This Week

So, we have been back for two whole days now (from our 6 snow-day extravaganza... we are now up to 12) and can I just say that I am tired?  We have PLC's every week, which I am certain that many of you all do, maybe even more than that. 

Today, we read an article about poverty.  Our school currently has a 67% free/reduced lunch population and that I'm sure is higher because many of the students that need to be receiving free lunches aren't registered for it...  How do you all take the Common Core standards (which, in my opinion are at exemplary levels) and the vocabulary that comes along with it and ensure your students that may be from a lower socioeconomic family are achieving mastery?

Just curious.

Happy blogging,

Emily

Data Measures

Pre-Assessment
The first data form that I am utilizing for my Action Research process is a pre-assessment.  My students chose a piece of writing and I scored it with the rubric (this is attached as another post, as I was unable to upload a document).  Pre-assessments are not out of the ordinary for my writing classroom, as I always use these to determine where my instruction needs to go.  However, the scoring rubric that students are using is different from the ones that we typically use, as those are often directly related to the three modes of writing (narrative, informative and argumentative/opinion) within the Common Core Standards.

Post-Lesson Interviews
Because the Six Traits includes specially designed lesson directly aligned with student needs, students were grouped into focus groups.  These groups were composed based up student pre-assessment scores, much like flexible grouping.  The interviews will be conducted after the lesson and the questions are listed below:

1. What does good writing look like to you?
2. What are your strengths and weaknesses when it comes to writing?
3. Do you feel this particular lesson has helped you in any way?  (Be honest and explain).
4. How could you apply this lesson/trait into your other modes of writing?  For instance, how could you use this for opinion/argumentative, narrative, or informative writing?  Explain.

Collecting Student Work Samples
Student work samples will be collected throughout the research process, specifically, after three Trait aligned lessons.  These will involve the students applying the Trait knowledge they gained (or did not gain) from the instructional lessons.  Furthermore, students will be required to assess themselves, using the rubric above (the same one I'll use for scoring) to determine their awareness as a writer.  Please know that these pieces won't be lengthy, as students will need to complete them in a class setting (about an hour), and I don't want to torture them!

Appraising Effectiveness with Post Assessment
This will be given at the culmination of the research collection process to determine growth (or losses).  Scores will be compared with pre-assessments.  Furthermore, these scores will also determine common themes amongst the student samples as well.  After completing the test, students will be required to write a short reflection on how they changed (if they did) as a writer throughout the process.

I am totally unsure that I'm doing this correctly.  So any feedback is welcome girls.

Happy blogging,

Emily

 

Six Traits Scoring Rubric for 5th Grade

A Little Help Here

So I am struggling with these data collection components... Here are the ones that I plan to use:

• Pre-assessment
• Survey
• Field Notes/Observations 
• Graded student samples (I'm thinking weekly)
• Post-assessment

Do these seem to be adequate?  The overflow of information from the Marshall document and the Gathering Data in the Field document is overwhelming me somewhat so I am not sure I am on the right track at all...

Help girls!

Emily

Bring on Spring..Please!

So, I am first and foremost all for the safety of our kiddos and my colleagues (and myself) when it comes to being safe in this winter weather, but we are now on our tenth snow day!  It is not even February yet!  This is very irritating, as I have so much to teach my kids, and plenty of data to collect for my VERY important research project.

I have a very sweet retired teacher that comes in weekly to volunteer with a group of my students during RTI time and she informed me that there were years (amongst her 30+ years of teaching) where they missed 20+ days of school.  Once, they returned one day after Christmas break and then didn't set foot in school until February.  She basically told me to relax because there is absolutely nothing I can do about it.

This is much easier said than done.

Happy blogging girls,

Emily

Frustration Reflection

Today, I am extremely frustrated at the fact that we have yet another snow-day!! I realize we need to be safe and I am thankful that I did not have to worry about getting my kids home safely in this wintry mess, but at the same time, I am concerned about collecting my data (and doing it correclty), as well as ensuring my students are not only prepared for their spring state wide assessment, but also sixth grade.

Any suggestions on better time management?  I feel like I get through an instructional day and ask myself what I've done!

Happy blogging,

Emily

Initial Reflection

As I prepare to collect an insurmountable amount of data, I have to admit that the phrase "in over your head" keeps flashing into my mind.  I am excited to determine the effectiveness of the Six Traits, however, I am, at the same time, terrified that I am about to overwhelm myself even more during one of the busiest parts of the school year.  State Testing is just down the road and the pressure is even greater for myself and my students to perform well.  Though it frustrates me to no end that the sole basis of our school's effectiveness is placed on one week out of the school year, I still have to face the fact that I am held accountable.  When those test scores come back, they will look at me.

So right now, I am feeling overwhelmed.  I am curious how everyone else is feeling.

Happy blogging,

Emily

Resources

Good morning all!

Here is the Northwest Educational Research Laboratory's home webpage.  The links on this page provide some research done using the Six Traits Writing model.

http://educationnorthwest.org/traits/research

Happy blogging all,

Emily

Background Information

I have been teaching writing for approximately four years now and I've noticed a trend.  With the establishment and maintenance of Response to Intervention time within school schedules, focus (in my school at least) has been placed on under achieving students...which makes sense, right?

After two years of intervention scheduling and many trial and error periods, I feel my school and grade level has the RTI (Response to Intervention) instruction together. 

In my personal endeavors, I have succeeded with focusing on under achieving students, but I have also forgotten about my higher achieving students. 

My classes are flexibly grouped, and it did not take me long to realize how much my higher group struggled with writing in general.  Of course, a few students stood out as natural-born writers.  To put this into perspective, the majority of my group's MAP scores were approximately 10-20+ points above the average fifth grader, yet, when I scored their writing pieces, that same majority scored an "L" (otherwise known as a limited understanding of the standard/skill). 

So my question evolved into, "Why are my higher students barely scoring an Apprentice on their writing assessments?"

My district recently adopted the Six Traits Model of Writing guide book by Ruth Culham.  There are many other supplemental resources available aligned with the Six Traits, but Ruth Culham and her research team at the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory created the Six Traits based upon prior research regarding what good writing looks like.   Because my district adopted this resource, and because of my frustrations and findings with my higher achieving group, I proposed that I determine the overall effectiveness of the Six Traits Writing Model when implemented with my high achieving group of students.

So, please join me on this journey to determine the effectiveness of the Six Traits of Writing when used with higher achieving students!

Happy blogging,

Emily

Welcome!

Welcome to my journey through Action Research! 

I believe that all students can be successful through social, emotional, and academic guidance. 

Thank you for deciding to share this process with me!

Emily