The answer, of course, is "No, you haven't missed a thing!" However, teachers need to think through the issues involved here. (Also, let me say once again as I've often said, I really appreciate teachers who question practices. I don't like to see folks so easily led into something new without total understanding of the why's and how's!)

First of all, it's not necessary to give spelling tests, nor is it really advantageous to give them. However, some teachers at upper and at lower grades are bound and determined to do that. So, I've learned to pick my battles wisely. If they want to test, I tell them to "go to it!" There's no need to let that issue be the deciding factor between implementing and not implementing Four-Blocks! I think teachers need to think, though, about why they're testing and how they're testing. The very best way to determine if students have developed automaticity with these words (that means that they spell and use them without any real conscious effort) is to see the evidence in their writing. However, if teachers want to have a pencil paper test, let them, but caution them that the "real" test is in whether or not the students use these words correctly in their "real" writing.

In helping upper grades teachers to accept the Four-Blocks way of teaching and testing spelling, here are a few pointers:

1 - Ask teachers to think about why they're testing and how they're testing. Is their goal to have students memorize the words for short term and spell them correctly when called out in isolation? Or, is it their goal to have students process these words and use them correctly in their "real" writing? If the answer is as it should be, then they should either watch for the words in the "real" writing samples or, at least, construct tests that simulate that as closely as possible. For example, they might give the students dictation for a test, calling out a paragraph that uses old and new WW words, NTF words, and some of the pattern words they've been studying. Rattle off the dictation quickly enough so that students don't have a lot of thinking time or hunting time. Then look to see if they've processed these words.

2 - Don't get stuck on Word Wall words and NTF words exclusively. If you have Modifying Four Blocks for the Upper Grades (Sigmon, Carson-Dellosa, 2001), you'll find so many other ways to explore words---which is what it's really all about at upper grades. You want students to develop an appreciation for our language and the way it's constructed. You want them to "play" with Latin and Greek base words, for example, to see how knowing those bases can help them figure out so many other words. You'll want them to collect words, to play Riming/Rhyming Relay, to do Word Charades, to make alphabet books based on content area words, and so many other activities to lead them in the direction of word exploration. Move beyond the basics---move beyond memorization and get into exploration. Understanding words and language is a far greater benefit at upper grades than spending countless hours memorizing basic words for a spelling test. (I know you agree!)

3 - Vocabulary words shouldn't be tested in this block and, I feel, shouldn't be tested at all for spelling, only for meanings. The big words we might test or evaluate are those that have meaningful word parts (morphemes---prefixes, bases, suffixes). The purpose of teaching these words is to enable students through their knowledge of these word parts to be able to unlock the meanings of so many more words. The Guided Reading Block is the best place for the other vocabulary study. So, don't spend an inordinate amount of time memorizing big words where meaning is really what counts!

5 - The WW work should be a very brief part of the block for upper grades. These teachers have so much more to accomplish and so little time to do it. Also, if the teachers choose to test, the testing time should be an even briefer part of the day and of the block. There should still be time in that block on testing day to explore words. If testing goes much beyond 5-10 minutes, I think they're wasting time.

The curriculum coordinator's final question is one that articulates the whole purpose of this Working with Words Block. She asks, "How can I move my colleagues' understanding of ‘having' a word wall to that of ‘using' a word wall, and from ‘here are the words for your test on Friday' to actually owning the words and understanding how they work?" She has said it so well!

There are many people around the country, and actually around the world as Four-Blocks is spreading far and wide, who "have" Word Walls and "do" Word Walls---or at least they go through the motions of snapping, clapping, stomping, writing, etc. But, they aren't really "doing Four-Blocks." In Four-Blocks, we enable students to be better spellers, decoders, and to develop a better understanding of how our language works. Mere memorization of words for a test, isn't our objective. Students must store knowledge in their long-term memory and learn when and how to retrieve it. We're after application and transfer of knowledge.

We also must keep our work with Word Walls in proper perspective---it's just a fraction of the Working with Words Block which is a part of the balance of all four approaches to teach students how to communicate well. Let's not get hung-up on the smaller issues, but at the same time, let's try to understand why we're doing what we do. It's all for the good of the students we teach!

Training Opportunities:

If you're writing a grant at this time, I'll be happy to write a letter of support for your grant to promise good training, either by me or by one of the wonderful folks who works along with me through ERG. Email me directly at cmsigmon@aol.com or call 803-799-8024.

Below are seminars that I have coming up in the future. Please know that I have a small group of really excellent folks who work along with me, too. We do site-based work in schools and districts at your request. They did not come from a train-the-trainer program. Their expertise with 4-Blocks evolved over many years of training, teaching and support. For their services, you can simply call 843-539-1213, fax 843-539-1214 or visit ERG's website at www.ergsc.com. We offer various types of staff development: classroom demonstrations, on-site presentations, classroom observations and feedback, and exploring 4-Blocks in more depth, among other offerings.

My seminar presentations:
 

Davenport, IA	February 12	SDR
Des Moines, IA	February 13	SDR
Albuquerque, NM	February 26	SDR
Phoenix, AZ	February 27	SDR
Toledo, OH	March 12	SDR
Indianapolis, IN	March 14	ERG
Dayton, OH	March 15	ERG
Columbus, OH	April 9	SDR (upper grades)
Indianapolis, In	April 10	SDR (upper grades)
Detroit, MI	April 23	SDR (upper grades)
Chicago, IL	April 24	SDR (upper grades)
Charleston, SC	October 5-6, 2002	ERG - (Second annual Balanced Literacy---Block Style ~ Conference and Block Party! Register now!)

For ERG workshops on 4-Blocks and Building Blocks, call 843-539-1213 or go to www.ergsc.com. For SDR workshops, call 800-678-8908 or go to www.SDResources.org or www.ceea.org (CA seminars).

Hope to see you at a workshop soon!

Personal Journal:

I'm on a plane to California right now, my first trip of the new year. My holiday season was a wonderful one, especially so because of the addition of my second grandchild, baby Charles, in December. It's tough getting back on the road and in the air, but I've gotta keep getting the word of 4-Blocks out there!

Today was a little rough for me. My middle child, Beth, is leaving for Seattle on Wednesday, and I had to say "goodbye" today. She wants to experience the great Northwest for a year or two. It's beautiful in that area of our country, and I want her to enjoy it---but not to fall in love with it and not come back home to the South! I wish Beth well in her journey but will miss her immeasurably. She's a special person, as all of my children are to me. By the way, if you need help with 4-Blocks in or near Seattle---I'm your person!!! I'm looking for excuses to see Beth already!

I'm looking forward to seeing some of you in Winston-Salem at the Leadership Workshop this coming weekend. This conference provides a great time to talk about issues that are important to folks supporting Four-Blocks implementation.

Notice, too, that the date for the fall Balanced Literacy Conference and Block Party has been set---October 5-6, 2002, again in Charleston, SC. You won't want to miss it! We had a ball last time! Of all the evaluations collected at the end of last year's conference, every single person said they would come back for another one! That's a great testimony to what happened that weekend! Hope you'll join us for fun, fellowship, and information! Go to www.ergsc.com for more information about it. A limited number of registrations will be accepted.

Hope your new year is off to a great start! See you soon!