I visit Mrs. McEachran’s class today, where they continue with the tricky transition from narrative to essay. They are still in the infant stages with this process, but the writers in her class are talented and committed, and I know it is just a matter of time before things start to click and they are producing thought provoking personal essays.
Mrs. McEachran has created a chart to capture the transitional prompts that were introduced last week. It is posted in the front of the room with other charts from other writing lessons. Today, she encourages the students to use the prompts on this chart to stimulate their thinking as they work to make their big leap. The chart includes very simple phrases such as:
· This makes me realize . . .
· The surprising thing about this . . .
· Furthermore. . .
· To add on . . .
· On the other hand. . .
Charts like these are a simple, but powerfully important, part of the writing workshop. When we commit ideas to charts and post them in our classrooms we are helping students to sort through all of our instruction and mine the best nuggets. We are giving them an anchor, an artifact that they can rely on and return to, time and again.
Today, Mrs. McEachran points them directly to the chart, saying, “Remember these prompts we used last week? See if there is one here that helps you figure out how you could extend your ideas.” Tomorrow, my guess is that some writers will remember how helpful these prompts are, and refer to it on their own. Eventually, they may not need it.
But the best thing about an anchor chart is knowing it is there when you need it - providing a path back to an important piece of thinking from the past.
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