Multigenre Expression
After exploring Moulton’s article, The multigenre paper: Increasing interest, motivation, and functionality in research, I gained a broader understanding for the various ways the traditional research paper can be approached. So often the traditional style of research paper is overused and teachers are in need of new ways to help their students be enthusiastic about the topics they are researching. Moulton discusses the ways that this type of writing, “uses all the tools of research available today. Students write a number of pieces that integrate what they have learned from their research, presenting their interpretation of the research through different genres of writing” (Moulton, 1999).
Presenting research in several genres creates a product, which may have less content than the traditional research paper, however students have been immersed in the process of choosing the important facts and the genre to present them. Not only do students have to comprehend the information they are researching but also grasp which genre or format will best display what they have learned.
As Moulton was conducting research she wanted to discover which form of research children preferred: traditional or multigenre. Each style has the same requirements of reading, gathering facts, and synthesizing information. The traditional research paper was often explained by students as “boring,” or “not fun.” Many students expressed that they were able to “learn more” and digest the material in a meaningful way, when they participated in the multigenre approach.
The article Exploring the Past through Multigenre Writing helped me to have a few more idea’s as I begin thinking about my own classroom. Having a group of Kindergarteners who are just learning how to read and write has made me think a little more creatively when trying to adopt the concepts of multigenre. Amy Anson and Jacoy Baird had a wonderful thought that helped me envision what multigenre should look like in my classroom, “the multigenre project can help students apply writing as a way to discover, read, evaluate, and organize information” (Anson & Baird, 2002). I enjoyed reading about the “mystery boxes,” this was a wonderful opportunity to show the students a visual of what will be expected or what other children their age have made. I know that my little ones are just beginning to link their words to printed text. They have so many stories and ideas that we are writing in our journals and I want to begin teaching them how to take these little “snippets” and develop, explore, and expand them. If they learn how to do this from an early age, just think about the skills they will have as writers!
As a teacher I have been reminded of all the different types of genres and formats I can be teaching my Kindergarteners. I do believe students will be more engaged when they are participating in an activity where they get to make creative decisions and put their own personal stamp on their learning!
Memoirs: Snippets in Time
I loved reading about the journey the fifth grade teacher, Amy Arnberg took her class on to discover for themselves how to write memoirs. I thought it was very creative to have the children themselves bring in books they thought would fit the category “memoir” and then through a series of mini-lessons, develop a criteria for memoirs and sort the books. Through this discovery the children were asking questions and uncovering more about this form of writing. I agree with her approach to learning and the way she let the students uncover the meaning of memoirs for themselves. This resulted in creating a stronger connection to what they were learning and a deeper passion for their writing.
I love that through memoir writing students learn how to tell their valuable stories. As the article suggests memoir writing allows students to take a particular moment in time, whether just a few seconds, a whole day, week, or month and paint a picture with their words. I am currently reading Boy: Tales of a Childhood by Roald Dahl and am throughly enjoying his memoir! These snippets of Roald Dahl’s life are amazing to read! (I can’t believe that he had his adenoids taken out without anaesthesia! Can you say, “OUCH!” The things children these days complain about!) As I have been reading I began thinking, ”what is my earliest memory?” Reading this has also made me reflect on past experiences and think about what I would include in my own memoir. What snippets of my life would other people find interesting to read?
Thinking about how to use memoir writing with Kindergarteners seems challenging but after reading Shortcut by Donald Crews it reminded me of my wonderful five and six year-old storytellers. I am approached everyday with a new story about the night before or about their favorite animal. Even with the younger students, this type of writing can be adapted. I feel Shortcut would be a wonderful mentor text to develop a unit for memoir writing in my Kindergarten class. Having my students choose a special event or experience and helping them to develop words and pictures that describe the memory would be several minilessons. I do feel with much modeling my students could create memoir pieces.
Journal Invitation
This is the cover to my “scrapbook invitation.” This format allows the student to hold in their hands and read what is expected of them. They can refer to the expectations at any time. I created this in a digital format as well (seen below.)
The cover reads:
Yellow Rectangle: Ms. Denninger’s Writer’s Notebooks.
Blue box: Come and Journal with me!
Heart: “Fill your page with the breathings of yur heart” -William Wadsworth
This second page describes the tools the writers can use.
It says, “You can use…”
Pictures are of :
writer’s notebook
child with camera
markers
glue, scissors, crayons
This page in the book describes things we will be working on as writers. This chart was developed by Jessica Meacham. I loved the format because it had a picture and word/phrase with the expectation. This will also be glued in the beginning of our notebooks as a reference of what good writers do.
Sample from my Notebook for students first entry.
Text on the left reads:
“I invite you to write”
”What do you love?”
