space

Stacey Shubitz’s classroom

Student Choices

Stacey Shubitz’s Class Writing

Center

Conscientious Conferring

WN Entry (Part One): Take a moment to write down one thing you do really well as a teacher of writing.

WN Entry (Part Two): Now what are the things you would like to improve?

Reflecting on both sides of this list, what is the most important thing to recognize on the positive side and what is the most important to thing to improve?

Conscientious Conferring

Seventh Grade Student Sample: “Teens Tell”

Chart: +/-

Make a Chart

All the things this writer does well (+)

Things this student could do better (-)

Conscientious Conferring

Of all the things this student does as a writer, what one quality should be appreciated?

Of all the things this student needs, what is the one lesson that will impact him the most?

Conferring Charts

Find these at -- http://twowritingteachers.wordpress.com/presentations

OR

Email me: rayres@wawasee.k12.in.us

Use your handout to note which charts you would like to print!

M T W R FCharlie

Brittany

Elizabeth

J enny

Brandon

Catherine

Alisha

Courtney

Seth

Kristen

Victoria

Madison

Haiden

Ali

Kayla

Zack

Tyler

Andrea

Nicki

Anthony Status of the Class

Carl Anderson’s Conferring Steps:1. Student Sets agenda2. Line of thinking (ask ?’s & read writing)3. Assess & Decide what to teach

4. Objective Feedback --- comment & honest response5. TEACH6. Have-a-go7. Link to work

(NOTES ~ Date; Assessment; Teaching; FL Ideas)Student Name

Notes:What the student

is doing well +teaching point

Date

Conferring Record Boxes

Student Date Observation Teaching FL IdeasYou mayalso wantto notethe stageof thewritingprocessthestudent isworking.

What is this student doing well as a writer?What does this student need to write better?

What ONE lesson did you teach the studentduring the conference?

Ideas forfuture whole-class focuslessons.

Conferring Record Columns

Conference Recordkeeping Sheet Unit of Study:_________________________________________________________________Name of Student:

Date:Topic/Subject of Student’sWriting:

Compliment:

Teaching Point:

Name of Student:

Date:Topic/Subject of Student’sWriting:

Compliment:

Teaching Point:

Name of Student:

Date:Topic/Subject of Student’sWriting:

Compliment:

Teaching Point:

Name of Student:

Date:Topic/Subject of Student’sWriting:

Compliment:

Teaching Point:

Name of Student:

Date:Topic/Subject of Student’sWriting:

Compliment:

Teaching Point:

Name of Student:

Date:Topic/Subject of Student’sWriting:

Compliment:

Teaching Point:

Name of Student:

Date:Topic/Subject of Student’sWriting:

Compliment:

Teaching Point:

Name of Student:

Date:Topic/Subject of Student’sWriting:

Compliment:

Teaching Point:

Name of Student:

Date:Topic/Subject of Student’sWriting:

Compliment:

Teaching Point:

Stacey Shubitz’s Conferring Record

Student Name

Date/Process

Genre/Topic Observation Teaching Point Needs

Individual Conferring Record

Physical Space

Stacey Shubitz’s “Student Tracker”

Writer’s Notebook Entry

Think of the last time you shared your writing with another person.

What kind of feedback were you wanting? Jot down a quick list.

Peer Conferring

Explicitly teach how to confer:– Listen– Compliment– Suggest

Peer conferring forms should help students work through the process – they should not hinder the process.

Peer Conferring

1.Writer, read your piece aloud to your partner.2.Complete the following Question Grid.

Follow Up Questions Response

Does this makesense?

1. Questions the listener asked topush your thinking.

2.

Your response to the questions.

What is themeaning thispiece?

1.

2.

Which part doyou think ismostimportant?

1.

2.

Does the leadand endingwork togetherto show themeaning?

1.

2.

Which part doyou think Ishould addmore details?

1.

2.

Writer: ___________________________________

Listener: __________________________________

Date: ______________________

Writer: _________________________________ Date: ______________

Listener: _________________________________

Choice Piece Rubric

WOW OKCOULD USE

IMPROVEMENT

Meaning Meaning is clear andsignificant to intended

audience.

Meaning is implied, may notbe significant for audience.

No meaning. Writingdoesn't make sense

Focus Focuses on a single topicor story.

Somewhat focused. Thewriting either goes on and

on and on or it isunderdeveloped.

No focus. Writingdoesn't make sense.

Complete 3 – 5 scenes or sectionsand each adds to the

meaning

Missing major parts ormeaningless sections

Less than 3 scenes orsections

Lead/Ending Lead – Captures attentionEnding – So What/Wraps

up the writing.

