Work on Writing with Blogging

Mrs. Rosenquist's Classroom Blog

Last year I jumped into blogging with my class and they LOVED it!  It was so meaningful and authentic.  Each student was motivated to write more and write well.  At first I started with Kidblog and each student had their own blog.  As the year progressed I decided to also use Edublog to create a classroom blog.  I purchased a year's subscription.  I decided to do this because I like all the added features Edublog had, including uploading media and use of widgets.  So, let me tell you how I began.

I have 3 desktop computers, with 1 connected to the Smartboard.  There is no computer lab at our school or laptops on carts either.  I know of teachers out there in my PLN that have more and some that have less - so I will not complain (at this time).  I had heard that a local teacher center had Netbooks that you could check out - so I visited the center and checked out 11 Netbooks.  I got to use them for the whole year because nobody else asked for them!  But, now the problem.  There was no wireless available near my classroom - it was only available in the library.  So, because I don't give up I contacted my superintendent and told him of my dilemma.  Hurray! A wireless port was installed near my room!

Introducing blogging
First I introduced my class to blogging.  I explained what a blog was, we looked at the different parts of a blog, and talked about the purpose of blogging at school and outside of school.  Throughout the year I also discussed being safe on the Internet.  This is a great way to discuss the concept of strangers.


How to write a quality comment?
This was the first thing I taught my students how to do.  My plan, once we got started was to write a post on Kidblog, and then have then make a comment.  Mrs. Yollis' Classroom Blog and Mrs. Kathleen Morris and her second grade blog were the biggest help and inspiration for me.  It was important that I find quality blogs with quality comments for my students to use as models for their own comments!  In addition Mrs. Yollis' class has the best video to teach students what to include in a quality comment!  As my class watched the video, I asked my students to remember at least 3 things they learned about writing a quality comment.  Eventually, we wrote our own tips for writing a comment in our classroom.

Problems Encountered with Typing on the Computer
The first problem we encountered was how L-O-N-G it took my students to type and how difficult it was for them to compose anything of quality as they typed.  So, I now have my students plan and write their comments in a notebook first.  That way they can compose their comment over several days if necessary and proofread their writing more easily.  I can also look it over as well.  As for the typing speed, I would have to live with that.  We just don't have the time or technology for keyboarding skills.  I often let students write comments with a partner too and this was very successful.  The other problem, related to typing speed was that once they were on the computer typing they had to finish typing during our work session or their comment would not get posted.  You can't save a comment as a draft like you can a post.  One way to get around this is if you are moderating your comments - have the student post the unfinished comment, and as the moderator you can open up the comment for them to revise at a later date.  Just don't approve the comment until they are finished.  This got a bit confusing last year because I couldn't keep track of who had finished!  This year I plan on keeping a sign up list to keep track.  Now, eventually your students will want to comment on other class blogs and then they must finish their comment during that work session.

Daily 5 - Work on Writing - Launching Blogging this year
This year on Day 5 of school I began doing the pre-teaching necessary before launching our Work on Writing daily.  Here's what that included:

• What is a blog?  What are the parts of a blog?
• What is the difference between a blog and a post?
• Watching Mrs. Yollis' video about writing quality comments.
• Reading comments on other blogs to notice how many of the qualities they included.
• Shared writing of comments on other blogs and Wonderopolis.
• Shared writing of a post for our blog.
• Constant discussions of Internet Safety interspersed throughout.

On Friday I partnered my students and asked them to write a comment to a post I had written on our blog about Wonderopolis.  They were so excited and eager.  I was so eager and excited that I nearly forgot to discuss our Work on Writing "rules" that would become the basis for our Anchor chart I plan on doing this upcoming week.  They stayed on task for about 10 minutes!  Volume control will probably be the biggest challenge.

NOTE: It is now the 21st day of school, as I finish writing this post.  I have been out of the classroom 4 days already for training and testing - this of course disrupts teaching and getting routines established.  The wireless port got removed over the summer, so I have hit a little bump in the road.  But "the computer guy" tells me he can install a wireless port if I remove one desktop computer.  I have decided to do that so I can use my little netbooks that I borrowed again this year.  But blogging does continue - we are writing posts together as a shared writing experience.  With 25 students I just haven't found a way to manage them on the desktop computers.

I would love to hear from teachers who blog with their class, teachers who want to or have just begun!  How's it going for you?  Any helpful hints for me?

Launching Read to Self

Meeting area and new bean bag chairs (compliments of my mom).

Book Baskets all organized and ready to go!

So, I got through the first week of school!  Exciting, exhausting, humid and hot!

As I said in a previous post I am dedicated to fully implementing the Daily 5 this year and incorporating CAFE strategies as well.  So, on Tuesday, the first day of school we launched Read to Self and created our first anchor chart!  It felt all official and I was a bit nervous about doing it "right", which is so silly because I have always used independent, self-selected reading as the center of my previous reading workshop.  It's not all that different.  It went pretty well I think.  Most of the students were so excited to get their book boxes and settle into Read to Self.  Only one minor problem occurred during my "reading is so fabulous - I love to read - books are wonderful - aren't we so excited to become better readers" speech! One student kept mumbling his commentary on reading - things like, "I hate to read." or "No! Books aren't cool."  I ignored it for awhile, but I could see his goal was to disrupt the lesson and gain everyones attention.  So, I said it was okay if he didn't like books and reading, but I did.  And his comments were hurting my feelings and making me sad. He stopped with the comments.  More on this student later.  (Hmm...think he might be the barometer student?)

