6 Traits Chatboard – Teachers.Net

(10)

view previous comments

Amy Blackmore On 1/13/09, Peter wrote: The Collins Writing program is a crock, a way of dumbing down writing instruction so that teachers who don't want to work that hard can still pretend to be doing writing instruction.

Hi, I am responding to this particular comment about Collins being only for teachers who don't want to work hard. I found to be a pre...See MoreOn 1/13/09, Peter wrote: The Collins Writing program is a crock, a way of dumbing down writing instruction so that teachers who don't want to work that hard can still pretend to be doing writing instruction.

Hi, I am responding to this particular comment about Collins being only for teachers who don't want to work hard. I found to be a pretty harsh statement considering that any smart teacher will use a program and tweak it to make it work for them (i.e. dropping what doesn't work and keeping what does work). I was introduced to Collins in 2001 at a PD conference my supervisor asked me to attend. Shortly after, I left NJ and started teaching HS English in South Los Angeles. I primarily taught 9th grade low level classes.

Collins (Types 1 and 2) came in very handy on a day to day basis in class. However, once I got in to Types 3,4, and 5 it took quite a bit of work to just get them in to a routine. I have to say that reading each other's work out loud in partners worked so very well for my students. We, of course, had the major rule that any time someone stumbled over another writer's sentences, they both had to stop and look at what the problem was for the reader. If they needed help, they called me over to see about syntax issues, etc. Kids really took pride in those double-spaced handwritten drafts. While much of Collins is, as someone said, not a truly original set of ideas for those of us who have taught writing over the years, it gave me direction, focus and hope for many students including the students with the lowest skills to achieve in some way. I never found that I dumbed down my essay topics or my requirements for volume. I found that I was finding a middle ground between quantity and quality.

I don't think Collins is for everyone and I'm not sure that entire schools/departments should blindly adopt it. Yet, I had to speak up to the notion that only lazy teachers use Collins in their classrooms. That's just simply absurd. I tend to see myself more as a teacher willing to experiment and try out new approaches in her classroom and eventually create some hybrid of my go-to methods and any new ones that work.

Peter, might I ask what grade level you teach and the socioeconomic status of your district? While I certainly don't think Collins is much use for a high four year college-bound district, I think the FCA function of it can really take a writer with no skills and give him/her some skills/knowledge of the writing discipline. There's something to be said for that! I'm not insinuating that you only find perfect writers in a high achieving district but you get my drift.

Now, I have never heard of the 6 Traits system. I'll have to research that.

Nov 7, 2009

Sarah eter -

I have never heard of 6 traits either, but I do not teach English. I am a Spanish teacher who learned the Collins method while working at an all boys K-9 school. The boys there appreciated the clarity of the Collins method, and because the school had embraced it as a whole, they knew what the expectations would be from year to year...See More

Nov 3, 2011

Meeting Room available for 6 Traits chat, Fridays 8pmE

by Link inside

Oct 3, 2008

Teachers are invited to use the Teachers.Net Meeting Room to gather for informal peer support and discussion of the 6 Traits Writing process on Fridays 8 - 9 pm Eastern Time.

The Kindergarten Writing Centre

by Cfor

Oct 15, 2008

How often do you change your writing centre? Before changing the centre what did the kinders do with the centre when you observed them? Do you change the materials or do you keep the same materials at the writing centre all year? Where do you get your writing supplies from? Do you ask parents for donations? Should the writing centre be structured o...See More

rosetta thompson On 10/15/08, Cfor wrote: > How often do you change your writing centre? Before > changing the centre what did the kinders do with the > centre when you observed them? Do you change the materials > or do you keep the same materials at the writing centre > all year? Where do you get your writing supplies from? Do > you ask parents f...See More

Nov 28, 2008

Large 6 Trait link site

by al

Oct 15, 2008

I have put together the best resources I could find about 6 Traits and posted them here:

[link removed]

also use the site search engine to find additional free resources on most every topic including assessment and the law.

diagramming sentences

by peg

Oct 22, 2008

it is great for helping LD students learn the parts of speech and how they work in a sentence. I promise you there is relevance in diagramming or I wouldn't do it.

a parent My child struggled with parts of speech until taught how to diagram sentences. It adds a visual component to something that is typically taught in a non-visual way. It made it more concrete.

I'm a fan of diagramming, too!

On 10/22/08, peg wrote: > it is great for helping LD students learn the parts of > speech and how they w...See More

Oct 22, 2008

Guided Reading in Gr. 8

by Hans Schreirer

Oct 27, 2008

I want to hear from others teaching comprehension strategies to Gr. 8's. I have a class of gifted students who read adult level novels. They are at or above grade level. Teaching them and having them practice comprehension strategies has become just busy work. Any comments?