Lead – Begins

Ending – Ends

The lead/ending isconfusing and/or doesn’tmake sense to the story.

Detailed (sensory; emotion;description; action;etc.)

Used a variety of relevantdetails. Created a picture

for the reader.

Used a variety of details, butall were not relevant.

Few details. Writing isdifficult to understand.

Conventions Few errors; writing waseasy to read.

Several errors made writingdifficult to follow.

Many errors. Writing isimpossible tounderstand.

Peer Conference --1. Read writing aloud.2. Complete the rubric.3. Complete the following questions:

1. Decide what works well in your writing.2. Decide on two areas in which to revise.

Strong Traits --

1. _____________________________________ 2. _____________________________________

Areas to Revise --

1. _____________________________________ 2. _____________________________________

Only 3 can be marked in this column!! !

Peer Conference

+ Rubric

Physical Space

Stacey Shubitz’s

Conferring Center

Writer’s Notebook Entry

Write down three wishes you have when it comes to assessing student writing.

Disclaimer

Assessing Imperfection Assess the process of your students.

– Have students complete writing analyses.

Assess the content. Assess the conventions Balance writing opportunities

Rubrics can be found at –http://twowritingteachers.wordpress.com/presentations

OR

Email me: rayres@wawasee.k12.in.us

Author ______________________ Piece ____________________________ Date __________

grade comments

Process ~ how wellyou f ollowed your

writing process

CompletedWriting

Analysis

Content ~ what thewords say

Meaning

FocusLead/ Ending

Conventions ~ how

well you f ollowedStandard English

capitalization

punctuation

sentencesparagraphs/ stanzas

spelling

Author ______________________ Piece ____________________________ Date __________

grade comments

Process ~ how wellyou f ollowed your

writing process

CompletedWriting

Analysis

Content ~ what thewords say

Meaning

FocusLead/ Ending

Conventions ~ how

well you f ollowedStandard English

capitalizationpunctuation

sentencesparagraphs/ stanzas

spelling

General 3 Grade

First Published Piece

CATEGORY 4 3 2 1

Content It's clear the writer hascaptured a small detail ofhis/her life. S/he hasdrawn upon a smallrepertoire of strategies forgenerating this piece.

Writer has captured asmall moment inhis/her life and hasdrawn upon twostrategies forgenerating this piece.

Writer has a collectingof small moments.Writer may have useda strategy to help him/her generate thispiece.

A small moment is notcaptured in this piece.Writer did not use thestrategies presented inclass to help him/hergenerate this piece.

Planning Multiple drafts were writtenprior to publishing thispiece. There's a clearsequence of events in thispiece. Further, the writerhas revised using thestrategies presented inclass.

Two drafts werewritten prior topublishing this piece.Writer used revisionstrategies.

One draft was writtenprior to publishing thispiece. Writer didminimal revisions.

The student did notcreate multiple drafts,nor did s/he revise.

Stance This student is a story-teller. S/he has made a"movie in his/her mind,"reliving the event and thenrecreating it (rather thansummarizing it orcommenting on it).

The student hasrecreated the event,rather thansummarizing orcommenting on it.

The student attemptedto recreate the event,but summarized orcommented a lot.

The event is notrecreated for thereader. There's a lot ofsummation orcommentary present.

Qualities of GoodWriting

This piece is written in achronological, narrativestructure. S/he hasproduced a sequential,detailed and focusedpersonal narrative. S/hehas used action, dialogueand a repertoire ofstrategies to create thispiece.

This piece is written ina chronological,narrative structure.S/he has produced asequential, detailedand focused personalnarrative.

This piece is written ina narrative structure.However, it's hard tofollow the sequence.Few details are given.

This piece does not usethe narrative structure.It is not sequential,detailed or focused.

Mechanics High-frequency words arespelled correctly.Appropriate endingpunctuation is used.Paragraphing is doneproperly. Writing is clearfor the reader.

Most high-frequencywords are spelledcorrectly. Endingpunctuation is used.The piece is written inparagraph form.

Many high frequencywords are spelledincorrectly.Punctuation is notused properly.Paragraphing isunclear.

This piece is unclear fora reader.

Language The student writes in away that is considerate ofthe reader. S/he has triedto be clear andcomprehensible.

The student has triedto be clear andcomprehensible.

Writing is oftenunclear.

Writing is unclear and isnot comprehensible.

Stacey Shubitz adapted this rubric from Calkins & Martinelli’s Launching Writing Workshop

Writing AnalysisExplain the process that you went through to create your

piece.

