Chapter 7 Response

In my classroom I have always focused on producing high quality writing in content first.  Then, once my students were producing high quality writing in content I would shift my focus to spelling and conventions.  After I shifted my focus I usually found that my students were so focused on spelling and conventions that they were no longer focused on their quality of content in their writing.  I wondered what the best way was to teach my students so that they would produce both high quality writing in content and use proper spelling and conventions.  While reading Chapter 7 in Regie Routman’s “Writing Essentials” I found an approach I would like to try because I think that it would be successful.  I believe that I need to model my thinking about revision more and be sure that my students know why conventions matter.  Also, I really liked the section about teaching spelling well.  I teach and have the students use and practice different spelling patterns and etc.  I really liked the idea of highlighting these spelling patterns on my word wall for students to see and help them spell or sound out other words.



Photo from http://oliviawahl.com/wordstudy.aspx