GRADE LEVEL MINUTES – 6 TH GRADE

March 9, 2005

Bellingham School District

ATTENDEES

Fairhaven: Melanie Frey, Cathy Miller, Leslie Adcock-McInnis, Mary Riley, Helen Cratsenberg Kulshan: Linda Chapman, Wendy Dutcher, Kevin Shrum, Tim Cosgrove Shuksan: Timina Eggert, John Finlay, Jerry Prather, Melissa Cornelsen, Cathy Jo Fisher, Steve Stanage Whatcom: Jan Westermann, Melanie Kirkman HCL: Peggy Taylor

OUTCOMES

Provide consistent, powerful instruction in all classrooms across our district by learning from each other and refining our individual practice

OBJECTIVES

Shared – By sharing experiences with implementing the 6 traits, teachers will refine their practice, the structure, and the management of their own writing program

Alignment – Through a protocol for problem solving issues schools will share strategy for implementation and identify implications for district programs, curriculum and instruction.

NEW LEARNING

The sixth grade District Writing scores were shared with the group. Teachers discussed current instructional practices for 6 Traits Writing to begin thinking about what are the critical elements of a successful writing program. Align in level of instruction with standard and cognitive demand. Integrate writing process with 6 traits.

SHARED

Teachers told about an instructional strategy that they used to support the teaching and learning of the 6 traits, talked about the key instructional elements of the strategy that make it successful with students and shared evidence of success (how do you know this strategy works?). They described how this strategy aligns with the writing process and they answered the question, ‘Are there any special management/conditions that are needed when implementing this strategy'.

ALIGNMENT

Teachers used a protocol to guide a discussion of a current challenge. In school table groups, teachers decided on a question and shared it with the other schools. Next staff asked clarifying questions and discussed possible answers or solutions.

• Special Ed student assignment
• Collaboration time for teams
• Scheduling – Multiple opportunities to write
• Teaching writing across the content
• Using graphic organization planning for support in writing

6 TH GRADE SUGGESTIONS & KEY LEARNINGS

SUGGESTIONS

• More of the same (10) – writing, reading, social studies, sharing, discussions, solutions to real life issues – like we did today!
• Online research focus
• Schedule when more teachers can be here (many missing due to ITBS)
• Writing – common language (2)
• Ways to close the literacy gap with our students
• Empowered discipline: dealing with powerful/difficult kids
• The importance of developing relationships with students
• Free journal write
• Audience role playing
• Rubrics - student created
• Oral language – groups to help clarify voice
• Examples/non-examples
• Less structure, more flexibility

KEY LEARNINGS

• Reinforcements of my teaching
• Ideas from colleagues (3)
• Common needs among colleagues (2)
• Need for kid friendly language
• Sentence fluency and word choice can be focused on together
• Ask students to turn in fewer assignments that are meatier
• Great suggestions for all 6 traits (5)
• Modeling is strong teaching strategy (2)
• Using independent time in a more constructive way
• There are critical elements of a successful writing program (2)
• The importance of reading in writing – writing as a reader
• This was the best so far. We used the TL Cycle. You found what we needed, planned a format and we taught each other.
• Read, read, read/write, write, write
• Get more student buy in and responsibility for reading and writing (2)
• Similar teaching among schools ( 2)