Begin with the initial planning: who were you writing for & what did you decide to write. Once these questions were answered, how did you begin to organize your

thoughts? Did you use your writer’s notebook for a list, web, or quick write? Did you talk to a friend or family member?

Discuss how drafting went for you. Was it easy since you had spent time thinking about your project? Was it difficult? WHY did you think it was easy or difficult?

Talk about your revisions. What did you do to revise? Did you have a questions conference? How did it go? What did you decide to zoom in on & why did you decide on that part? Did your snap shot make your piece better? Could you have zoomed in more on your snap shot? Did you attempt to model any authors?

What are your overall feelings about this piece of writing? What is really good about this piece? What could you have done better?

Mrs. Ayres

Writing Analysis + Example

Mrs. AyresDecember 13, 2002Writing Analysis“Grandpa’s Garden”

I decided to write my piece for my grandma. I wanted to dosomething to remember my grandpa. As I was thinking about mygrandpa, I remembered how much he loved his garden. I havemany memories of “Grandpa’s Garden,” so I decided to writeabout it. First, I looked through old pictures my mom has of hisgarden. As I looked through these pictures, memories startedflooding my mind. As the memories came, I made a list. (I didn’thave my writer’s notebook with me, so I made a list on a scrappiece of paper. Sorry!) I didn’t talk to my family about what Iwanted to write, because I wanted it to be a surprise.

My first draft was awful! It was really short and I didn’t reallyget to the point I wanted to get to. I don’t think I thought enoughabout what I really wanted to say before I drafted. Really, my firstdraft was more of a quick write than a draft. After I realized that Ineeded to “dig deeper” into my subject, I made a list of questions.The questions conferences that I had were a big help. My seconddraft was much better. I really love my lead. I think it makes thereader feel like they are in the garden with me, “standing on theedge of the forbidden soil.” I really liked the word forbidden. I gotthe idea for that from the questions conferences.

Since I really liked my second draft, I decided to try to zoomin more on the garden. I had the reader on the edge of thegarden, but they didn’t know what the garden looked like. (I knewthis because lots of people asked me “What did the garden looklike?”) The first time I tried to zoom in, it didn’t go well. My writingsounded like I was reporting on the garden. It must have beenbecause I was telling instead of showing. So, my second attemptat the snapshot, I focused on showing the garden. I think it is a lotbetter, don’t you? I also added the part about the tomato worms,because I remembered how much my brother liked squishingthose fat worms. I thought of the part about the pumpkins “vining”from Cynthia Rylant’s book Scarecrow. She made the word vineinto a verb too. I wanted to add something about the smells,because Jerry Spinnelli used smells in the snap shot we read inclass. I thought the smells really made the house seem real (andgross) to me. I wanted my grandpa’s garden to come alive for my

I 'm ready to PUBLISH!

My story makes sense.

I 've added to the most important part of the story.

I 've edited with a partner using this checklist:

Writer __________________

Read to a partnerCheck:

Words and pictures match Spaces Ending

Punctuation (.!?)

Partner ________________

Name _____________________________

Date ________________

APPROVED! Primary Writing Analysis

Rigor + Freedom

We can have both!

Value the thinking behind the writing Value the product Value the children who are taking risks to

become better communicators.

Physical Space

Interactive Process Chart

Exit Slips

Name: ___________________________________ Block ______ Week of _________

What did you do today?

Write a reflection about how you worked today. (Any questions?)

****************************************************************************************What did you do today?

Write a reflection about how you worked today. (Any questions?)

****************************************************************************************What did you do today?

Write a reflection about how you worked today. (Any questions?)

****************************************************************************************What did you do today?

Write a reflection about how you worked today. (Any questions?)

****************************************************************************************What did you do today?

Write a reflection about how you worked today. (Any questions?)

Exit Slip

Do not let your fire go out, spark by Do not let your fire go out, spark by irreplaceable spark, in the hopeless swamps irreplaceable spark, in the hopeless swamps of the approximate, the not-quite, the not-of the approximate, the not-quite, the not-yet, the not-at-all. Do not let the hero in yet, the not-at-all. Do not let the hero in your soul perish, in lonely frustration for your soul perish, in lonely frustration for

the life you deserved, but have never been the life you deserved, but have never been able to reach. Check your road and the able to reach. Check your road and the nature of your battle. The world you nature of your battle. The world you

desired can be won. It exists, it is real, it is desired can be won. It exists, it is real, it is possible, it is yours.possible, it is yours.

~Ayn Rand