Most of my students are English language learners from low-income families who write daily as part of our writers' workshop program, drafting, revising, discussing, illustrating and ultimately desktop publishing their finished pieces which are bound and displayed in our classroom library.
The program's emphasis is on the writing process.
We brainstorm for writing ideas and discuss how to develop characters and build scenes that support a central conflict. Students experiment with literary devices like figurative language, flashback, and shifts in point of view. When they decide on a piece from their notebooks they would like to publish, they typically spend a few weeks revising ,a process which can mean pruning unwieldy sentences, cutting or adding entire scenes or characters, and presenting multiple drafts to the class for feedback and critique.
Students explore a variety of genres (from memoir to sci-fi and beyond), and mini-lessons on grammar, mechanics, style, and craft are tucked into the seams of the workshop, on an as-needed basis. Often, we look closely at a mentor author's approach to a writing challenge the class is facing then students apply these approaches as revision strategies to their own works in progress
My Project
I leave the form the works take up to each student author. Not surprisingly, many choose to publish their pieces as comic books or mini-graphic novels. This genre is the most popular reading material in my classroom.
My reluctant readers devour the Loud Boy comics and were enthralled when I read Brian Selznick's award-winning graphic novels to the class.
In an effort to ride this wave of enthusiasm, last year I introduced my class to ComicLife, software the kids use to create comic books from their finished pieces of writing. This creative opportunity has not only motivated my reluctant writers but also enriched my curriculum in so many other ways. "Translating" a piece of writing from text-only to words and images is a real brain workout that challenges students to look for spots in their writing they can cut and swap with visuals; honing this sort of facility with multiple ways of seeing is key to the development of critical thinking skills applicable to any discipline or context. We need two laptops, ComicLife software which students will use on the laptops, and credit at Ka-Blam Digital Printing to cover printing costs.
With ComicLife, students can add graphs to their scientific writing, and the fun fonts, colors and layouts appeal to a kid aesthetic.
The software has transformed science reports into issues of our class comic book series, "It's Science!" Students can insert digital photos or scanned drawings of themselves into their projects, put their explanations in talking bubbles--and SHAZAM!--they are published scientists and comic superstars!
Your generosity can help fuel the creative momentum.
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