Sean T. Griffin
The writing workshop is also an essential part of the new New Haven, 6-8 curriculum. Writing workshop is a way of teaching writing that emphasizes revision based on mini lessons, and revision and is another aspect of my class which, much like the journal writing mentioned above, has its roots in the New Haven teaching community and the Connecticut Writing Project. In order to run the writers' workshop in the classroom, teachers need to be flexible in their instruction as well as trusting in their students. The tight grip we often associate with classroom management a must be loosened a bit when implementing writing workshop in the classroom. The reason for this is the same reason that the writing workshop really works for children; it allows and encourages students to work at their own pace and to progress at a rate that is comfortable for them. Not all students will be on the second draft at the same time because not all of the students will finish their first draft and move on at the same time. The writing workshop can be intimidating for teachers for this very reason. A classroom of twenty five middle school students all working on some different aspect or phase of their writing can look like a class out of control. Some students may be on the computer typing, some may be involved in conversation around peer editing, some may be getting up to gather supplies for another draft, and some may be working in their journal, or conferencing with the teacher. Sounds like chaos, but it doesn't have to be if students are taught early in the year how the writing workshop works.
At the beginning of every writing workshop session I review the basic steps that students will be going through in order to complete a writing task; brainstorming topics is usually first, followed by first draft, peer conference, second draft, teacher conference, and finally a final draft. Students need to be taught how to make their way through these six steps in order for the workshop to run smoothly. And key to a teacher keeping his or her sanity during the writing workshop is turning much of the responsibility of the progression back to the students. Students must understand that they are responsible for keeping track of the writing process that is going on in their workshop. If a teacher is able, early on, to emphasize students being responsible for keeping track of their place in the process, everything will work smoothly during this process.
Having students keep track of their own progress is key to the success of a writing workshop. Last year I implemented a bulletin board on which students could keep track of their own progress as they went through the process. Each student was assigned a popsicle stick to write his or her name on. The stick had a Velcro backing so that the students can move their names across a felt board that is labeled with their class period and the several steps of the writing process. We all begin on brainstorming or seeds, but like a pack of runners in a marathon, the field quickly thins as each writer finds his or her own pace and goes through the steps. Other teachers have used paint stirrers for name labels and cans for the writing steps. Students simply move their paint stirrer along as they make their way through the writing process. Others have used magnets, pencils, and numerous other objects with varied labeled containers. The important thing to do here is set up a system through which students are responsible for monitoring their own progress.
Another key element in writer workshop is the mini lesson. When working on writing workshop, teachers need to prepare short lessons to introduce to students as they make their way through the writing process. Teachers decide what a specific class is weak in and create a mini-lesson for students to focus on. For example if a class is weak in punctuating quotations, a teacher will spend ten to twenty minutes on a lesson on the use of quotations and commas in dialogue. Once students go through the mini lesson, they return to writing workshop. The material from the mini lessons becomes the focus of peer or group editing. This is really a departure from past practice because in the past peer edit meant a student looked at another student's work and corrected everything from punctuation to spelling to format, to dialogue and leads. This practice is unrealistic. Students cannot be expected to be experts on every aspect of editing a paper; instead, the two or three mini lesson topics introduced during the workshop are the focus. Students understand the topic, they have practiced it, and they should be expected to be on target with that topic in this writing workshop. I keep the mini lessons, post them near the felt board and, of course change them with each new writing workshop piece. Students do not get overwhelmed with the material and actually know how to help each other during the peer editing section of their writing.
The writer workshop takes a lot of up front preparation and organization, but when it becomes routine to both teacher and students, the process is extremely rewarding and can make a huge difference in the progress that students make in their writing.