There have been so many lessons I have learned throughout the year since taking this course on writing. One thing I continue to tell myself, though, is that it’s always important to learn new methods, which then motivate you to become better in whatever you’re doing, and in our case, writing. Having observed from many teachers in middle school so far, I have had the pleasure to ask them a lot of questions, and I have been thankful for their advice. I will be observing high school in the fall, a time that will, no doubt, be different, as kids will most likely arrive back in the classrooms to learn, but doing so under many different conditions, I’d assume, that we have never seen before. It’ll be a different time for everybody, but I look forward to the things I have learned and will learn going forward.
Question 1
The first question I’d have to ask middle and high school teachers is how they convince their students that writing is important, not just in writing, but across all content areas and disciplines. After observing in middle school classrooms last spring, I saw so many students, when told to begin writing in their notebooks, sit there with no drive or motivation to put anything on the page. I sat there carefully jotting notes down in my notebook as my eyes wandered around the room, waiting for the teacher(s) to notice and then head over there to give them a nudge. Convincing young students that writing benefits you as much as anything else after school is tough because they’re young and don’t realize it yet.
Question 2
Do you incorporate enough ‘authentic writing’ in your classroom? A lot of teachers in middle school and high school enforce curriculum’s that revolve around test preparation, whether it be in-classroom testing or state testing. Not enough time goes into preparing students to write for authentic audiences and voices. Why do we think a lot of students scoff at the idea of writing? Starting them at a young age is the best way to train them so that when they get to high school, they already have a clear understanding of how to write across different disciplines and content areas for various audiences. Learning how to write to specific audiences will help you, say, for example, write a future police report, movie review, sports event recap, even a mathematical report. Writing is necessary for all disciplines, so teaching them the correct and proper way to write is imperative to their success and development.
So, as I finish up my final blog in Professor Lindblom’s WRT 392 class, I have learned tons of new exercises and motivating tactics that I’m excited to use when I observe high school in the fall, and eventually, student teaching in the spring. I have learned many lessons I will carry with me for many years to come, and I want to thank him for introducing me to many of them, whether it be in his book Continuing the Journey 2 or in class.
Writers Uncensored 