Reflections on Term 3, 2020

Busy, busy, busy! 

I was fortunate to get called up for an interview early in Week 1 and I found out, several weeks later (due to several mix ups with staffing - even though I foresaw that there would be problems with my qualifications and called ahead to ask all of the questions!) that I was selected for the position of Teacher Librarian! All the study and thinking stopped being a 'one day' and became a reality - I was to start Week 2, Term 4. Initially the role was something I decided to pursue when I had some extra time while working a corporate position as I could get my work completed most days in the office and my take home work load was significantly reduced. I didn't want to squander such an opportunity so undertook further study. When I saw the TL position advertised it came after a few difficult interactions with colleagues that really made me question what I was doing and whether I had made the right decision to return to the Head Teacher role. I mulled over what to do for quite some time - going backwards and forwards until I simply had to make my mind up, inform my supervisor, and write the application. I got to the point where I felt okay to leave the decision in the hands of the universe - put my best foot forward and wait to see what happened. If it was the right door then it would open up and it did. 

After I accepted the position I really had to get serious about what needed to be completed on my faculty Head Teacher 'to do' list in what remained of the term. Many of the items were additions to the faculty and not necessarily things that someone else would like to take on so they came off the list straight away. I had three good terms of 'a poem a day' and writing workshop but I can't mandate things when I am no longer the Head Teacher so they came off the list. I ordered the last few things needed for the faculty - enough A6 notebooks for the incoming Year 12 cohort to complete the Writer's Notebook activity, a little bit more stationery, and some desk top drawers so I could recycle the cardboard shelves I bought years and years ago that became awful dust collectors and a filler of valuable real estate in the staffroom. Everything needed a tidy. My aim was to leave things in a nicer state than I found them and I think I succeeded in this small goal. 

Overall I returned all of the books to the Seminar Room, finished off updates to the Scope and Sequence filed assessment paperwork and faculty paperwork in a folder and popped it on the faculty shelf. I threw out superfluous junk sitting around the place, took lost property to the Front Office, bought a few more packets of biscuits for the faculty cookie jar, and scanned all of my resources (I still have about 10 folders to go but I will get to those a bit later in the term - hopefully I will have them completed by the end of the year). Early in the term I had some posters laminated to decorate my classroom so I spent a few hours putting it all together to leave as a temporal legacy. I put everything away in the Seminar Room and did a quick tidy of the Book Room. The Book Room really needed another 12+ hours but I just didn't have any extra time. It was workable when I left it - everything hanging around was returned to its place. The Book Boxes stared at me sadly during the clean - they will likely sit there indefinitely but there is nothing I can do about that now. That is one thing that is difficult about leaving - half completed projects or grand ideas that I didn't have time to implement.

With a new position in a workplace outside the suburb I live I knew the routines on the home front would have to change. This was nearly the clincher for me. I am 35-minutes further away from my child and not being there to get him ready in the morning and to drop him off is something I have had to grapple with - do I miss these little moments to have more time generally? It of course it seems like a no-brainer but I am still anxious about daycare and not being able to be there immediately if I am needed. If I am honest, though, the times I was needed I still had a class of 30-students so couldn't leave school for 30-45 minutes anyway so I am likely in a better position now with a reduced face to face teaching load. 

So a week and a half into the role I am driving for a lot longer each day - I have to leave around 7am and I get home at about 4.05pm so my partner is doing daycare drop off and I pick baby up in the afternoon. Overall, because I have less managerial responsibility I can get my work done during the work day and I tinker for a little bit in the afternoon and leave at 3.30pm. Even with the travel, though, I am getting to daycare for pick up earlier than I have all year. I have gained some time because I am not required to attend Executive Meetings and I am not preparing for Faculty Meetings or composing Faculty Memos in lieu of Faculty Meetings. I have some space in my work day now to get things completed because I am not part of the hierarchical structure that I once was - I am no longer instructing staff on how to respond to classroom management issues nor am I collecting students who are misbehaving. I don't have to patrol areas of the school. There are so many things that I am no longer responsible for and to be quite honest, it is such a relief. Some people really enjoy these parts of the role or can be indifferent to the process to a point because there are many other parts of the role they enjoy. I found the managerial elements so very wearing. Establishing myself as an 'authority' whose instructions must be followed or else? Well, I can say, it isn't for me, I don't want to expend energy that way. My days of being a big stick are over. 

