Kindergarten Writing Conference
Promoting Self Expression using Writers' Workshop Strategies (Virtual Tour)
Stage of Literacy Development:
Stage 1: Beginning LiteracyAges:
4-7
Grade Range:
PreK K 1stFood Groups:
Primary: Writing Processes & Strategies, Writing Conventions Secondary: Motivation for Literacy, Assessment
Transcript
Generally what I'll do is I'll work with two students at Writing Center at a time and it's based upon students' interests, so whether they want to come to Writing Center or not. I will sit in the middle of the two students so that I'm within arm's reach of them, so if they need some encouragement to use certain writing strategies then I can be there to encourage the utilization of those strategies. Within Writers' Workshop I never tell a student how to spell a word. They utilize the strategies that they've learned to create the text that they want to write on their page. Some of the strategies I might encourage students to use are, for example, stretching out the sounds of the words. I might grab the word-stretchercisers and stretch it out together, and then the student will print the letter sounds that they hear. We might use a spaceman, so if a student simply needs to create spaces between their words then we would do that. If it's something as simple as a student needing to know the initial sound that a word is making I might direct them to resources within the room such as the First-Letter-of-their-Name Artwork. If it's something like a sight word that we've covered within the classroom, I might refer them to the popcorn word chart where they can simply get a popcorn wand and bring it to the table and write down that word. While we're conferencing I will ask the student what they did to practice being a good writer that day. Again, making them metacognizant of the things that they're doing as good writers and also making them aware of the fact that they are authors or they are writers. On a piece of paper I will write down one thing that they can glow about and one thing that they need to grow. I utilize this writing conference the next time that we sit down together so that I can review with them what they did last time as a writer that was really fantastic and one thing they could do that other writers do. While I'm sitting here conferencing with the students at writing center the rest of the children within the classroom are at their centers and they're exploring independently. If you've set up a community of learners and the students know exactly what it is that they can do at each center it becomes very simple to sit down with individual students and conference with them.
Activity Objective
The goal of Kindergarten Writing Conference: Promoting Self Expression using Writers' Workshop Strategies (Virtual Tour) is to provide students with opportunities to develop their writing fluency and expression.
Quick Tips
Additional Comments:
- Provide each student with a writer's workbook and writing folder to track their progress in writing. - Writing centers foster student independence and provide opportunities for small group instruction and one-on-one writing conferences.
Other Recipes by this Teacher
Dial-a-Story!: Using Classroom Telephones to Support Reading Aloud (Virtual Tour)
PreK - 2nd
Reading Buddy Props: Motivating Reading with a Partner to Practice Early Literacy Skills (Virtual Tour)
PreK - 1st
Not Just for Baking!: Organizing Groups and Classroom Activities using Cookie Sheets (Virtual Tour)
PreK - 1st
Letter-Sound Bins: Sorting Objects to Build Phonemic Awareness (Virtual Tour)
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Writers' Wall: Displaying Children's Work to Motivate and Assess Writing (Virtual Tour)
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