Inservice
The following represents a sample of interdisciplinary inservice demonstrations, designed by SCWP Teacher-Consultants, and adaptable for all grade levels. More inservice demonstration descriptions are available upon request.
Language Arts
"How Can Visual Arts and Music Encourage and Support Reluctant Writers?"
Presenter: Misty Colgrove, Language Arts, La
Research has proven that the use of visual arts and music can benefit struggling and low-achieving students across the disciplines and grade levels. Through consideration of multiple learning styles, this demonstration provides innovative ways to address prewriting and planning and presents metacognitive strategies for reaching students at their current levels.
"Have Pen, Will Read: Writing Across the Curriculum to Advance Students' Understanding of Text"
Presenter: Juli Green Woodman,
Easily applied strategies that will help all students make the vital connection between reading and writing for comprehension. