ERRR #089. Karen Harris on Teaching Writing (SRSD)
Apr 3, 2024
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Regents Professor Karen Harris shares insights from over 50 years of refining the SRSD method for teaching writing. Discussion includes the impact of SRSD on student writing quality, explicit instruction challenges, integrating storytelling techniques, using mnemonic devices for reader engagement, enhancing writing skills through rocket projects, and the future of AI-generated writing prompts.
SRSD emphasizes six stages of instruction for teaching writing, focusing on modeling, memorization, scaffolding, and independence.
Integrating SRSD and Writing Revolution methods enhances writing proficiency with comprehensive genre strategies and sentence construction focus.
Selecting relevant SRSD chapters, aligning with state standards, and collaborating are essential for successful implementation of SRSD.
Reflection, seeking feedback, professional development, and adapting to student needs are key for effective SRSD teaching.
Combining revising and editing strategies, utilizing free resources, and addressing student beliefs can improve writing outcomes.
Deep dives
Overview of SRSD Instructional Stages and Time Investment
SRSD focuses on six stages of instruction, beginning with developing background knowledge and discussions about strategies, modeling the strategies, memorizing them, supporting students through scaffolding, and finally reaching independent performance. The time investment needed for SRSD implementation varies based on grade levels and complexity of strategies. In lower grades, 25 minutes, three to four times a week is common, while middle and high school may require 30-45 minutes sessions. The overall goal is to align SRSD instruction with state standards and offer continuous support tailored to student needs.
Integration of SRSD and Writing Revolution Programs
SRSD and the Writing Revolution each bring unique strengths to writing instruction. While SRSD emphasizes comprehensive genre writing strategies and student ownership of skills, the Writing Revolution focuses on sentence construction and structure. Integrating both approaches can enhance writing proficiency, especially when combined with effective paragraphing, logic, and organization instruction. Aligning these methods can offer a balanced and engaging writing curriculum across grade levels.
Adapting SRSD for Narrative Writing Instruction
A passionate teacher interested in applying SRSD can start by selecting relevant chapters like teaching narrative writing from SRSD resources. Constructing lesson plans based on SRSD principles such as explicit strategy instruction, modeling, memorization, scaffolding, and promoting student independence is crucial. Ensuring alignment with state standards and collaborating with colleagues for comprehensive writing development is essential for successful SRSD implementation.
Reflection and Continuous Improvement in SRSD Implementation
Engaging in reflection after implementing SRSD lesson plans, reviewing student progress, and seeking feedback from colleagues can help refine instructional strategies. Continuous improvement through professional development, collaboration with peers, and exploring additional SRSD resources can enhance writing instruction effectiveness and student outcomes. Embracing a growth mindset and adaptability to student needs are key for sustained success with SRSD.
Introduction and Recap of Seaspace
The lesson begins with a discussion of cspace to help students write better stories. The teacher models the importance of picking ideas and organizing them using cspace elements like characters, setting, problem, action, conclusion, and emotions. Students are then prompted to reflect on their previous stories and identify these elements.
Visualizing Story Parts
Students are directed to visually mark and highlight story elements like characters, setting, problem, action, conclusion, and emotions in their own stories. The teacher models shading a rocket graph sheet according to the identified story parts, encouraging students to track their progress over time.
Power Strategy Application
The teacher introduces the Power strategy (Pick your idea, Organize your notes, Write and stay right, Say more) to aid in writing a story. The class collectively plans a story using Power, focusing on elements like character, setting, problem, action, conclusion, and emotions.
Peer Evaluation and Feedback
Students engage in peer revision by offering constructive feedback on each other's stories. The teacher emphasizes positive feedback before suggesting areas for improvement, encouraging students to help each other enhance their narratives. The lesson highlights the importance of thorough evaluation and collaborative revision processes.
The Importance of Combining Revising and Editing Strategies
Combining revising and editing strategies is crucial in the writing process. Through recursive writing, incorporating editing while writing can enhance the quality of the text. Strategies like those from Think SRSD offer valuable free resources and materials to guide students in improving their writing. Practice-based professional development where teachers collaborate and engage in feedback sessions can significantly impact student writing outcomes.
Addressing Challenges in Writing Instruction for Students
Addressing challenges such as students' negative beliefs about their writing abilities remains a critical aspect in writing instruction. Tools like Self-Regulated Strategy Development (SRSD) can help boost student writing performance. Utilizing tiered support systems including whole class, tier two, and one-on-one tutoring can provide targeted assistance to students with diverse needs. Equitable access to writing instruction, particularly for marginalized students, is essential for fostering writing proficiency and self-confidence.
Regents Professor Karen Harris shares insights from over 50 years of writing instruction and refining the Self Regulated Strategy Development (SRSD) method of teaching writing.
Host Ollie Lovell applies what he's learnt from reading Karen's book to share a demo lesson of teaching using the SRSD approach, and Karen provides valuable feedback!
Full show notes with all resources at www.ollielovell.com/karenharris
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