We have just completed our second unit of study in writer's workshop. Students celebrated their hard work at a publishing party with Mrs. Wrigley's friends this afternoon. Students paired up with each other to read aloud their published stories and enjoy a special snack. Over the last few months, children have been working on telling true stories from their lives. We have been focusing on telling about a moment across many pages and including a beginning, middle,and end. We've looked closely at what makes stories interesting, learning about speech bubbles, character action and character feelings. Most recently, students learned how to make their reading easy to read - writing all the sounds in the word, putting spaces between words, matching pictures and words, and including end punctuation. Students have used tools (checklists, word walls ,letter charts, etc) to help them remember these steps. Over the course of the unit, students looked at ways to make stories more interesting and every day practiced re-reading their stories to make sure they made sense. Story telling voices came out each day as they prepared for their writing. This past week was devoted to choosing one of their drafts and learning how to revise and edit their writing to make it even better. All students felt proud this afternoon to show off their hard work. Stop by the classroom to read your child's newly published writing piece (they're hanging on the wall as you walk in)!
