Entry 4: a diffilcult blog

  ...what occurred prior to writing my blog...

I had a really difficult time coming up with what I was going to blog about for this entry. After I read Dr. Jone’s comment about making sure to include more reflection and connection to my readings, I felt some anxiety over what I was going to write next. So, I diligently read chapter four over again in Hicks (2009) and paid careful attention to my thinking when reading chapter two and three in Tompkins (2012). Alas, even after doing all this reading I was still bemused as to what it was I should blog about.

SO I considered what writing strategies I knew about that would help me with this writers block. I also turned to Tompkins, chapter two, page 37, and focused on the generating section because I needed some ideas (2012). I used the brainstorming strategy because it was similar to the Card Strategy suggested by Kucer and Rhodes (1986, p. 189). When we used the card strategy in class this past Wednesday, I found it very helpful in not only generating ideas to write about, but it also helped me clarify what I wanted to write about and how to go about organizing my piece.

I spent a few minutes coming up with a list of words and statements pertaining to the chapters in Tompkins, and finally a question emerged that I had asked in the beginning of this class but that I keep coming back to Why do we have kids write? The first answer that popped into my head (unfortunately) is to demonstrate knowledge of something. While I know now that there are multiple other reasons why we should have students write the answer that I initially came up with seems the most automatic/natural? maybe because it was the usual reason that I was always asked to write. So then I began to think about the other reasons why we should have kids write.. and I wonder if most teachers do this? With all the time constraints and prep for standardized tests, do we really give kids the chance to write the way the writing workshop and leaders in the writing field suggest?

 I pondered this question... why do we have kids write... and then, using my brainstorm list as well as reflecting on the chapters I read, I began to organize my thoughts and use the various writing strategies explained by Tompkins to help me construct this piece (2012, p. 34).

Entry 4: Why do we have kids write?

         Why do we have kids write? This is a question that I keep coming back to. Unfortunately in school, all too often writing is used as a tool for assessment, where topics are chosen for the student, void of any intrinsic interest. I don’t remember ever enjoying writing a paper in high school, which is both unfortunate and interesting, because I’ve always produced decent papers. If I had been given the proper guidance however, I think that instead of just trying to get the task of writing over with, I really would have enjoyed the writing process, perhaps creating phenomenal papers! It's interesting to note, that while my papers turn out reasonably well written, I’ve always had a difficult time writing. It takes me a ridiculously long time to write a paper, even this blog, by the time it is complete, will have taken me just over a couple of hours to finish (and that’s with shaving off time because I employed some writing strategies that I do not usually use, namely generating, narrowing and organizing ideas).

       

          In the last year, when I have been assigned papers, I have been given more of a choice in my writing ventures, but even those were slightly limited because the topic had to be relevant to a class or chosen from a suggested selection. Knowing this, I reexamined my blog entry number three. This piece was different. It was unique... but also did not fulfil the requirements for this blog. What happened? I asked myself. I knew what I was supposed to do in the blog, I knew I was supposed to make more connections, but I didn't do that... why? Then I realized… this idea of student choice was the answer. I chose to start that blog entry as a journal, just because I wanted to, because I was intrigued about a genre that I haven't used in such a long time. I was interested in reproducing the mentor texts I saw in class. It was one of the first times ever I got to write for myself (and a real audience) about ANYTHING that I wanted to write about… so I ran with it (isn’t that sad yet beautiful at the same time?). I was excited about it, I was consumed by it. When I left class that Wednesday I couldn’t wait to get back to writing my blog, editing it, and making it look just the way I wanted to.

          Reflecting on my entry three blog, I am able to more fully appreciate, relate to and understand the importance of the writing strategies and traits presented by Tompkins in chapter two and three.  To develop great writers, strategic writers and crafty writers, us teachers need to give students the liberty to write about something meaningful (I see now why Dr. Jones has given us free reign on choosing the topic for our Genre Pieces Project!). With this in mind, I'm able to reach my goal I had set out when beginning this blog... attempting to answer my initial question: Why do we have students write? As I constructed this blog, revised it and reread it (which I did over and over again last night... then stepped away for the evening and came back to this morning) I came to an answer. At least one that I’m content with for the moment for it may be revised as I learn about the writing process… but for now, the reason why we should have students write is to feel that passion I felt during my composition of blog entry three, that need to create and share something awesome with the world! This is the best most organic reason to have students write!

Hicks, T. (2009).  The digital writing workshop.  Portsmouth, NH:  Heinemann.

Kucer, S. B. & Rhodes, L. K. (1986).  Counterpart strategies:  Fine tuning language with  

     language.  The Reading Teacher, 40(2),186-193.

Tompkins, G. E.  (2012).  Teaching writing:  Balancing process and product (6^th ed.). Upper

     Saddle River, NJ:  Merrill.