Write Now! 2012 A little often: changing the creative writing culture in secondary classrooms.

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Write Now! 2012 A little often: changing the creative writing culture in secondary classrooms. Raymond Soltysek [email protected] 0141 950 3920

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Write Now! 2012 A little often: changing the creative writing culture in secondary classrooms. Raymond Soltysek [email protected] 0141 950 3920. How writers work. - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

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Page 1: Write Now! 2012 A little often: changing the creative writing culture in secondary classrooms.

Write Now! 2012

A little often: changing the creative writing culture in secondary classrooms.

Raymond [email protected] 950 3920

Page 2: Write Now! 2012 A little often: changing the creative writing culture in secondary classrooms.

How writers work

• “It took me a long time to realise that writing is not just about sitting at a word processor or a pad of paper and getting things down. Writing is everything: reading, going to the library, researching, taking photos and even [!] thinking – thinking is an inherent and very important part of the writing process.” – Celia Rees

• “I don’t agree with the emphasis that teachers lay on drafting. I never write drafts – I write final versions. I might write a dozen final versions of the same story, but with each one I set out to write it as a final version. If you set out to write a draft you’ll take it less seriously than you should.” – Philip Pullman

• “All writers get asked where we get out ideas from. No writer can ever come up with a reasonable, convincing answer. You just don’t know – an idea bobs into your head, just like that.” – Jacqueline Wilson

Page 3: Write Now! 2012 A little often: changing the creative writing culture in secondary classrooms.

The Writer’s process

• Bending and Stretching

• Exploring

• Finding Form

• Assessing and Developing

• Publishing

Adapted from Jack Heffron, “The Writer’s Idea Book”

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The Unit approach

• Can• Impose the stimulus• Impose the genre• Impose the structure• Limit thinking / writing time• Limit writing opportunities

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• 14 pupils• Seen as “reluctant writers”• Standard Grade Writing 3 average• Sitting Intermediate 2 National

Qualifications• Intervention begun October 2012

One target class

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In Standard Grade, how often did you write imaginatively?

1 2 3 40

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2

3

4

5

6

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8

9

10

Daily Weekly Monthly Termly

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How many imaginative pieces of writing (creative and personal) did you do over S3 and S4?

1 2 3 40

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2

3

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5

6

7

1-4 5-10 10-15 Over 15

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How often did you write independently outwith class?

Often Occasionally Never1 2 3

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

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How often did you choose your own topics?

1 2 30

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4

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10

12

14

Often Occasionally Never

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• How did you go abut writing?Were there any specific strategies you used?

• I just thought about it and planned it.• Plan. Drafting.• Plotted ideas and used them throughout.• Plot ideas down.• Write out plans / spider diagrams.• Used a question sheet to help e through each paragraph.

Are young writers encouraged to be flexible about how they go about writing? Are they comfortable with a range of strategies?

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• What would have helped you write more?

• Not having to move at the same pace as the rest of the class and go ahead in my own time.

• Working at my own pace.• Getting an essay to write at home to become more

automatic.• Working with someone and sharing ideas; sitting next to a

friend and listening to music.

Are young writers able to write as and when they want? Do they have control of the writing environment?

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• What factors prevented you writing as successfully as you could?

“Not writing about what I am interested in. Too much analysis, too few imaginative pieces. Mentality of writing was different from mine.”

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http://www.ltscotland.org.uk/nationalqualifications/resources/writingskills/index.asp

• Daily blogging• Daily journaling• Daily stretching exercises• Daily stimulus exercises• Weekly stimulus exercises• Support for conferencing• Support for peer and self assessment• Support for recording and reflection • Author videos to support skills development

Education Scotland Resource: developing a writing habit