Having 'extra' time takes a bit of adjustment. Without the pressure of due dates and letting people down the things I want to do—hobbies just don't get done. I almost need to schedule my 'want to do' list like I would do work tasks - is that a bad thing? Do other people need to do this? I am not sure. I just get so distracted and I lose focus and it is only upon reflection that I realise it has been a year since I have picked up a paintbrush, that my watercolours have been sitting for four months, I haven't been for a walk since before the school holidays, I have read only seven books this whole year and I haven't opened my writer's notebook since I don't know when. I know that I have been doing a lot but the realisation that things that fill me with joy are not completed with any regularity is sobering. I do have a few health things to sort and I have to bear a nightmare from my childhood that is lingering in the wings but I need to make some organisational changes to honour the time I have clawed back. It is sometimes a bit tough to start a new gig in Term 4 but what is great is that I am getting used to how everything works and by the time the new year rolls around I am going to be raring to go.

A Revision of English in a Pandemic World

What a catastrophic start to the year - an extended bush fire season, smoke, constant heat waves, flooding rains, and now a pandemic. I tell you what, while I do tend to prefer the indoors I do like fresh air on occasion but it has been an inside life lately - poor baby has not seen as much of the world as I would have hoped.

In response to all of these events I would probably try to crack a smile and say something like 'what else...?' but honestly, I do not want to know. I do not want to tempt fate. I did joke glibly a few weeks ago and I regret it now, that I could use a little break from face to face teaching - call the holidays a few weeks early so we can hunker down for a bit - then I would be able to catch up on my school administration, sort everything out for my uni assignment, clean the house, and do things like dig my winter clothes out.

Big mistake!

The last three weeks of term were horrendous. There were not enough hours in the day to get everything done. Baby got sick, too, so we were all having a bad time. I sought answers to the questions being asked of me, and answers I need to be able to move into Term 2 with some semblance of order and I got some, and made some acceptable decisions for others. We are all making the best out of an untenable situation.

These are a few of the activities adapted from the Children's Writer's Notebook by Wes Magee. I would recommend the book. It has over 70 prompts, many of which would work well in the classroom.

1.   Draft a 250 word story for small children about a young creature (for example, a crocodile, panda, or polar bear) who goes to the moon. How does the young creature adapt to his or her new life and surroundings? What does he or she do? Who, or what, does he or she meet? As the story ends, the young creature returns to planet Earth unharmed. Be sure that the language you use is appropriate for little kids.

2.   Draft a short story of 250 words. Send one character on a journey. Leaving the house they could go through the woods to an island or perhaps out into space. Who, or what, does the child encounter? What happens? The child returns home safely after the adventure. Reread your story and chop any unnecessary words.

3.   Make a list of FIVE childhood toys. Give each toy a new name — for example, a cuddly dog could be called Hugbug. Now write a brief description of each newly named toy (40-words for each toy), so that they become familiar as characters. Choose a setting that you know well, such as a beach, a field or a garden. Write a short story of 250 words, describing the newly named characters’ adventures.

Extension: Select two of the characters you created during the first activity last week. Write a conversation between them. It could be a conversation about something they found or lost. Bring in the feelings that the characters experience. Bring the conversation to an end with a single word.

Reflections on Week 11, Term 1, 2020

It has been another enormous week, and I guess just like the world over, I am sitting here incredulous about the situation we are all facing.

Going to the grocery store is a strange juxtaposition of a familiar environment with strict rules - hand sanitiser on entry, a security guard passing patrons a trolley after it has been wiped down, tape on the floor everywhere to ensure customers are maintaining social distancing requirements, cordons funnelling shoppers into the store to prevent too many from entering at once, signs everywhere listing product restrictions - toilet paper x 1, baby wipes x 1, hand towel x 1, tissues x 2, canned goods a total of 2, pasta x 2 (if you can get any). There's no limit on fresh fruit and vegetables, eggs are usually in stock, there is more meat lately, dairy has maintained a constant supply. Baby formula keeps me on my toes. Baby became unwell and became lactose intolerant, we tried introducing regular formula three times and three times we switched back to lactose free. We are coming up to the time when we should introduce regular again and I just don't know what to buy - it is often in short supply so I am trying to buy one as we use one, and then I have two cans in the cupboard - two weeks stock just in case. I buy a few packets of pear and prune whenever I see it in the store because we go through that very quickly. It is an unfamiliar way to exist in a land of plenty and relative safety a layer of unease has been added to existence.

