1. Writer’s Workshop
Non-fiction
Research Unit of
Study
Arlene Brown
Amy Favreau
Charlotte Gillespie
2. Writers’ Workshop
Share with your table…
What do you like about teaching writing?
What are you most comfortable with when
teaching writing?
What do you want to learn about Writers’
Workshop?
3. Foundations of Writer’s
Workshop- Lucy Calkins
Every child needs 50-60 minutes a day for writing
and writing instruction
We need to teach children to write texts like other
writers write- memoirs, stories, editorials, essays,
poems- for an audience of readers, not just the
teacher
Writers do not write with words and conventions
alone- writers write above all with meaning
Children will invest themselves more in their writing
if they are taught to select their own topics and
write about subjects that are important to them
4. Continued
Children need to be explicitly taught the
skills and strategies of effective writing,
and the qualities of good writing
Provide children the opportunity and
instruction necessary to cycle through the
writing process regularly as they write,
rehearse, draft, revise, edit, and publish
their writing
Writers read- all sorts of texts
5. Components of Writer’s Workshop
Minilesson (10 minutes)
Independent Writing, Small Guided Writing
Groups, Individual Conferencing (40
minutes)
Sharing ( 10 minutes)
Total time- One hour
6. Classroom Environment in
Writer’s Workshop
Organized Classroom Library
Mentor texts are available and
displayed
Netbooks or other tools for writing
Areas for large, small, partner and
independent work
Writing center with paper, markers,
crayons, and other materials
Children’s writing on display
7. Minilesson
Components
1. Connection- Connect to prior work
2. Teaching- active demonstration
Develop Anchor Charts
3. Active Engagement- Practice for a
minute( bring Writer’s Notebook to
meeting)
4. Link- Summarize task for students
8. Management During
Minilesson
Bring supplies with them
Sit next to Writing Partners
Teach children Turn and Talk
Routine
Teach children how to manage
transitions between listening,
talking, and practicing
Keep your minilesson- mini!
9. Minilesson
Explicit instruction at the beginning of the
Writer’s Workshop
Types of Minilessons
1. Craft, Content, and Techniques
2. Strategies and Procedures
3. Skills- Grammar/ Punctuation/
Spelling
4. Procedures and Organization
10. Minilesson Ideas- Content
focused
Making lists
Things you care about
Experiences
Memories
Writing more- adding detail
Choice words/descriptive language
Great beginnings
Strong leads
Surprising ending
Observations
One moment in time
Voice- Finding your voice
Genre studies- personal narrative, informational writing,
biographies, historical fiction, realistic fiction
11. Minilesson-Conventions Focus
Spacing
Phonetic spelling
Verb tenses
Use of adverbs and adjectives
Use of proper nouns
Paragraphing
Punctuation
Commas and quotation marks
Appropriate grammar
Use of and
Correcting run on sentences
Varied sentence structure
12. Anchor Charts
Anchor charts are tools for students to use during
Writers' Workshop and aid children in remembering
procedures and expectations. Charts should be
made with the children and added to throughout the
year. Anchor charts need to be posted in the
classroom where they are easily accessible to
students.
13. Independent Writing
Students write every day
Students use a writer’s notebook and a
folder for organizing writing
Students are at different stages of writing
Teacher is a coach
Teacher meets with students individually
and in small groups
Students work independently
14. Conferring
Conferences occur during independent
writing time
Teachers work with students individually or
in small groups
Students meet with
writing partners or
in writing groups to
discuss writing
15. Conferring Questions
What are you working on as a writer?
What kind of writing are you making?
What are you doing to make this piece of
writing work?
What do you think of what you’ve done
so far?
What will you do next?
How will you go about doing that?
16. Conferring Continued
Take notes during conferences to document
students' progress and to plan future mini-
lessons.
• Listen to students read their entries aloud
• Help students decide what they want to say
• Provide feedback
• Re-teach skills taught during mini lessons
• Teach necessary new skills
• Reinforce a writer's strengths
• Give writers new ways of thinking
17. Sharing
Sharing time wraps up the workshop
Reinforces the focus of the mini-lesson
Celebration and reflection- What did we
learn? Where are we going next?
18. Grammar and Conventions
Grammar and conventions are key components of
WW and RW
Teachers need to teach grammar skills within the WW
and RW block
For example, your mini-lesson could have a specific
grammar focus…nouns, verbs, adjectives…which
you will have students focus on in their reading and
writing
Another example, teaching metaphors, similes,
personification- another mini-lesson focus for students
Conferences are key for assessment- notice how
students are applying specific grammar focused skills
and strategies
19. Six Traits
Six traits fits perfectly into the Writer’s
Workshop Model
The trait are woven throughout WW
lessons
20.
