Entry #8

I would like to bless and address a passage that Jenna wrote in Entry #6: 


"In these elementary classrooms I very rarely see students being exposed to different writing genres, especially during "Daily 5" time which is a popular reading instruction program used in the districts I work in.  Each day, I see students drawing pictures about something that happened over the weekend or in their life recently, then adding a few sentences about that picture.  Before this class, I had not thought of the possibility of introducing different genres to students.  I am sure the thought was somewhere in the back of my mind, but it has really become a focus of mine now.  I hope to read texts of different genres to my students, explore the texts and how they can write in that genre.  Eventually moving to independent practice or the application stage where they can write in different genres during any available writing time.  I have developed a stong belief that students need to be shown a variety of genres.  If we allow students, or even force them, to write consistently in one genre throughout their schooling, they are undoubtedly going to become bored with it, even as adults we have the same tendency."


I could not agree with Jenna more! I too have had similar thoughts while taking this class and seeing what actually goes on in today's classrooms. I think that writing instruction has improved some by being included in the students daily routine with the "Daily 5," but there is still a lot that is missing. I do not think that it is enough to just have kids write everyday and call it "finished." I definitely see what Jenna is saying about most students just composing a picture and a brief personal narrative about their weekend. I have seen the same thing and I wonder do these students actually understand what they are doing? It's hard because as a sub you only see bits and pieces of what they are doing throughout the year so its difficult not to judge the entire classroom on just one day. However, at the same time I think that one day can also be very telling because if the students are really independent and understand the writing process and various genres then it should/ would be very apparent.


Generally speaking, it seems that some teachers might think that writing during the daily five and then continuing to develop one of their short pieces during writer's workshop is basically what students need to know about the writing process. They may or may not add minilessons, but is this enough? I think that this sounds very boring, especially if students are doing this all year. After this class, I cannot possibly agree with this practice. I cannot really say that I know the full curriculum of any teacher's writing workshop, but I do sense that something is lacking. I feel that with the knowledge that I have learned from this class I am dedicated to serving as a representative and advocate for instruction in multiple genres. I want my students (even little ones) to be well aware that there are different genres, what they are and how to read/write them. I agree with Jenna that it should be a gradual process that is carried out throughout the school year until they are comfortable and confident enough to independently compose written pieces in a genre or genres of their choice. I fully support the concept of multigenre projects and I think that this is what all teachers need to strive for in our classrooms. I think a multigenre project should be the culmination of writing workshop, which should include elements of the digital writing workshop as well. 


I understand what Jenna says when she explains that she did not really think about teaching genres when teaching writing. I believe this happens to a lot of teachers because in undergrad we were taught how to teach the writing process specifically, not the writing genres. Without this class I feel like I would have been missing out on imperative information that is necessary to become an outstanding teacher. I was lucky enough to have worked with a fifth grade teacher who really stressed all of the genres, but without this experience I don't know if I would have even known to specifically teach each genre. I wonder why the reading/writing genres are not emphasized during undergrad? This class has changed my whole philosophy when it comes to teaching writing and I believe every future educator should have the opportunity for this same experience. 


I also like Jenna's point about not only teaching students to write in a variety of genres, but exposing them to many genres through reading, with the goal always being to gain a deeper understanding of each genre. As we know, "Tom Romano (2000) explains that each genre offers ways of learning and understanding that the others do not" (Tompkins, p. 182). Although I have already referred to this quote in a previous post I keep coming back to it because I think it really speaks to the reason why we must teach students about many genres. I have found myself learning new key components of each genre as we continue to dissect them and as a result, I have a better understanding of each genre. I believe exposure to reading and writing in various genres would work in the same beneficial fashion with our own students. 


Sometimes I question some of the instructional decisions that current teachers are making in language arts because I see them doing certain things that could easily be transformed into more meaningful activities. Although this frustrates me, I try to remind myself that right now I am really just an observer on the outside. Classroom teachers are under so much pressure and it is coming from all different directions. I have begun to realize that many instructional practices that I am seeing are not always the teacher's first choice. So many instructional programs "force" teachers to teach in a certain way whether they agree with it or not. I find this utterly saddening because it seems that teaching as lost a certain aspect of creativity that is truly what I thrive on. However, I do not think it is completely lost. I think we just have to work hard to incorporate our own creative practices, while still abiding to the pressures/instructional guidelines that are expected. I refuse to accept the reality of teaching in today's world as an excuse to just follow the rules. Yet, I will admit it still bothers me that there is such a mismatch between a lot of what we learn in higher education and what is actually happening in schools today. 


With that being said, I hope to continue to expand my knowledge of the digital writing process and genres in order to construct a writer's workshop in my own classroom that truly mirrors the research that we have read and discussed throughout this semester. I think that writer's workshop is one of the few subjects that still allows for a great deal of teacher creativity and I plan on taking full advantage of it in my future classroom. 


Jenna, thank you for allowing me to address your entry and for aiding in my reflection on making connections between my personal teaching experiences and what we are learning about in class!!