I used Mo Willems' Piggie and Elephant: There Is A Bird On Your Head to model 2 ways to read the first day. (read the pictures and read the words) Then on Day 2 I taught them 2 more ways to read the book.  You heard me might.  Two more ways - retell the story and reread the story.  I teach 4 ways to read a book.  Second graders come to me with the idea that fast is better - and getting done with lots of books fast is even better! I value rereading for so many reasons and I want my students to value it also.  Rereading seems to also help them see what they missed, slow down and think while they are reading.  Coming from first grade they often think reading is just reading the words.  (When I explained I was going to show them 2 ways to read a book I asked, "Does anyone know one way I could read this book?" Insert the sound of crickets here.  Finally, one teacher-pleasing little hand went up and said, "You sound it out?")

My Barometer Student Students

On the first day, my barometer student was a sweet, but easily distracted boy that after 1 minute was more interested in telling other children what to do than focusing on his own reading.  On day 2, I modeled inappropriate behavior myself - doing exactly what he did the previous day.  I asked for a volunteer to model appropriate behavior - and my little friend volunteered.  Awesome!  He did much better the rest of the week, but is definitely a key student to watch.  Now, back to my friend I mentioned above - the interrupter.  He did fine the first 2 days, but by day 3 he had decided he was going to either just sit and suck on his water bottle or build towers with his school supplies and water bottle.  So, another model of appropriate behavior was necessary by the start of Day 4.  I asked for volunteers, and yes, he volunteered.  Awesome!  He got lots of compliments and did fine that day.  I squeezed in another Read to Self practice at the end of the day Friday and he did well then.  It was my little distracted friend that acted as my barometer then.

We reached only 5 minutes of Read to Self.  Gotta work on that stamina!

I will write about how I introduced CAFE strategies on another post.

Next week I will teach them how to select good-fit, or just-right books.  I also hope to introduce Work on Writing too.

How do you I think I did?  Be honest!

How are you doing with the Daily 5?

Daily 5 and CAFE - A New Adventure Begins!

So last year I started to use the Daily 5.  Well, it was more like:  experiment and dabble with the concept.  I had read the book a few years back and was very intrigued, but filed the book on my shelf and decided the reading workshop method I was using worked fine.

Want to know what happened to make me change my mind and take the book off my shelf?

It's a little complicated, but here goes.  Over the last several years I have pulled away from doing so many guided reading groups and have begun conferring much more.  But with growing class sizes and only 1 reading workshop period available for conferring it would sometimes take me 2 weeks to meet with all my second graders.  And don't even talk to me about the pull outs for AIS and Speech and ESL and OT.  This was so frustrating.  The Daily 5 schedule would give me more time for conferring since I would have the whole literacy block to schedule conferences.  I also thought it might minimize the impact pull outs had on my very needy students.  Hmm.... this was sounding interesting.  I started to key into any twitter conversation about The Daily 5 and I started lurking around during the weekly #d5chat.

The next thing that happened to push me towards The Daily 5 was blogging.  Not me blogging, but the class blogging!  Lack of a computer lab and only a few computers in the class meant we couldn't blog as a whole class.  So, this is when my experiment began!

My Daily 5 3 Experiment

My students had 3 choices - Independent Reading, Blogging, and Word Study.  I stuck with the terms that I had used for years and had also introduced at the beginning of the year.  We only checked-in once, at our first meeting of the day.  Some days we only had 2 rounds, or sessions as my students called them.  I will just say - MY STUDENTS LOVED IT! And so did I!  It wasn't difficult to add the choices because my workshop was already up and running - my students worked independently and were building their stamina.  I realized these were things I had always done in my class!

What Next?

The beginning of a new school year is a week away!  I have decided to begin the year with The Daily 5... and call it The Daily 5. (I really never called it anything last year.)  I am worried about the Listen to Reading because of the lack of computers and because we use them for blogging...but I am just going to figure it out as we go!  My Work on Writing will primarily be blogging.  I am a bit hesitant about using the term Read to Self because for so many years I used the term Independent Reading.  I know it is weird, but I liked that my second graders understood the word and used the term regularly.  I also used this term because it was different than Free Choice reading in my class.  Free Choice was read anything you want, with anyone you want.  Independent reading was just-right or good fit books by yourself.  I have also done Partner Reading in the past - with assigned partners.  Last year I gave Read to Someone a try and my students liked it and did well - we just never incorporated it into the choices.

CAFE

I bought The Cafe Book last week and read it from cover to cover.  What was I waiting for???!!! Fabulous book, even if you don't use The Daily 5 or CAFE.  I was already posting the strategies I taught (or trying), and I had been using Beanie Baby reading strategies that I had found posted online years ago.  So, using CAFE is a natural progression for me.  The added bonus is I will have lots of support from my PLN on twitter and I have purchased a years subscription to TheDailyCafe.com.

So, I am excited to begin the Daily 5 and CAFE officially.  The Bulletin Board is ready to go.  And my conferring notebook is undergoing a makeover this evening!

Do you use the Daily 5 or CAFE in your classroom?  Are you considering reading the books or using The Daily 5 or CAFE?  Do you have any suggestions or questions?