21. When we open the gates to nonfiction
discovery, we open our thinking and
expect the unexpected, making reading
discoveries, research discoveries, and
writing discoveries on our way.
By Stephanie Harvey
Non-Fiction Matters
22. What is Research?
How have you done research in the past?
How have you used nonfiction materials?
Doesresearch have to end with a
product?
23. What tools can you use for
Research?
Tools for finding Tools for presenting
information information
Books Blogs
E-books Formal report
Data bases Glogster/posters
Websites 3D projects
Newspapers Audio/video
Videos/audio Web pages
Magazines Wiki
Interview Prezi
Primary sources (original) Voki
other Other
25. The Big Six- Grade 3- Adult
1. Task Definition
Define the information problem- restate or put in own words
Identify information needed
2. Information Seeking Strategies
Determine all possible sources
Select the best sources
3. Location and Access
Locate sources (intellectually and physically)
Find information within sources
4. Use of Information
Engage (e.g., read, hear, view, touch)
Extract relevant information
5. Synthesis
Organize from multiple sources
Present the information
6. Evaluation
Judge the product (effectiveness)
Judge the process (efficiency)
26. The Super Three- K-2
1. Plan
What am I supposed to do?
What do I need to get the job done?
What do I want it to look like when I'm done?
2. Do
I must locate the things I will need (books, websites,
materials etc.).
I need to ask questions, read, and take notes.
I need to use the information I find to create
something.
3. Review
Did I do what I was supposed to do?
Am I proud of what I've done?
Is there something else I should do before I say I am done?
27. Discuss this with your table
How could you use The Big Six or The Super
Three to answer a simple question such as…
What is the habitat of a marmot?
Was this process easy?
What is the best way to teach students how to
use The Big Six or The Super Three?
Share with the group.
28. Pathways to the Common Core
Pathways to the Common Core Videos
29. Research Unit of Study Guide
Go to
http://ms.sau57.libguides.com/research-units-of-
study
The Research Unit of Study and Alignment are from
this website.
Look at The Research Unit of Study Tab, locate your
grade level, and familiarize yourself with the
Common Core Standards and the I Can Statements
that tie in Reader’s Workshop, Writer’s Workshop and
technology.
30. Common Core
With your grade level team take the I Can statements that were
developed this summer and edited this year…..
Think about a topic or area of study you would like to have your
students research.
Would your topic or area of study work with the strategies in the Big
Six or Super Three?
What do you want your students to know at the end of the
research unit? Keep in mind the big picture goal is to have
students understand the process of researching and not necessarily
the facts gathered because of the topic?
How are students going to demonstrate their understanding of the
research process?
Written document, notes, poster, video, glogster, report…etc…
The expectations and outcome will determine the resources you
may choose to access.
31. Digital Resource Tools
K-2- Independent Resources for our youngest
learners
Along with traditional resources…digital tools
are easy, fun, and engaging.
Pebble Go- science and social studies data
basis
Bookflix- pairs fiction and nonfiction titles
Interactive e-book with digital writing
32. Digital Resources
Grades 3-5
Along with traditional resources…digital tools
are easy, fun, and engaging.
Power Kids Life Science
Earth and Space Science
CultureGrams
Ebsco- kids search magazine
World Book
Interactive ebook with digital writing
33. Gathering and Documenting
Research
Note taking
Pictures and illustrations
Print information and highlight
Graphic organizers
Note cards
Collaborative discussion and sharing
34. Google Researching
Students need direct systematic
instruction in order to access the
appropriate materials available on the
internet
Options for Google researching…
Whole class guided research
Small group guided research
Individual guided research
35. Organizing Information and
Presentation
Once students have gathered,
documented, and discussed their new
learning, they need to synthesize and
organize their information, and decide
how to share and demonstrate their
learning.
37. Digital Presentations- K-2
Interactive ebook and digital writing
Podcasts
Word Cloud- Wordle…etc
Video presentation
Arlene
will model the different tools and
teachers will practice.
38. Digital Presentations 3-5
Interactive ebook with digital writing
Podcasts
Word Clouds- Wordle…etc
Video presentations
Interactive poster-Glogster
Slide presentation- Power Point and Prezi
Animated Voice Presentation-Voki
Movies-
Arlene will model interactive ebooks, Glogster,
Voki
39. Develop Lesson Plan Outline
Work with grade level teams to determine a
outline of study…
Lessons should include-
-Intro to Research
-Developing topic idea
-Introducing databases and ways to collect
information
-Organizing and Synthesizing Information
-Developing presentation- traditional and/or digital
-Presenting Information
-Evaluating Information
Editor's Notes
In your group discuss and share out 10
5 min
10 minutes
Pass out the unit of study and alignment- 25 minutes
Give each grade a copy of the core standards that were pulled out in the summer in reading and writing / alignment of the shift
