Crafty: Writing with Interest

In the majority of my observations, writing has largely taken a position of secondary concern to reading. However, this may be due to the specific classes I have been observing, especially considering that I have been exploring different classes in different school districts. It also may relate to when students have been writing in class, it was largely a silent activity that did not lend much to observation. But, a few classes stick out with regard to writing and our class readings.

In one 7^th-grade observation, I observed as students presented research-based Google slideshows on various historical epidemics. This class fell directly in line with the multi-modal and technologically enhanced writing that the standards favor. After reading the book Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson, each student signed up for a specific instance of epidemic to research independently and develop a thorough slide show to present to the class. The teacher of this class held the assumption that students were fully capable of researching a focused topic and completing a presentation that answered a structured line of questioning. And, her assumption was marvelously confirmed as students presented refined and highly entertaining digital texts. The seamless integration of new-media into the practice of writing sparked creative interest in the product each student created.

As laid out in our text Getting to the Core of English Language Arts, this lesson activity embraced and utilized the idea of exploration and discovery in writing (63). That exploration and discovery was put into practice not only by the research necessary to assemble the information from digital resources, but it also had the students explore and discover a digital form of textual expression. Further, this is a great step towards preparing students to craft for an audience. The Christenbury text states, “Teachers also need to provide students with outside audiences for their work, audiences that may give the students more of a feeling that their correct final draft writing matters” (269). And, while this is certainly true and more practical than ever with digital media, starting by presenting thorough and entertaining research-based projects to classmates allows a scaffold to a wider, perhaps more critical audience.

Another observation involved a writing exercise that fell flat in a 9^th grade class. In a previous class, the students were instructed to form groups and rewrite the famous balcony scene from Romeo & Juliet. Done well, this could be a great exercise in turning Shakespeare’s complex writing and language into a more modern textual expression, reflecting analysis and exercise of register and code-shifting or –merging as per Christenbury (272). Unfortunately, the student groups did not show much enthusiasm for this exercise, but I honestly don’t understand why. Perhaps they did not receive clear enough instructions or motivation; or maybe they were not given enough freedom to play. It was clear that most groups relied on one person to do the work just to get it over with, and some groups hardly contemporized the scene at all, copying it almost verbatim. I feel that if this was set up to encourage fun and play, the students could translate the scene into interesting and contemporary expression.

Regarding the instruction of grammar, I feel both scenarios mentioned above could be used to check, review, and instruct grammar with each student. Christenbury points us to the standards, “The language standards include the essential ‘rules’ of standard written and spoken English, but they also approach language as a matter of craft and informed choice among alternatives” (259). Having students consider their audience, be it for a formal presentation or an informal interpretation of a classic work, allows them to consider usage alongside effective expression.