Week 11 was a continuing adjustment. Staff worked from home and went to school to collect things and do a bit of work here and there. The focus has been on establishing online learning and supporting senior students. Keeping abreast of social media during this time has been very useful and the sense of camaraderie offered by my online staffroom has been extraordinarily helpful and heartening. In response to a post online my colleague approached me about revisioning our approach to English online and then we met with the 2IC and came up with a plan for Term 2.

As all junior assessment was paused at the end of term. I have been given permission to organise a new due date to collect submissions for all the students who were unable to complete the first task. We will not be assigning another assessment task in Term 2 because it seems a bit silly to put that pressure on staff and students when we have no idea what the future looks like. If we focus on collecting the first task then we will have something and as many students managed to submit the task it will mean their work will still count.

The messaging around the term shifts regularly - a whole term online - maybe? Maybe not. To enact the plan I organised with my colleagues to come up with reading and writing activities. I drew on the 'Children's Writer's Notebook' for the range of activities for Year 7. The activities in the book are terrific and I modified a selected and developed an extension activity for most weeks - just for those who are able to work ahead. Students will be asked to hand in their best piece at the end of each week.

Hopefully this reduces the scores and scores of questions I have been fielding from students who 'don't know what to do' or are confused by a list of instructions and attached documents for the lesson. There have been continuous issues with accessing attached documents and websites - these queries are important, of course, and they must be answered, but I would prefer staff to have the time to give feedback on student writing, provide the teaching through their feedback - kind of like conferencing from a distance

Prior to Covid-19 I was in a great routine with my Year 7 group with Writing Workshop - writing off the page, draft #1, revising, draft #2, edit, teacher edits, and then publishing. I had an area in the classroom where students could collect notepaper and editing check sheets, I bought some staplers from Officeworks (they're pink!) and the writing was coming in. I could get through the scripts quickly, write some feedback, attached a sticker so the students knew everything was checked, and then have a brief conference during our double period. It was really starting to happen.

I really hope I am able to establish some of the same practises next term - a creative outlet is important in dark times.

Reflections on Week 10, Term 1, 2020

Week B is usually my 4-day week but I don't think such a thing exists anymore - not with the constant pinging of notifications from my students and my clearly terrible instructions that no-one is able to understand and even though we don't have class today, because I don't usually work today, they were just coming at me all day. I will have to manage this differently next term. I cannot cope with the barrage and the constancy.

My colleague found an amazing article to share with our Year 12 Standard English classes recently 'We are using the same words but are we speaking the same language?' and the words of the writer are echoing around my brain. They ring true.

So what has the past week been like? We are currently on a rotational roster of supervision so we only need to go in 1-2 times in the last two weeks of term. I also went in Monday and smashed out numerous things on the to list, one of which was organising copies of the modified assessment, and then getting modified criteria printed up and put into envelopes after organising a system for record keeping marking online. I drew up a timetable for the meetings and then we had the meetings all day Wednesday and then on Thursday the decision was made to cancel all junior assessment. The guilt that swallowed me - wasting all that time on Monday and Wednesday - is massive. This time period is hard enough and there's so little extra to give and I just worked for nothing and made my staff work for nothing. Not much can be done now but I am sad about it.

I have been collecting data and trying to work out a way forward that is not going to burden the staff in my faculty. I really do need to go into school to speak with the senior executive to clarify some aspects of online teaching because if I am feeling the pressure with four classes, what are my staff dealing with when they have five or six classes?

I have asked for an extension for my university assignment - it is due in 5-days and they are giving students whose workload has been impacted by Covid 19 an extra 5-days. I watched the census date drift by and paid the course fee so I am committed but I am so distracted. I am looking forward to pressing 'submit' but it is going to be a struggle to get there.

