Showcasing Student Writing!

I am finally getting to this project, which has been on my mind for a while...an online class writing portfolio!

This is partly for parents, so they can see student work. I currently don't send home completed writings. Instead students keep all their writing in one book/folder, so they can notice progress and trends in their work over time. It's important to keep all this work, as part of the reflection process inherent in writing. This writing book will go home at the end of the year (but in the meantime, check out a few samples on the online portfolio!)

This is also for students, so they have a broader audience for their writing...it isn't just for the teacher, you know! Your parents, your peers, and other educators (who are, frankly, curious and intrigued by some of the projects we have been doing, like the gaming reviews!) might like to see what's going on, the different writing styles, opinions and approaches.

And knowing you will be 'published' for a wider audience is a great motivator!

This online portfolio is really no different than hanging class work in the hallway...though it allows parents and others easier access. They don't have to come to the school physically to view it!

Please note that I keep it quite private, however, in the sense that I only use student initials and I do not include grades or teacher comments. That is private to the individual. If parents would like to discuss the work on display in more detail, please do not hesitate to contact me!

Also please keep in mind that this is a work in progress...I do not yet have all students, or all examples, on the site. I will email parents once this is more conclusive.

I just wanted to explain and share the idea!

Regards,
Julie Johnson

Writing Feedback via Email

Gradually over the new two weeks leading up to progress reports all parents on email will receive digital photographs of before and after student writing as well as an explanation of the tasks and links to the Ministry of Education's Writing Exemplars (expected level being level 3).

Every term I hope to send home, via email, descriptive feedback regarding the literacy program.

Students are provided with email at school and a copy will also be sent to them.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Regards,
Julie Johnson

Writing Checklist

Students, you will be using this to review your own work and the work of your peers. I will also be using it to assess your work.

CLICK HERE to see the checklist.

Where's the Beef?

Students, a while back you wrote two writing pieces for me so I could have a sample of your writing ability: a report of a life event and a review of a game, book or movie. I specified a few criteria for each writing form (report needed who, what, when, where, why, how while the review needed a rating and criteria).

I left the rest of my expectations purposefully vague as I wanted to see what you would produce on your own, without instruction. This acts as a baseline, so I know which writing traits you naturally and intuitively 'know' and those that you don't.  Then I can provide the direction/guidance you need in order to ascend in your writing levels.

All of you will receive specific feedback on what your areas of improvement are (and that will continue to happen from this point onward).  (Also note that your parents will also receive this information. Many parents expressed to me at Parent Night that they want this information so they know how you are doing.)

Remember that everyone is at different levels in their writing, and just like in video games with your individual gamer profile, so you each have your own *individual writing profiles*.

However, there are commonalities in our writing profiles and so we will be starting with those common areas of need.

This video is meant to address one such area of need. It is a very popular Wendy's commercial from the 1980's. Can you guess why I am showing it? How does it relate to your writing?

Using Games & Media to Promote Writing, Among Other Things

I consider myself to be a creative person. I admire creativity in others & also want to inspire creativity in others. Video games and media have tremendous potential as a means of creative expression and also as a focus for our own engagement and creative thought.

We used both media & games today in our language class.

1. Video Games & School: Discussion on Effective Feedback.

Click here for the prezi version of the presentation I gave today on comparing the effective feedback in video games to the effective feedback in schools. (The original version was on powerpoint and also had Spanish subtitles. If anyone would like that version, please email me. The prezi version is easier for the online community to view so I created it after the fact).

Your gamer profile in the video game called 'literacy'.

The point of this activity was two fold.

First, to discuss the idea of 'effective feedback'. What is it in video games? (tool inventory, health meters, maps, rankings, etc).

What is it in schools? (report cards, comments, conversations, notes from the teacher, regarding various subject areas & skill sets, etc).

And, in both cases, what is the purpose? To inform your next steps, to grow in 'gamer points' so that you can proceed to the next level.

Your 'gamer/student profile' should be different from the start of the year to the end in the various areas. As in the video game, we expect you to grow. Teachers also need to take base lines data (through reading comprehension tasks and writing samples, for example) so we can determine your profile 'starting point'.

Secondly, as an opportunity for students to provide feedback & also understand oral language criteria. Before the presentation, I gave the students the criteria for 'effective speaking' (part of our Oral Language curriculum). They then needed to rate my presentation based on this criteria. At the end of the presentation, I asked them for their 'feedback'. I also asked to explain why they rated me the way they did.

They also had to write down the 'main point' of the presentation (in a sentence). Here are some responses:

• It was about how she wants to improve the levels of our thinking.
• Her point was that school is kind of like a video game in terms of feed back.
• It's saying school is like a video game in feedback.
• She was showing how we start out the year. At the end of the year we should be better.

This activity generated a lot of interesting discussion about gaming, school, feedback, and game design.  I think it was a new experience for students to 'critically' examine familiar games. (ie: Why did the game designers put those feedback systems in place? They did it for a reason!).

We will continue to examine all forms of media (and texts) with a 'critical' eye.

POPLIT

Today I introduced students to the 'quick write' activities in my literacy/media site poplit.net. This was highly engaging and provoked considerable reaction & response (in both written & oral forms).  We did 30,000 Dominoes, The Duck Song, Dot, and Western Spaghetti.  We will continue to use this site as a way to generate short writing pieces & respond to creative visual 'texts'.

PS. to further extend this activity, students will be reading this blog post & evaluating how well I 'reported' on the event (we are soon to focus on 'news-report' writing criteria).