180 Days to Successful Writers: Lessons to Prepare Your Students for Standardized Assessments and for Life

by Karen Donohue, Nanda N. Reddy

Overview

Enhance your students′ writing skills and boost their scores on standardized writing tests!

In today′s high-stakes environment, standardized test scores not only gauge student performance, but are also linked to a school′s status and the funding it receives. This helpful resource provides educators with a classroom-tested writing curriculum that has proven to boost student scores on standardized writing tests while helping them develop skills for lifelong writing success.

The authors offer structured, day-to-day lesson plans linked to national standards; easy-to-use writing tools; and carefully crafted, unscripted lessons that cover a scope and follow a sequence that aims for student success. This curriculum is designed to help you:

• Become a confident writing teacher
• Prepare your students for all practical applications of writing
• Provide students with the analytical tools and skills they need to succeed on standardized writing tests
• Accommodate students′ strengths and weaknesses
• Create confident readers and writers of your most reluctant students

Your students need more than writing prompts and grammar lessons to ensure they will have lifelong writing success. Finally--a way for teachers to provide quality writing instruction that allows them to meet testing demands on time and with confidence!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781483361840
Publisher:	SAGE Publications
Publication date:	12/08/2005
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	296
File size:	11 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Since earning her MEd from the University of Florida in 2000, Karen Donohue has worked to develop and implement a writing curriculum for elementary students. She has experience with Early Intervention programs with students in first-, third- and fourth-grade classrooms in both Reddick Collier Elementary in Reddick, Florida and Pine Forest Elementary in Marietta, Georgia. With student writing becoming a benchmark for students as young as first grade, Karen has researched, developed, and taught Staff Development courses for K-5 teachers. Her workshops titled "Writing to a Prompt (Grades K-5)," "Write Way to Success (Grade 3-5)," and "Writer’s Workshop – Getting Started" have been implemented schoolwide at Pine Forest Elementary where she was a Grade 1 Team Leader. She is currently a Grade 1 Team Leader at Lockheed Elementary in Marietta, Georgia, where she is a member of the International Reading Association.

Nanda Reddy earned her MEd from the University of Florida in 1999 and subsequently worked as a fourth grade teacher in Marion County, Florida. At her school, she served as a team leader and worked to develop a writing curriculum to accommodate the pressures of standardized tests and student writing needs. Nanda taught the curriculum at the school, and for that, she was honored as Rookie Teacher of the Year. She has workshopped this material under the titles "Teaching Reluctant Writers" and "Teaching Kids to Write" in both Florida and Reno, Nevada, where she now resides. Nanda, a member of the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE), currently works full time raising her family and writing fiction. She hopes to continue conducting writing workshops for teachers.

Table of Contents

Preface
Acknowledgments
About the Authors
1. No-Brainers and Bosses: Laying the Foundation
Curriculum Overview
Goals
Instruction Framework
Preparing to Teach
Week 1 Lesson Plans (Focus: Pretests and Prompt Differentiation)
2. Pickle Sandwiches and TCUPSS: Beginning Expository Writing
Week 2 Lesson Plans (Focus: The Expository Writing Process)
3. Rainbow Words and Awe-Inspiring Adjectives: Enhancing Expository
Week 3 Lesson Plans (Focus: Author’s Voice)
Week 3 Lesson Plans (Focus: Author’s Voice)
Week 5 Lesson Plans (Focus: Pace and Independence)
4. It all Started With a Tier Cake: Directing Narrative Structure
Week 6 Lesson Plans (Focus: Narrative Story Structure)
5. Ask for Likely Similes and Vivacious Verbs: Enhancing Narratives
Week 7 Lesson Plans (Focus: Syntax)
Week 8 Lesson Plans (Focus: Strong Verbs)
Week 9 Lesson Plans (Focus: Similes)
6. Dressing Things Up: Independent Writing
Week 10 Lesson Plans (Focus: Metaphors)
Week 11 Lesson Plans (Focus: Quotations)
Week 12 Lesson Plans (Focus: Sensory Details and Skeleton Plans)
Week 13 Lesson Plans (Focus: Hooks and Correcting Slang)
Week 14 Lesson Plans (Focus: Timed Writing)
Week 15 Lesson Plans (Focus: Anecdotes)
7. The Improvement Process: Diagnosing and Fixing Problems
Week 16 Lesson Plans (Focus: Grammar and Using a Rubric)
Week 17 Lesson Plans (Focus: Clarifying Problems)
Week 18 Lesson Plans (Focus: Elaboration)
Week 19 Lesson Plans (Focus: Conferencing and Self Reflection)
Week 20 Lesson Plans (Focus: Organization)
Week 21 Lesson Plans (Focus: Planning Difficult Prompts)
Week 22 Lesson Plans (Focus: Common Grammar Problems)
Week 23 Lesson Plans (Focus: Style, Voice, and Elaboration)
8. Timers and Deadlines: Preparing for a Test
Week 24 Lesson Plans (Focus: Reviewing the Basics)
Week 25 Lesson Plans (Focus: Writing Papers from Given Plans)
Week 26 Lesson Plans (Focus: Cooperative Writing)
Week 27 Lesson Plans (Focus: Studying for a Test)
9. Beyond Tests and Essays: Applying Expository Writing Knowledge
An Overview of the Projects
Adapting the Original Framework
Planning the Remaining School Year
Expository-Related Projects
Project #1: Newspaper Writing
Introducing Newspaper Journalism
Editorials, Part One
Editorials, Part Two
Interviews and Feature Articles, Part One
Interviews and Feature Articles, Part Two
Breaking News Articles
A Mini School Newspaper
Project #2: Subject Reports
Introducing Subject Reports
Research
Writing Subject Reports
Project #3: List Poetry
Personal List Poem
Contrasting Lists Poem
Object List Poem
10. Beyond Tests and Stories: Applying Narrative Writing Knowledge
Narrative-Related Projects
Project #1: Autobiography
First Few Years
Family, Home, School, and the Future
Project #2: Chapter Books
Character Sketches
From Outline to Story Draft
Project #3: Plays
Introducing Plays and Sketches
Three-Act Plays (Group Lesson)
Three-Act Plays (Independent Practice)
Project #4: Narrative Poetry
One Sentence Narrative Poems
Humorous Story Poems
Real Life Ballads
11. Writing Outside the Lines: Advanced Lessons
Using This Chapter
Advanced Narrative Writing
Point of View: Who Is Telling the Story?
Tense: Once Upon a Time in the Future
Characterization, Part One: Nose Pickers and Football Quarterbacks
Characterization, Part Two: What Color Are Your Socks?
Setting: It was a Dark and Stormy Night
Hooks: Beyond Bangs
Plot and Pace: And Then What?
Plot and Pace: And Then What?
Symbols and Themes: What’s Your Drift?
Putting it all Together: The Complete Package!
Advanced Expository Writing
Essay Topics: My Own Prompts
Non-Prompted Writing: Organized Free Writing
Knowledge-Based Writing: I’m the Expert – Listen to Me
Contemplations: What’s Your Theory?
12. Going School-Wide: Ideas to Create a Spiraling Curriculum
Specific Writing Goals
Adapting the Curriculum
Kindergarten
The Graphic Organizer
Sample Lessons
Suggested writing Topics
First Grade
The Graphic Organizer
The Graphic Organizer
Suggested Writing Topics
Second Grade
The Graphic Organizer
Sample Lessons
Suggested Writing Topics
Resources
Index