I just organised priority delivery for my grandmother so she is able to get supplies. My brother and sister in law recently visited her and mentioned that she was out of toilet paper - something she didn't mention to me so I need to put something in place to ensure she has the things she needs. I will call her local fruit and veg store to get them to do a delivery for her as well. If she has been living off her freezer store she will be missing fresh fruit and vegetables. It is times like these that I do wish I lived closer - not because I would go visit but just so I could shop for her and leave things on her doorstep.

I hope this is all over soon.

Reflections on Week 8, Term 1, 2020

This week Covid19 has moved onto the radar in a more insidious manner. We are no longer laughing at the lack of toilet paper in the supermarket aisles but have seen canned goods, pasta and sauce, pain relief medication for children and adults, flour, sugar, and tissues become depleted. There are gaps everywhere and we, who have lived all our lives with constant availability, have never seen such a thing before. Supermarkets have begun to limit the purchase of toilet paper, tissues, long life food items to ensure customers are not missing out on the necessities.

At school the kids are starting to drop off. Attendance is usually fairly consistent but there are empty chairs appearing in our classrooms and teachers on social media are speaking about readying resources to provide to students. Sport has been cancelled. Things are starting to get a bit spooky.

I went to the doctor with my partner and baby on Friday and I had a slightly running nose. The receptionist nearly threw me out of the practice. She shoved a mask at me and handed me the hand sanitiser. I learned, once we got in for our appointment, that if the doctor fell ill for even a cold she would have to immediately take three days off work. She apologised for the mask. I wore the mask on and off over the weekend to avoid spreading my cold to baby - you can't buy them anywhere so it seemed smart to use it.

Everything feels difficult at the moment.

Reflections on Week 7, Term 1, 2020

What a massive week.

Tuesday night was Open Night - I used to have a short PowerPoint quiz with ten questions about the subject of English but they reduced the time they wanted parents and prospective students at each station so my team rallied and put together a little display and I basically yelled at bunches of parents who tried to listen over the fray of other faculties. I had no idea just how many people would attend - in my before stint as HT there would be about 20 people in a large group but the groups this year were around 40+. I should have set up on the other side of the Library instead of across from another faculty because it was wild. I noticed some lose interest and walk off which is really disheartening and possibly problematic for the school. I did have a few good conversations though. I spoke about the daily poem in Year 7, the focus on giving time to reading and writing, opportunities for students to engage in writing competitions, extra-curricular activities such as debating and public speaking. I had a whole bunch take one of the poetry booklets I had put together for parents to peruse which is cute - poetry should be in everyone's life! I got home from the evening and proceeded to bag up 80-cookies for the professional learning session on Wednesday. It was a huge night. 

The professional learning seemed to go well - the coffee van arrived on time, the catering was adequate (we did ask for more sandwiches because they catered for 38 instead of 75), I had the sign on sheet ready, stickers and a marker for name badges, Twitter signs, spare note paper and pens, water for our guest speaker (and cute and colourful Ikea cups for her to drink from!), the lucky door prizes, and aforementioned cookies. I wrote a short speech to introduce the afternoon and well, it fell pretty flat - I acknowledged the difficult start to the year - heat waves, fires, floods, and panic buying toilet paper and how all of these things impact us as well as our students and one way to reflect is to write and what a good opportunity for us to engage in our craft before sharing the activities with out students. I feel like maybe not everyone wanted to attend the professional learning so I am very glad I wasn't getting up to speak about a literacy initiative. I am glad I provided some space for staff to engage in their writing - something different, something fresh, something to engage us in our subject area in a practical way. Personally, I loved the workshop. I will write some of the things we learned in another post.

The rest of the week flew by with more things being added to my to do list than getting done but with two massive tasks ticked off the list the relief was palpable.

Reflections on Week 5, Term 1, 2020

How difficult is it to build continuity and rapport when you are off work sick every other week. The report from students about the lessons in my absence was less than enouraging but sometimes one is just too ill to be in front of 100+ students in a day, and it would be terrible (not to mention, gross!) if they were to all catch my illness. I think it is also damaging to rapport and classroom management when one is not well enough to uphold the facade of certain rules and procedures.