“Draw”
“Label”
(Ms.D’s Journal)
Here is the digital version of my scrapbook. Click on the paperclip labeled: Final Journal Invitation to play. (You may have to do this 2 times) You will see how this version allows a teacher to add pages easily and continue daily assignments and expectations. My students have loved seeing themselves in our digital scrapbook!
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| free scrapbook design created with Smilebox |
Class 5: Invitations to be poets…
This week as I explored the different types of poetry, I was excited to learn more about the types of writing I could model with my Kindergarten students. As I created my own poetry, I didn’t think I would find this difficult but surprisingly I did. It may just be that I enjoy getting to explore my artistic side without pressure or deadlines? I know that I did need a couple days to think about the poems and come back to them to finish my thoughts. This is a feeling I will remember for my students as I ask them to take time with developing their own poems.
I loved Diane Siebert’s Mojave. I thought the idea of putting factual information into a poem and presenting it in this manner was perfect for my students. I feel each day is a battle of assessing and reassessing my students, hoping the information I taught them the day before remains somewhere among all the other information that world has been telling them. The “I” poems offer a wonderful approach to teaching children so they will understand and remember ideas because they are transforming material to make meaning.
I loved Linda Kucan’s thought about poets and teachers when she said, “we imitate not so much to be like someone else as to learn what she/he has already learned.” I believe that it is very valuable for students to have examples of great work. They do need to see these models so they, in return, can learn how to observe, critique, revise, and create themselves. Giving children the opportunities to work with teachers while they model new forms of poetry allows them to grow as writers and then, “put their own stamp on things.”
Class 4: Poetry
“We need to teacher our young writers how to play with language, try it one way, try it another way” (Elliot, 76.) I loved this quote from Elliot and the way he addresses the sounds of language in in Chapter 9. It is so important as writing coaches to model how “poetry tunes students into language” (Elliot, 72). Modeling for the students that there are words that you like, words that have meaning to you, and words like you like to say, are all important steps in language development and poetry. This helps in the writing process so students see that words can be moved around and do not have just one specific place. They can work and rework poetry until they find the right place for the words and are satisfied with their masterpiece.
I loved the poetry books, especially Flicker Flash and the African Acrostics. How amazing to visually see the different ways words can be molded and developed into art and poetry. I loved Flicker Flash because not only does it introduce a new vocabulary word but it provides a picture with the concrete poem. I know my Kindergarteners will love to read the poems from this book and will want to try making their own with words we have already learned. The African Acrostics poems offers a great way to integrate poetry into other subjects. I think it would be a wonderful idea to develop acrostics for Math or Science.
As I immerse my students into the world of poetry, the article by Frye, Trathen, and Sclagal helped me think of how to demonstrate and form effective instructional practices. I gained several thoughts of the ways I can better invite my students to investigate poetry and acrostics. Remembering that, “showing is more important than telling and that modeling produces better writing than directing” can’t be said enough.
Class 4-Virtual Class Meeting
The opening of this powerpoint got me excited because since I was very little I have been addicted to the way words look. Whether it is just the handwriting, the colors, or the way they sit on the page, I have always loved to think carefully about how a word should look. So much so, that I remember turning my classmates’ names into artwork and selling the pictures for 10 cents a piece! I’m not sure where one gets their fascinations however, this has always been one of mine. The wordle poetry was a new resource for me and one that I will save for future reference!
If someone were to ask me what poetry was, I know that I would not have as many positive and beautiful things to say as these poets. I observed while I was reading their thoughts about poetry, how easily they can choose words that have a special “ring” and descriptive nature to them. Words that I would have never chosen to describe something, but made sense.
Marilyn Singer states my first thought about poetry, “Poetry is about words- their precision, texture, beauty, (and ugliness).” This thought seemed to jump off the page at me as I read it. Just like my fascination about words and the way they look, poetry is very similiar, it is just about how the words sound. I loved the way Singer described words with texture. This makes me think of words having depth and feeling and the way words are more than just two-dimensional letters on the page.
I also really related with Ann Lauterbach’s ideas and thoughts for the ways a poem should be approached. I believe we need to continue to model for our students how to approach poetry and the purpose of poetry. Talking through these questions helps our students become more aware. I loved her quote, “A poem is not a puzzle to be solved. A poem is an experience, an event, in and of language.” I know personally, until this was explained to me, I was always trying to figure out poetry like they were in secret code. I became so frustrated when I could not figure out the “secret code,” or determine what the author was trying to say. It was not until a wise teacher explained to me that it was however I wanted to interpret the poem. She explained that I could unlock the poem and let it come alive into my own world and this maybe different than another person who reads the same poem. Due to my past experience with poetry and what I have learned, I know that I will continue to explain to students the importance of how each student has the key to unlocking the meaning of every poem.
The PPT had many helpful ideas that I am excited to try in my own classroom. I know Kindergarteners love hearing poetry and we have started our Writer’s Notebooks. I will be interested to see the ways that they respond to these new strategies. It would be fun to create an “I Wish” class poem, where they begin their poem in their notebooks.