Nyana Sims On 10/27/08, Hans Schreirer wrote: > I want to hear from others teaching comprehension strategies > to Gr. 8's. I have a class of gifted students who read adult > level novels. They are at or above grade level. Teaching > them and having them practice comprehension strategies has > become just busy work. Any comments? Have you tried ...See More

Nov 25, 2008

How do you teach vivid verbs and specific nouns?

by 4th grade

Nov 4, 2008

I need some ideas on where to start.

(6)

view previous comments

EllenG59 I'm a big believer in multiple intelligences, so I have my 4th graders act out the verbs so they can actually feel, see, and hear the differences between ran and raced, yelled and bellowed, is and exists, etc. The kids love this. As for nouns, I found the game "Password" or "Password Junion" (also Catch phrase) to be great tools to help the student...See More

Jul 3, 2009

Ms. Sur you can put verbs on a card and have students find their pairs. Once they find their pairs, they can come up with more vivid verbs.

For Example Card 1- said Card 2- exclaimed Card 3- jump Card 4- hurdle

Mix up the cards and hand them out. Students will look for their synonym pairs and figure out which word is boring and which wo...See More

Dec 15, 2009

Smartboard Ideas Lesson

by Tanya =^..^=

Nov 4, 2008

Hi,

I am trying to come up with a smartboard lesson for the IDEAS trait in the 6+1 Traits of Writing. Has anyone done one they would be willing to share? It is for Grade 3 but I will take anything!

Thanks!

Tanya

mm Have you tried writingfix.com

On 11/04/08, Tanya =^..^= wrote: > Hi, > > I am trying to come up with a smartboard lesson for the > IDEAS trait in the 6+1 Traits of Writing. Has anyone done > one they would be willing to share? It is for Grade 3 but > I will take anything! > > Thanks! > > Tanya

Apr 28, 2009

Discouraged about 4th gr. writing benchmark scores

by momof2

Nov 13, 2008

I am extremely discourged and am looking for any and all help. My students just took their writing benchmark test today, and the composition scores were absolutely disappointing. I have been using a program that evidently is not working.

Looks like I am going to have to start at the beginning, but I have no idea where to begin. Plus, is i...See More

(4)

view previous comments

momof2 On 11/13/08, question wrote: > On 11/13/08, momof2 wrote: >> I am extremely discourged and am looking for any and all >> help. My students just took their writing benchmark test >> today, and the composition scores were absolutely >> disappointing. I have been using a program that evidently >> is not working. >&g...See MoreOn 11/13/08, question wrote: > On 11/13/08, momof2 wrote: >> I am extremely discourged and am looking for any and all >> help. My students just took their writing benchmark test >> today, and the composition scores were absolutely >> disappointing. I have been using a program that evidently >> is not working. >> >> Looks like I am going to have to start at the beginning, >> but I have no idea where to begin. Plus, is it too late? >> >> FYI: I have never taught 4th grade before. > > What did you think of their writing just prior to taking the > test? How did it look to you? Kids can freeze on a test or > not understand the question. Did these results take you by > surprise? > > >> This is where I have failed. I can't really give you an answer about what I thought about their writing prior to today because they really haven't written a full-blown composition until now.

I have been using a program by a Texas teacher who taught 4th grade for 12 years and has increased many schools scores by his program. This program focuses the first 8 weeks on understanding how to prewrite and doing it effectively then working on each individual paragraph (intro, body, concl) along with incorporating ideas, voice, organization, etc. Week 9 focuses on putting a whole composition together. Because I only have 50 min. to 1 hr. to teach writing, I have yet to get to week 9. So I guess all in all, these results were to be expected.

In all honesty, I can see how this program can work. The gentleman who developed it taught in the southern tip of Texas where the majority of his students were ESL and econ. disad. students. Many of the schools who are using his program have gone from 4 fours to 24 fours in one year. But for some reason, I just can't figure out why this program isn't working for me and my students. Am I too anxious? I just don't want to try anything new with them since they have been doing his program for 13 weeks now.

I used the TAKS scoring rubric when I scored their compositions.

Is there any way to fix this problem? Can I still get them where they need to be before the test?

The district I am in has an exemplarary status, and I don't want to be the one who ruins it for the district.

I am extremely stressed to the point it is affecting me physically and mentally. I want writing to be fun and enjoyable for my students, but I don't know how when I don't feel like they have used what I have taught them thus far.

>> >> >> >>

Nov 13, 2008

Sherman Don't feel bad. In my School 2 years ago only 5 kids passed out of 5 classrooms of 35 students. Are your kids language learners....... then if so be sure they Describe the Scene in detail including sound and sight, smell, etc. , Describe what others are doing and saying, Tell what they are doing and saying, What they are thinking, Use onomonopia, (...See More

Jan 23, 2009