Digital Writing Practicum -- 2009/10

     I've had the privelege to work with a student afterschool a few days a week, so I've been able to take him further with YWP than my other kids.  I taught him how to create a podcast on audacity, and then how to upload it into the site.  He is now making a podcast which will teach the rest of the community how to create a podcast.  His peers were really impressed with his trial podcastin, and are now jumping at the bit to get started themselves.  The challenge that lies ahead is providing enough microphones so that all of my students can podcast. 

I was really inspired in our last class by the teachers who podcasts stories for their young readers to listen and respond to. What a great idea. So, I quickly, and quite easily, surprisingly, created a differentiated poetry podcast assignment  (ooooo-aaaahhhh). Some kids were assigned the poem "Birches" by Robert Frost and some were assigned "The Walrus and the Carpenter" by Lewis Carol. Packets for analysis were prepared for both poems, but here's the best part: I asked our science teacher to make a podcast of "Birches", and the assistant principal read the "Walrus".  First thing both groups needed to do was to listen to the poems being read aloud. They loved hearing their science teacher reading poetry!!!

Using the YWP site with our students this year radically changed our teaching of writing.  Once we got comfortable with the set up of the website, we felt we were off and running.  It was immediately satisfying to see all of the students' writing in one place and know that they could see each others right away.  That is probably the biggest change in how we look at writing in the classroom and the whole idea of immediate audience.  Getting used to giving comments and feedback on writing digitally was a bit difficult to get used to, but we soon loved the idea of having a record of what we'd told the students there on the website and tracking their revisions was really helpful.

I can't believe I'm saying this, but I wish the year wouldn't end! I have so many ideas, for next year, I guess.

So the final class happened -- and we had a cute little class of six -- (I have to say I was disappointed not to be able to connect in person with the rest of the class...but, more chocolate for us!)

So this is what I shared at our final class in terms of what  I've been doing with my third and fourth graders.

I recently completely my education relicensure portfolio.  It wasn't nearly as intmidating as I heard it may be.   Reflecting on the last seven years helped me to pinpoint my successes as a teacher.  Yes, my challenges as well--organization being one of those.  The YWP, however, has been an overwhelmingly positive influence on my teaching.  In my teaching reflection, I wrote, "  There have been two resources that have inspired me more than any others; they are the National Writing Project and the Young Writers Project."

Wait! Is it already the end of the year? I'm just finally figuring things out.  Now, I'm feeling ready to begin. 

I do not have a final TA DAH project in mind.  It probably would have been great to record the visit of the American Legion National Commander's visit to our school and add it as a podcast.  Unfortunately, that is hindsight.  Our days for this year are numbered and our schedule is packed.  Perhaps, and I am thinking as I write, we could down load the pictures from our WWII Intergration Day during which the students witnessed the Presenting of the Colors, the Prisoner of War/Missing in Action Table Ceremony, etc, and met with members from the armed forces from WWII vets to active duty women.  Maybe I could incorporate these pictures into the social studies teacher's unit on the Civil War and use the visual to inspire some writing.  Is it possible they could