Paperclip Poetry: Wow, I loved reading the simple but descriptive words this author used to talk about a safety pin. Such an ordinary item that I would have never imagined to write a poem about. This helps me to see the way I can also open my eyes to the world around me and write about ANYTHING! This would be a wonderful illustration to show my Kindergarteners as we begin our poetry unit.
See: a piece of unwanted metal, bent to give it a purpose, a loosing is shape, shiny. Smells: like a mix of metal and coins. Hear: the sound of papers printing and being stacked. Taste: I’m not sure where you have been! Touch: round, smooth, cold.
What does it do? Organizes and keeps things together.
What could you do with it? meausure by linking them together, make a bracelet, create an art project, put them in my scrapbook (colored ones!)Where or when do you find it? at work, home, or at copy places
What ideas pop into your head about this object? it can be magnetic! I wonder what size the biggest paperclip is!?
How or why is it special? Now you can get a paperclip that is not just silver and boring, but fancy! I love fancy paperclips!
Helpful Links: I enjoyed looking at the Sharon Creech site! I am always looking for new books to incorporate as shared reading activities, this will be helpful. For my Kindergarteners, I loved the Joyce Sidman site. I loved the area where she has “poem starters.” These could be adapted into mini-lessons where a new poem starter could be modeled with the class or written as a class and then the students have time to work in their notebooks and create their own simple poetry.
So Much Depends Upon…
So much depends upon my markers
colors for every feeling
big, thick, skinny, small
brightening a blank white page
waiting to be chosen stored here in my box.
Journal Invitation
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| Make a Smilebox scrapbook |
Here is just a rough draft of my invitation for my Kindergarteners. There are extra pages where more information can be added in the future. Smilebox is a great place to create this invitation, the downside is to share/print it is $3.99.
Cherished Things…
Here a few ordinary items I cherish. (It was hard for me to narrow it down to just two things!) Markers dress up a piece of paper. They can make words more exciting to read. I love using markers and pens to transform something that might have not been that wonderful to read, into something attractive to the eye. Everyone has them, it’s just how you use them.
Just a few of my markers!
My Grandma “G” was a wonderful woman and use to have this picture hanging in her house, even with a cracked frame. Once inherited, it took me a while to understand the importance of why she would have left the cracked frame on the beautiful painting. This seemingly “ordinary” painting not only reminds me of my grandmother, but also of the way each of us is not perfect. We all have our imperfections and scars on the outside but are still beautiful and wonderfully made on the inside.
My Grandma's Painting
Teaching and Learning from Poetry
“The poetry teachers use in the classroom greatly affects the long-term impression poetry will have on the children.”
In reading about poetry, it makes me take a trip back to my fifth grade classroom. Mrs. Bold taught us lots about poetry however, I always felt like everything had to rhyme. I remember thinking of topics I was excited to write about but, could not make the verses rhyme. Elliott writes, “one of the most liberating things that young writers can learn about poetry is that it doesn’t have to rhyme.” Being frustrated, I remember telling myself poetry was too hard. Being a wordy person, I also found it hard to express my thoughts with fewer words.
While reading the novel, “Love that Dog” by Sharon Creech I was introduced to a young boy who also was not that excited about poetry. Once I picked up this novel, I could not put it down until I was done. It was a beautiful story charting a boy’s journey and growth in learning. I loved the way the teacher continued to challenge and spark his curiosity, giving him the next stepping stone critical to his development. It was very powerful to read and see that with the right attention, care, and encouragement, I can hopefully do the same for my students.
Janine Certo also provides very thoughtful views on how to approach poetry with children. She illustrates ways to incorporate poetry into one’s classroom effectively. I love her illustration that, “children, too, deserve a diet of poetry that blends together laughter with elements of insight, human experience, and wonder so that they can make meaning of the world and their unique experience.” I know if I try applying these suggested techniques it helps me to grow as a poet and model for students all the different ways they can also explore poetry.
Modeling Writing
We need to be the connectors. As teachers it is vital that we model and show our students the process of writing. Donald Graves discusses the importance of showing children the struggles and the difficulties they may encounter while they are engaged. He also discusses the development of an “authentic voice.” Hearing the way a teacher thinks through the writing process, which questions to ask, how to brainstorm ideas, and word choice is critical. These skills do not just happen overnight, they must be modeled day after day. Children have to see it is through this process they can begin to understand who they are and what their writer’s voice sounds like.
Elliott discusses the ways Graves has set up the Writing Workshop. In my Kindergarten classroom we use a similiar process. Now that I am adopting the Writer’s Notebooks, I would like to try this process the way Graves has it designed. I liked the idea of using the notebook as a “workbench” or a place where they can revise and edit their work. This model gives me a better understanding of how to better implement and continue the use of notebooks as a tool.
