71: Writing to Learn (1 of 2)

4 Writing to Learn (WTL) Strategies (for more WTL’s go here or here or here)

1. Written Conversations
   • students process material by passing notes to each other about the material
     • wonder if technology like Twitter, Todaysmeet, etc can be used to support this strategy
   • quiet, energetic way to process content
   • Play by play:
     • set times for writing and exchanging notes
     • introduce norms – stay on topic, write the whole time, silent writing
     • work the room to make sure students are on task and to note interesting ideas
     • don’t feel pressured to read every note, believe in the power of unguided writing-to-learn exercises
     • Types of exchanges
       • live – quick, occurs in real time
       • take-away – slower, students have more time to compose notes
     •  Variations:
       • attach reading to large poster
       • have team of 2 or 3 read reading silently and write notes to each other about the reading in the poster margins (use a unique color per student so you can see individual contributions)
2. Write-arounds
   • using passing and writing protocols to facilitate written conversations about content within small and large groups
   • can enable students to expand each other’s knowledge and correct each other’s misconceptions
   • Play by play:
     • arrange students into groups of 3 to 5 (4 is ideal)
     • hand out large pieces of paper
     • introduce norms: silent writing, write the whole time
     • each student start the paper by writing their name or initials at the top of the page
     • instruct students to write all their thoughts related to a topic for a set period of time (1 – 5 min)
     • observe students and instruct them to pass their paper to their right (within their team) after most of the class has written about a quarter of the page
     • students write name or initials on next line of new paper and write a reaction to previous student’s work
     • rotate until original papers return back to their initial writers
     • can do another cycle with a more specific prompt
     • then have spokesperson from each team share highlights in the silent conversation in a whole group conversation
     • Variation (Silent group discussion):
       • students write 2 questions on a paper
       • then instruct students to pass papers in directions that result in all students getting a new paper
       • students then answer 1 of the 2 questions and add a new question
       • pass papers again
       • students then answer 1 of the questions and add a new question
       • repeat for 5 rotations
       • discuss interesting exchanges in whole group or small group discussion
3. Carousel brainstorming:
   • students rotate in teams to discuss, brainstorm and write about several topics (1 per rotation)
   • purposes:
     • introduce new topics (could be a good K/NTK activity)
     • active review activity
   • Play by play:
     • design 3 – 4 questions, headers, or statements and post on posters on walls spread out around the room
     • group students into teams of 3 or 4, each team has it’s own color
     • disperse teams among the poster
     • give a set time for students to discuss the header and write as many related ideas as possible
     • teams rotate to a new poster
     • instruct teams to read over poster first, discuss its contents, and brainstorm only NEW related ideas (no repeat ideas), team members assign a new recorder per rotation
     • students follow instructions and rotate when instructed by teacher
     • teams continue to read, discuss and brainstorm NEW ideas, team members assign a new recorder per rotation
     • teacher can make time durations shorter and shorter as it becomes harder to produce NEW ideas as posters fill up
     • Analyzing brainstorming:
       • when teams return to original poster, they digest entire poster and discuss it – notice what’s new, new connections, new questions, etc  Teams assign a speaker to present key findings on each poster
       • can go on a gallery walk of completed posters and take note of the top 3 ideas in each poster
       • can facilitate a silent gallery walk – after viewing all posters students can complete a WTL that describes their findings
       • after rotations, have teams decide on what topic they’d like to become experts on – have them research the topic and report it to the class at a later time
4. Double – entry journal
   • 2-column way of recording and processing learning
   • left column = notes to summarize information. right column = reaction to notes
   • Examples of column headings for double-entry journals: column 1, column 2
     • computation, explanation for each step
     • problem, solution
     • reasons for, reasons against
     • opinion, proof
     • quote, explanation of importance
     • quote, personal connections
     • quote, discussion questions
     • observations, inferences
     • pros, cons
     • words, images
     • facts, feelings
     • information, values
     • interesting visual, associated thought or feeling
   • Play-by-play
     • decide on headings that enhance learning targets
     • model the process to get students started
     • explain purpose of assignment (ex: evidence of completing reading, basis for an upcoming discussion, etc)
     • work the room – see if students are using the strategy to make deep connections
     • if the connections are superficial, pause activity and model how to make deeper connections
     • uses of notes:
       • basis for discussions
       • collection can be used to review material
     • variation:
       • if double-entry notes occur several times – let them write them on left-side pages and leave partner right-side pages blank; for review, they can fill up the right-side pages with summaries of their notes
       • can be used to help students actively process videos and readings

• Analyze standards and generate learning targets
• Use knowledge of content and students to identify which WTL’s can be used to process information in ways that highlight useful connections
• Develop prompts and tools related to selected WTL’s

• Implement WTL’s.  See ideas above.
• Facilitate follow-up discussions and activities that make use of the WTL’s.

• Have students reflect on WTL’s and try to identify which strategies are the most helpful.  Use their suggestions to build WTL routines that match their preferences.
• For individual WTL’s – give students choice among several strategies that match their preferred modes of communication.

• Writing articles
• Literacy articles
• Assessment articles