English in the New Zealand Curriculum
Level 1: Writing Functions
Poetic Writing: Students should write on a variety of topics, beginning to shape ideas.
Levels 1 and 2: Reading and Writing Processes
Exploring Language: Students should be able to explore choices made by writers and identify and use common conventions of writing and organisation of text which affect understanding.
Thinking Critically: Students should be able to identify and express meanings in written texts, drawing on personal background, knowledge, and experience.
English in the New Zealand Curriculum, pages 35–36
http://www.tki.org.nz/r/language/curriculum/contents_e.php
This teacher initiated a group discussion about playing, focusing on co-operative play. The following day, she shared a story about a child who has a tea party in a treehouse. She then led a group discussion in which she asked her students:
- Who likes hiding?
- Who likes playing by themselves? Why?
- Who prefers to play with others? Why?
The teacher shared a childhood memory of sitting alone on the back steps of her house. It was her own special place. She invited the class to ask her questions about this memory in order to gather more detail. She then modelled the beginning of a story about this memory. She explained: "We need to start with an interesting sentence to capture our readers' attention. We want them to like our beginning and read on." This became the students' criterion for success.
In pairs, the students talked about places they enjoyed, asking each other questions. Some of these conversations were shared with the teacher. The students then began to write independently. The teacher reminded them to "remember that interesting beginning".
Vincent wrote most of his piece independently. The teacher conferenced with him, and then he looked for word sources in the classroom. The teacher suggested some edits on Vincent's draft.
Teacher-student conversations
Before conferencing:
| Teacher: |
Where's your special place? |
| Vincent: |
In my bedroom, because I can shut myself in. |
| Teacher: |
I wonder if you can use this idea for an interesting beginning. |
During conferencing:
| Teacher: |
Why don't you like your brother to be in your room? |
| Vincent: |
Because he's annoying. |
| Teacher: |
Would you like to write about that? |
Integrating reading and writing
The teacher could use a guided and shared reading programme to get the students to explore:
- a variety of stories based on personal experiences
- stories where people are discussing favourite places, particularly hideaways.
In addition, the teacher could encourage the students to:
- share their own stories with a partner and ask them to comment
- publish their stories for display and make them into a class book
- read and respond to work on display.
The teacher could also highlight the features of personal texts and share them in discussion.
To move Vincent towards the next learning step, the teacher could help him to focus on:
- Audience – developing his awareness that he is writing for others.
- Ideas – elaborating on ideas without teacher prompting (for example, painting a more detailed picture of his bedroom).
- Spelling – proofreading for errors.
The teacher could nurture these skills in a rich language environment where reading and writing are supported by discussion. Specific skills could be taught in the reading and writing programmes, especially in modelling and feedback sessions.
References
Ministry of Education (1994). English in the New Zealand Curriculum. Wellington: Learning Media.
TKI English community
|