I was unsure whether I would be well by Friday and the reality of facing a big day when still feeling a bit delicate was a bit much but it ended up being just fine. I had 4-periods on, recess welfare meeting, and Pen and Paper Lunch 1 and Lunch 2. I got a sudden burst of energy when more kids started wandering in for the lunch time creative writing group and wow were they adorable when I gave them each a journal. They were only the two for $3.00 ones form Kmart but the kids were chuffed to be given something to capture their thoughts and drafts.

My Year 12 students have expressed their love of writing notes, my conundrum is, how do I give them the briefest notes possible so it fulfils their wish of having some notes and 'actually writing something' in their workbook but also not losing time for them to think and respond and compose... the things I really want them to do. I will have to think on this as I prepare for next term.

This job is such a balancing act and it has been the roughest of starts, I am still planning week by week for every single one of my classes, uni has started, I have to write a book, I have to plan for NAPLAN, I am running a Twilight Session next week, Open Night is next week, and it is assignment time... I am tired just looking at that list. I once told a friend that I bite off more than I can chew and then chew like hell and that is where I am at right now. It is a bit silly, really, but it is hard to give up passion projects even when I know it is going to be a lot - they are the things that keep us going.

I spent a few hours getting baby and myself out of the house so my unwell partner could have a rest. We went to Officeworks where I purchased some lucky door prizes for the Professional Learning I am running - two lovely Lamy ballpoint pens, a few notebooks, memo pads, and some sticky notes, and a big packet of Tim Tams. We then went to Woolworths to buy a roll of wrapping paper and our guest speaker some chocolates as a thank you. I managed to get everything wrapped and ready which means next weekend I won't be feeling stressed knowing I *have* to go out to get things. It will all be done.

Almost at the halfway point.

Reflections on Week 3, Term 1, 2020

What is important right now? Remembering to eat so that I don't feel like chocolate every afternoon.

Still waiting on keys. Oh how much joy I feel feel once those cold metal pieces are in my hands... well, probably not. I will likely forget my weeks of difficulties very quickly.

The laptops, not charging, I realised the wrong cord was plugged into the wall meaning that a single laptop was charging instead of the whole bank but then when I went back to check on one which didn't have a light on with the charger plugged in I found that they had stopped charging. Why does everything have to be so difficult?

Massive staff meeting calls for sweets, I am not deliberately trying to make everyone a sweet tooth but I am of the opinion that sweet treats are a good thing sometimes. I hope the small gesture reminds people that I appreciate them, that I am thinking of them.

I have created little staff roll call slips because my brain simply cannot remember who I have asked about various things, they have been useful for the mandatory training certificate collection and organising who needs a staff name badge.

PDPs are required of Head Teachers before we meet with our staff - to ensure everyone is on the same page. I have quite a bit of stuff to collect and finalise before my meeting. It doesn't matter if not all of it is done, really, but I would like it to be done because the urgency to get them done will leave if I do not get things ready prior to the meeting. If something gets put on the back burner it is often where it will remain.

Swimming Carnival this week and I honestly have nothing that I would like to wear to such an occasion. I used to have a baggy green shirt but I cannot find it for the life of me and the only other green thing I have is a shirt with some olive green stripes. Just doesn't feel very festive. I ended up wearing a black dress and a white and green throw over thing. I put so much suncream on but still got burnt but it was a nice day regardless.

Mentor texts

It is sometimes difficult to find great texts to use in the classroom. English teachers use texts all the time - as mentor texts to support students with their writing, as an example of a particular rhetorical device, to determine reading comprehension skills, as a prompt for creative writing, or when putting exams together. I love to have a tapestry of different voices in my classroom and my aim is to ensure this happens more often this year.

This is a list of quality sources:

The Paris Review
A variety of articles and interviews with writers (going all the way back to the 1950s!).

Teen Vogue
Many great articles of varying lengths about current affairs, sustainability, and, of course, some fashion.

The Sydney Morning Herald Summer Reading
Short stories which could be useful in demonstrating a particular way of opening or closing a piece of writing or another technique.

Literary Hub
Pithy articles of varying lengths, as well as poetry.

AF Harrold 
Many poets are kind enough to share some of their work on their websites which gives teachers a chance to read through to see what will appeal to their students. I did a workshop with AF Harrold a few years ago and it was so much fun. He also has a website that focuses on his writing for kids.

