Urbanski's Using the Workshop Approach in the High School English Classroom

[Julianne Dillard]

Hello, missed colleagues!  :)

 

A few questions I'd like to throw out--

1)  What are the benefits of freewriting as a tool for pre-writing/discovery?  Do I believe in it enough to make it a feature of my course?

2)  Are shorter reader response type writings valuable or is it just busywork that interrupts students authentically engaging with literature?

3)  Do you explicitly model skills for students often?  How? 

 

These questions popped up for me as I read Cynthia D. Urbanski's Using the Workshop Approach in the High School English Classroom: Modeling Effective Writing, Reading, and Thinking Strategies for Student Success.  How is that for a long title?  In the flurry of reading I've been doing lately for curriculum development, this book was a stand-out.  Urbanski helped me address those questions and left me with lots of other ideas to implement (along with the zillions from ISI). 

 

I'm always drawn toward workshop approaches in the classroom, but it can be tough to really envision how it works day to day.  Urbanski describes her methods and rationale so effectively and in such an approachable way that it actually seems plausible (and exciting!).  I felt, while reading, that I was getting a peek into a thoughtful and effective teacher's journal.

 

A description from the publisher:

 

This practical guide addresses the daily running and practice of a workshop-based classroom, using research and the author’s own experiences to illustrate how to establish a workshop that:

• Fosters lasting learning while reinforcing the skills needed for standardized tests
• Teaches audience and purpose as a vehicle to style and structure
• Provides a supportive and lively environment in which students are comfortable enough to take risks and share original ideas

A good portion of the book is dedicated to what modeling effective reading, writing, and thinking actually look and sound like in the classroom.  Urbanski offers example dialogues that don't ring fake (a pet peeve of mine in other similar texts). 

 

As for freewriting and how ready I am to advocate for it, Urbanski makes a really compelling argument for freewriting's value.  She explains that it reinforces for developing writers (and seasoned writers) that mistakes are permissible and expected, that false starts happen and can lead to good starts, and that it takes time for magic to happen.

 

Having just read Nancie Atwell's The Reading Zone (see my workshoppy leanings?), I have that nagging feeling that I'm ruining literature for kids if I push too much read and respond, but Urbanski suggests that done correctly, reader response oppurtunities allow for better long writings later because students have had the opportunity to process and consider beforehand, and it's a relatively non-threatening way to build proficiency.

 

This text includes techniques for grading, conferencing, and using student writing as literature in the classroom.  I think that's what struck me most about the book--that the tips were practical enough (and presented in a straight-forward way without excessive fluffy lingo) that I could see implementing the ideas myself.  I left the ISI with the view that modeling is so important to a successful classroom (after seeing modeling working in action and supported by the literature), but it's always nice to have a resource to turn to for "how-to."

 

On a total side note, it's not a specifically "writing" text, but my other recent fave is Sheridan Blau's The Literature Workshop: Teaching texts and their readers.  If you're looking for some modeling as to how to encourage effective interaction with challenging texts (without having to be a know-it-all yourself), sneak a peak at that one!  I'll be shocked if anyone makes it this far into my rambling. ;) 

[Sara Kwasna]

1) What are the benefits of freewriting as a tool for pre-writing/discovery? Do I believe in it enough to make it a feature of my course?
-I do think that freewriting is important in the classroom for many reasons, some of which you touched on in your post. I do believe that freewriting is often the seed for later writing piece. I also think that in the high school classroom where students can not write or annotate directly in their textbooks and novels, that freewriting offers the opportunity for students to respond to, react to, and process their readings. One of the last writing assigments I have given to my students at the end of the year asks them to return to their journals and free-writes and to pick out one of those seed ideas to develop into a longer piece. I am hopefully showing them that everything that they write may later blossom into a fully developed piece.

2) Are shorter reader response type writings valuable or is it just busywork that interrupts students authentically engaging with literature?
-I think that they are valuable. The longer pieces can be daunting for many, whereas the shorter pieces are accessable to one and all. Once again, if students could directly annotate their texts, then that would be the type of response and engagement with the text that I could look for, but since they can't- I think that reader responses are valuable and often used for springboards into discussion of the text or longer written pieces.

3) Do you explicitly model skills for students often? How?
-Yes! But I could do this more. I don't ever think that there can be too much modeling.

This sounds like an excellent book and one I will add to my ever-growing "to read" list. Thanks Julie!

[Allie Eckert]

1. Honestly, I had used free-writing in the past, however much like you, I wasn't sure how much I valued the use of free-writing in terms of actually helping the students to become better writers. While some students were able to generate great ideas, there were others who always seemed stuck with the idea of "free." This however changed for me after the summer ISI. While I was one of those "kids" who struggled with the idea of "free" throughout the first few writings, I soon became familiar with the process, and really felt that this time was incredibly beneficial for me in terms of a reflective thinker as well as a writer. I have now come to the conclusion that while free-writing may not necessarily push the students towards being better writers without the instruction piece (which was not part of my classroom practice,) it is a great piece in terms of helping the students to process information, generate ideas, and most importantly become confident as writers. My hope is that by incorporating free writing into my classroom at least a few times a week, my students will gain the confidence that they need in order to grow as writers, both quantity and quality.

