Oregon Writing Project

Position Paper

By

Rene J. Cobb

My time at the Oregon Writing Project was some of the most valuable I have ever spent. I entered the program with a limited knowledge base of the writing process and how to apply it in classrooms. As well, my own underdeveloped writing skills were a barrier to overcome. The wealth of knowledge presented, individualized feedback given and the activity exercises in which I participated fulfilled my every expectation for gaining skills in the teaching of writing and my own writing growth. I now have a clearer picture of how writing is actually encouraged, generated, structured, revised and evaluated. Specific examples of helpful strategies and concepts I will use in my current teaching position will be discussed in this paper.

Pre-writing activities are especially important to the success of any writing. Demonstrations by experienced teachers provided me with many useful ideas. Class discussions, story-telling, art projects, research techniques, silent thinking time, list generation activities, small group and partner exercises and using visual cues such as graphic organizers, photographs and detailed pictures were all presented with great success. Pre-writing opportunities assist in focusing ideas, tapping into a writer's prior knowledge and providing teachers with useful information that can be used to teach more meaningfully to student strengths and weaknesses. Applied in a special education class, these activities will benefit students.

Particularly useful is the talk-write-share method designed by Vince and Patty Wixon, master public school teachers, from Ashland, Oregon. In this case, the pre-writing activity is talking. In partners, we were asked to talk about an early school experience. Following the telling of the story, a written draft is completed by both partners. In fact, the storyteller can dictate sentences to the listener partner, the storyteller can do all the writing or both can share the actual writing. The story remains the storyteller's but the partners assist one another in remembering details and providing suggestions. This method can help with a writer's development of a natural and authentic voice in writing. Significantly, speaking, writing, listening and collaborative skills are built for participating students. It is also an advantage to gain immediate feedback from peers during the activity. I plan on using this method in my special education classes at the high school level.

Art projects and visual cues are especially effective during the pre-writing stage. One teacher presented a method of this after we had developed two 10-item lists (best and worst memories). She had us fold a piece of paper into six equal sections labeling each section differently including exposition (setting and characters), rising action, climax, falling action, resolution and thoughts. Pictures, key words and dialogue are placed in the sections. The results are shared in small group story-telling and picture presentation before a rough draft is even attempted.

The actual writing of sentences on a piece of paper can be difficult for some. A student may have ideas that they can discuss or produce art picturing their idea but the generation of words into sentences may be blocked. The concept of a rough draft or sloppy copy may ease a student's reluctance to get started. Ideas for getting students writing include: providing suggested sentences for opening a story, dictating the story to a scribe, using structured overviews, taking advantage of computers which some students find more engaging, free writing and journal writing, ignoring spelling and mechanical errors, student picked topics of high interest, real life writing opportunities such as postcards, shared group stories, short bursts of writing and the use of positive and encouraging feedback. One exercise, I found helpful for writing poetry was presented by Ingrid Wendt. After generating a class list of words with common vowel sounds, we were assigned to add our words in a format Wendt demonstrated. Happily, we all produced a poem from this painless method.

Revision is another area of writing that is challenging but necessary to teach. One teacher's presentation included writing a short piece and passing the rough draft to another. Directions involved circling the best sentence that captures the attention of the reader. The reader is then directed to write another paragraph using that precise sentence. It was an enlightening experience in getting immediate positive feedback and demonstrating how paragraphs can be rewritten. Revision checklists are also valuable tools for rewriting. They can be used as a self-check, peer checks or teacher directed revisions.

All in all, the Oregon Writing Project has considerably enhanced my professional development in the areas of writing instruction and lesson development, speaking and presentation, English content, technology and my own writing scope and growth. Invaluable was the guidance of Nat Teich and the experienced teachers who shared their expertise.