Marie Claire
A range of articles of varying lengths. These work well as they are very current and local to Australia. I am on the look out for the current magazine to get a copy of the article, 'Meet the Indigenous Women Fighting for Change.'

Other resources:

Tropfest
Short films can provide as much insight into film techniques and construction as feature length films. Tropfest is a gem. I must admit, I loved when I could get my hands on the DVD with the Sun Herald but times have changed and YouTube is more accessible anyway - especially since laptops no longer come with DVD players.

Writer's Digest
This page contains many useful resources around writing, rather than articles, but I thought I would include it considering the focus on writing in the new HSC English syllabuses.

CPL Journal
Lots of greats in the NSW, Australia teaching world have written for the NSW Teachers' Association Centre for Professional Learning journal. There are so many quality articles to support teachers.

Review Reading #3 'In the Middle, Third Edition - A Lifetime of Learning About Writing, Reading, and Adolescents' - Nancie Atwell

Review Reading #3 In the Middle - Nancie Atwell

ISBN: 978-0-325-02813-2

ISBN-10: 0-325-02813-3

Publisher: Heinemann Publishing

Publication Date: 2015

Stockists

Sample Pages

Here is my third 'Letter-Essay,' this time reflecting on 'In the Middle.'

Dear Reader,

In 2014 I was introduced to Nancie Atwell's work in the way of three photocopied extracts from her 1987 publication ‘In the Middle.’ It seems silly to comment but I had never experienced, in all my university readings and countless books I have sitting on my book shelf about the teaching of English, a plan so simple in its brilliance that it is without replication. I will continue to purchase books and read articles about teaching, literacy, English teaching, and writing instruction, etc. – it just seems to me that Nancie Atwell’s workshop approach provides a place for everything I have learnt to hang from (insert umbrella or coat hanger analogy here!).

I read the extracts from ‘In the Middle’ and then purchased both the 1987 and 1998 editions. I was delighted when only a short time later a third edition hit the shelves (serendipitous or what!?). I was heartened to continue this journey with Atwell. Her philosophy and methods remained at their core the same, but in the 2015 iteration Atwell relaxed some – instead of the ‘nevers’ that populated her workshop model in its earlier stages there was a call for flexibility, a trust of teachers to know when to comment on student writing and when to hold back, encouragement to utilise some of the scripts and scenarios provided in the text as a support but to continue the development of rapport with students and to assist them in working in a more student centred environment.

The teacher is not redundant in the workshop model but is more indispensable than ever. They are the ultimate guide - meeting their students’ needs directly and immediately and it is this aspect that I feel could enhance the current classroom model. Accountability has made all actions ‘transparent’ to a point. It is easy to view the quality of feedback that teachers are providing students on the grading sheets that are returned to students after a task is marked. But, I cannot see or ever really know if any of it means something to a student and the way that tasks are currently completed (task outline provided, student completes task with some support or in isolation, the tasks are handed in and marked which could take from 1-3 weeks, feedback is written by the marking teacher, the task handed back to student with a numerical mark as well as written feedback, the student looks at mark and may look at the comment briefly, students move onto the next task). The next task is of a different nature and the feedback provided on the previous task is no longer available, nor is it relevant, students start the process again, from the beginning, for the next task.

Student growth is possible in the workshop model through immediate feedback. It is, of course not possible to thoroughly read a piece and provide written feedback within a few minutes but it is possible to sit with a student to problem solve an aspect of their writing and set them on a path of experimentation with clarity and focus. Students are accountable for creating their best work, they develop efficacy and independence when composing and ultimately authority as a writer. Written feedback is provided periodically by the class teacher and it is accompanying by a short conference explaining the mark up and comments – time consuming in a regular classroom perhaps, but in workshop it is the core business of the day.

What stands out for me in Atwell’s ‘In the Middle’ is how much value is placed on student writing. A very expansive scope and sequence details what types of texts students study from K-8 so students access a wide variety of genres. Students study exemplar texts, are taught specific skills to support their work in particular genres via explicit instructional chunks – mini-lessons and then, they get down to it, and write. And write. And write. Students are on their own schedules for their composition but are given a bit of a nudge if they aren’t making progress. The teacher acts as a rudder, steering students through difficulty and confusion, answering questions whilst reinforcing protocols around the workshop. Writing is celebrated through students compiling portfolios of their best work to explain to their parents during Parent/Teacher Conferences whilst setting goals for the next semester. Students also contribute to the long running publication, ‘Acorns’ which is a compilation of student writing. This is all supported by, you guessed it, reading workshop.

