Too late-no

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Home : 2002 : January : 29

Too late-no
By Erica

Hey all!
Sorry that I have been so silent on the boards but things have begun to pile up. Inresponse to JS' question- I do not think it is too late to start the Writing Workshop in the classroom. Introduce the program
to your students through a eries of Mini Lessons that discuss the Rituals, Routines (procedures) of the Workshop. Post a chart in your Writing Center to be referred to often. My school uses the F&P program (Writing Workshop, Reading Workshop, and Skills Block). We do have a 2 and 1/2 hour literacy block that is uninterupted. My biggest problem has been to fully implement each of

the components of the program (Mini Lesson, LAB or Independent Work Session, Conferencing, and Author's Chair). I was criticized recently for not conferencing on a daily basis. The one thing that is very crucial in this program is to keep documentation through Conference logs, etc. There is not much graded material which is a problem for parents, therefore, we use the basal texts as Homework. I also get plenty of material from the internet that go along with my Mini Lesson.
I know that I have thrown out a lot, and I KNOW THAT IT CAN BE OVERWHELMING; however, it does seem to be a great method if applied correctly. I would recommend viewing any of Joanne Hindley's "Inside the Writing and Reading Workshop" videos. I viewed 2 of them over the weekend, one on Mini Lessons and one on Conferencing. These videos are published by Stenhouse.
Take care all and I will try not to be a stranger!- Erica