Editorial Reviews

"Addressing the needs of students who are missing basic literacy tools while also challenging students whose abilities are more developed, this book provides a compendium of teaching ideas for students to write for multiple purposes and in multiple genres, . . . (with) innovative avenues for teachers to work collaboratively with each other in shaping a writing program that makes sense for their own classrooms. "

Jane S. Townsend

"The book is eminently practical and written with the kind of detail and clarity that allows every reader to move toward greater success in the teaching of writing...even under today's high pressure circumstances. "

Paul S. George

"Donohue and Reddy . . . have provided a tested, skill-oriented program to alleviate the stress associated with teaching writing, and empower teachers with the confidence and stucture necessary for success. "

Tiffany Della Vedova

"I was most impressed with the extension lessons. As a teacher of gifted students, I am constantly questing well designed writing projects that encompass multiple skills and styles. (These) lessons, without modification, (are) valuable learning devices. "

Sue Gonyou

"This book demystifies the writing process with a research-based, systematic and methodical approach. It gives teachers well planned, thorough lessons that . . . will guide students and give them the critical stepping stones to become proficient, confident writers in all genres.

Kathleen E. Huntley

"180 Days to Successful Writers is just the kind of instructional resource that teachers have been waiting for! This book provides simple, practical advice for developing an effective writing program in elementary classrooms . . . (and) a framework of step-by-step daily instruction. "

Devonne Harper

"I am so excited to have this program in written form. It has made such a difference in my students' writing abilities. "

Elizabeth Thomas

"The strategies introduced in this book have worked exceedingly well with my own students. Teachers will marvel at how their students will grow as confident, successful writers when taking this systematic approach. "

Susan Kuhn

"This book provides a clear day-by-day instructional plan, including materials, objectives, step-by-step lesson plans, references for students, graphic organizers, prompts, and writing samples. "

Sonya Campbell

"The structured lesson plan format, the use of graphic organizers, and the incorporation of the writing process are key strategies that should be utilized to promote higher levels of writing. With all of the current research on the importance of writing across the curriculum, this book is a 'must have' for educators everywhere. "

Dr. Kelley Castlin

"Teachers who lack a clearly articulated instructional plan for teaching writing skills will appreciate this year's worth of lessons presented in a logical, linear format."

Curriculum Connections

"Donohue and Reddy . . . have provided a tested, skill-oriented program to alleviate the stress associated with teaching writing, and empower teachers with the confidence and stucture necessary for success."

Tiffany DellaVedova

"The structured lesson plan format, the use of graphic organizers, and the incorporation of the writing process are key strategies that should be utilized to promote higher levels of writing. With all of the current research on the importance of writing across the curriculum, this book is a 'must have' for educators everywhere. "

Doctor - Kelley Castlin