All editions of ‘In the Middle’ are mammoth, especially the third edition which is absolutely jammed packed full of practical strategies, organisational templates, scripts to inform teacher/student conferences, student writing, and anecdotes. It is a beautiful story of Atwell’s teaching career to this point and the impact she has made upon both her past (including her daughter Anne who now teaches the school) and present students at the Center for Teaching and Learning. The striking honesty, ‘The teaching didn’t come easily either…,’ ‘…my uncertainty about how to about how to talk with kids about drafts of their writing…,’ gives way to poignant reflection such as; ‘freedom of choice does not undercut discipline or rigor,’ ‘I saw them take chances…,’ and ‘I watched them take time, as they wrote and planned their writing outside of school as well as in’ are a testament to change as a difficult but worthwhile journey to take and the continued success of the school and the growth in the students present reinforce what a difference it can make.

Yours,

K

Review Reading #2 'Systems to Transform Your Classroom and School' - Nancie Atwell

Review Reading #2 Systems to Transform Your Classroom and School - Nancie Atwell

ISBN: 978-0-325-04266-4 

ISBN-10: 0-325-04266-7

Publisher: Heinemann Publishing

Publication Date: 2014

Stockists

Sample Pages

Here is my second 'Letter-Essay,' this time reflecting on 'Systems to Transform Your Classroom and School.'

Dear Reader,

About a month ago I finished reading Systems to Transform Your Classroom and School written by Nancie Atwell. I love Atwell's prose and found, again, that the expression and explanations were clear and detailed. The anecdotes add a personal touch and were engaging whilst also being honest and heartwarming. The text provides an overview of key systems that operate effectively at Atwell's school the Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL). As a reader there is a clear image of what each day looks like at CTL and it is easy to see that an encouraging community is created through the routines of Morning Meeting, the established Bill of Rights, and the development of school traditions, all of which underpin the focus of the school. The DVD accompanying the text provided great insight and exemplified all of the processes Atwell explored in Systems. It was really exciting to see how engaged the students were in their learning and to listen to the language used to discuss reading, and writing.

As an English teacher I was especially interested in the breakdown of the Writing, and Reading Workshops and how exactly these are structured. I love that the routine is very specific from K-8 so students know exactly how things will run and they can trust that a decent chunk of time is allocated  in every workshop for them to read or work on their writing. The regularity allows for 'voluminous reading' and writing which really underpins the success of the students at the school.

When perusing the section on Reading Workshop I was surprised to see that Mini-Lessons were utilised at the beginning as they are in Writing Workshop. Students are taught how to choose books by 'interviewing' them, to develop a personalised criteria for abandoning a book they do not like (I LOVE this - how often do kids open up to a page randomly to appear to read instead of finding something they can't stop reading!?), and to write their Letter Essays in response to material they have read. As with Writing Workshop, the Mini-Lessons are provided to establish routines early in the year and from then, when they are needed.

The things I totally loved about Systems to Transform Your Classroom and School are:

• The discussion of writing as a 'slow growth process' that requires the investment of time. 
• To perfect writing skills students should learn and review conventions, fail, succeed, and practise (practise, and practise)!
• The important proviso that it is desire and purpose that lead to genuine self expression.
• Gifts of Writing is a beautiful concept and the thoughtfulness of this gesture, of writing well for someone important, is emblematic of the CTL ethos.

QUOTES AND ANECDOTES:

Systems really breaks down Atwell's approaches and it is an excellent overview of the way the school operates. Each chapter includes relevant research that provides further information or the background to a particular aspect which is great when looking for further reading. The key quote that stood out to me is:

• 'I have a voice as a writer, and this is a worthwhile subject for me to advocate.'

Before you read Systems to Transform Your Classroom and School I suggest that you jump online and order In the Middle: A Lifetime of Learning about Writing, Reading, and Adolescents, it will change the way you think about the teaching of writing and reading.

Yours truly,

K