Graphic Organizers for Problem-Solution Essay

Assignment # 2 - Minilesson

Assignment#2_minilesson_JungNH

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Tompkins, Chapter 3 - Writing Strategies and Skills

The comparision of capable and novice writers on page 56 of the textbook let me know an important clue for writing instruction: The most significant defference between the capable and novice writers depends on their strategies use.
Tompkins states " The position in this book is that teachers have the responsibility to teach children how to write, and part of that responsibilty is teaching children the strategies and skills that capable writers use. Although it is true that children learn many things inductively through meaningful literacy ecperiences, instruction is important." (Tompkins, 2008) I agree to this opinion. Most of people can just write. But there is a gap between being able to just write and knowing how to organize some information or ideas, put them together, and revise it wee and efficiently. They are totally different. So teachers should help students learn the processes, strategies, and skills for writing instruction.

Tompkins, Chapter 2 - Writing Workshop

Tompkins states " No matter which way teachers use writing workshop, its great benefit is that children become familiar with the ebb and flow of the writing process and experience the exhilaration that all authors feel as they publish their writing and share it with readers." (Tompkins, 2008) Teachers can provide students with opportunities to think about something by themselves, to write about what they have thought considering the proper writing process, and to learn how to express what they wrote effectively and efficiently through the writing workshop. And there are 4 components of writing workshop: writing, sharing, minilessons, and reading aloud to children.
With these 4 components, students can organize what they have thought, share it with others, and get some feedback on it.

Tompkins, Chapter 1 - Teaching Children to Write

In a writing class, a teacher should provide specific processes so that students can learn what should they do in each process. Tompkin said, "The writing process is a way of looking at writing instruction in which the emphasis is shifted from children's finished products to what think and do as they write. (Tompkins, 2008) And chapter 1 gave me the clear 5 writing processes ; Prewriting, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing. With thses clear processes, students can learn how to form the structures, what to consider when writing efficiently and effectively.
With these process-based appraoch a teacher can provide students with opportunities to think what they do in each process as Brown noted, "The process approach is an attempt to take advantage of the nature of the written code (unlike conversation, it can be planned and given an unlimited number of revisions before its release) to give students a chance to think as they write. Another way of putting it is that writing is indeed a thinking process." (Brown, 2006)


Response to Tae Hyun Kim

Tae Hyn Kim said, "As teachers, we are expected to do the leading and supporting role for children to express certain ideas and feelings they want to write and share with the audience. But teachers shouldn't do everything out of worry for the students rather we need to focus on how to have them lead themselves in a self-motivated and self-monitoring process." I agree with him at the point of view that teachers should not only do the leading role bt also help students lead themselves at the same time.




References

Brown H. Douglas. (2006). Teaching by Principles: An Interactive Approach to Language Pedagogy (3rd ed.). White Plains, NY : Longman.

Tompkins, Gail E. (2008). Teaching Writing : Balancing Process and Product. Upper Saddle River, NJ : Pearson. p 6.

Hello 545~!!

I know it's been quite late. Now I'm starting 545 class.

I graduated from Dankook graduate school of education.
I got both Master's degree in English education and teacher's license there.

I have been working at a middle school as an English teacher since 2009. I’m in charge of 1st and 2nd grade students. So my target teaching level is 1-3 grade of middle school.
I'm not a regular teacher. Someday I want to be a regular teacher. (If one want to be a regular teacher, the one should pass a national regular teacher certification examination. And only those who got teacher’s license can apply for the exam in Korea.)

For my dream, I have many things to learn. I believe this course will be helpful for my dream.