2. Wow! Julie, we are so on the same page! I too constantly ask myself this question. According to a protocol that we use at my school, in order to have complete student engagement, there must be some type of processing activity every 5 minutes. This can be pair share, or short written responses. While I understand the research and theory behind this idea, I too feel that many times by having the students stop, it can hinder their concentration and focus. This year, my hope is to try a balance between the two.. perhaps having the students have a journal or another type of comprehension tool in front of them (think dots, dice, Marzano cards, post-its, matrix, etc.) and allow them to complete these activities in their own time between reading. I am not quite sure if this will allow the students to engage authentically while still pushing towards that formative assessment of comprehension, but only time will tell!

3. In terms of modeling, I can honestly say that I do this ALL OF THE TIME! While middle school students are incredibly different than college students, I feel that the act of modeling for students of all ages (even teachers) is incredibly beneficial as it outlines exact expectations for the learner. Not only do I model the writing process, I model how I edit/revise my writing, how I read, and how I use certain reading strategies, think alouds, and specific skill modeling (ie. behavior and communication expectations in peer response groups, appropriate responses etc.) In my eyes, modeling is not only important, it is essential!

[Jennifer Reynolds]

1. In the past I have not done a whole ton of freewriting, but this year my goal is to allow more time for this in the classroom. So, I don't know, but I think that it does have value not only as prewriting. So often writing (like right now) is done on the cuff and there is not final draft. Writing coherently without a prewriting warmup is sometimes a necessity in the workforce. I think it is good to show students that they can express ideas without feeling like they have to be perfected. AND- it might lead to some worthy future writing.

2. I think that shorter reader response is not busy work if it is done right. Usually short reading responses serve more purpose to teach reading skills (like prediction) than to teach writing skills.

3. I do explicitly model skills, but I also ask students to model skills for each other. Also, we look at each other's writing to model skills (what to do and what to avoid.) Kids are really excited to show their writing. Sometimes students want to volunteer what not to do because it helps with their revision process. They want feedback. I think by showing my process as a writer, students can see that it is a struggle and that it often requires revision. You can use mentor texts as a model. One of the things that I read in the book that I chose was to make a good piece of writing bad. I want to try this in the upcoming year to see if it is effective.

[Stephen B. Duncan]

1. All I can say is I hope there is some benefit to free-writing as I intend to allow more of it this year in my curriculum. I am hoping to have each piece of free-writing be part of a bigger, final piece which will tie all of the curriculum concepts together as one cognitive application of concept.

2. Since I won't have a lot of time to dedicate long writings, these writings will be short in nature with guiding lessons and given feedback for each small piece, all again to be tied together.

3. I can't help but think that modeling would be beneficial, but I have only my personal writing experiences to pull from. I will be limited on how much I can model in my class, but I hope to when I feel the need arises.

[Nicole Marvin]

1) What are the benefits of freewriting as a tool for pre-writing/discovery? Do I believe in it enough to make it a feature of my course?

I am introducing freewriting into my classroom practice this year. Just getting in the habit and practice of writing helps all students. When I haven't written a paper in a long time, it takes me a while to get back in the groove. Once I write two or three, I can write them easily. I hope this applies to my students too. Once they get use to writing, daily and regularly, the idea of writing won't be so foreign and difficult.

2) Are shorter reader response type writings valuable or is it just busywork that interrupts students authentically engaging with literature?

I use reader-response writing to check for understand and let's face it, keep students awake when reading long pieces of literature. Having them stop, think about what they are reading, and write about what they think engages them deeper in the literature and allows them the opportunity to try out a variety of writing types.

[Melissa LiCon]

I would really like to learn more about how "reader response opportunities" can build student's proficiency. I wonder if the strategy has students start to collect their own examples (from great writing they are reading and responding to) so that they have a well-developed catalog of ideas and devices to draw from later. Or am I completely off the path, so to speak? Tell me more... This makes me realize how much I miss having the chance to talk to all of you, when an idea we are discussing takes hold of me...

Teacher modeling is very effective, and so I have been surprised to learn that many teachers out there don't use it very often. Perhaps that is because it is kind of scary the first time you are modeling a new skill, and haven't yet worked out the kinks. I say, Go ahead! Jump into that cold water! Your students will no doubt benefit, and if it's a bit rough the first time, so what? By the second or third time you will feel so very polished with it, and your students will gain much from your willingness to let them "inside your head" so to speak.

[Nadyne Burra]

1) What are the benefits of freewriting as a tool for pre-writing/discovery? Do I believe in it enough to make it a feature of my course? In my classroom I use "freewriting" as a warm-up to journal writing. There are times when it works and times when I have difficulty. But in a high school classroom it can work. Whether there are actual benefits, it depends on your students. In my special education classes when I would give my students a writing prompt (open ended) they tended to respond with 1-3 sentences. But when I changed it to freewriting they started writing 1-2 paragraphs. As for a pre-writing tool, I feel there has to be guided discussions about a topic and the opportunity for them to return to their work and re-write it.
2) Are shorter reader response type writings valuable or is it just busywork that interrupts students authentically engaging with literature? Once again it comes down to what your students are capable of. For some students the activity of just writing helps them process what they just read, while others just become more confused. There has to be a balance, and it has to be meaningful otherwise the students don't buy into the activity. If the responses lead to a larger response down the road , then I feel that they can be beneficial.
3) Do you explicitly model skills for students often? How? I do in my class almost every day. There are times when it is how to indent and times when I have to model answering a short answer question.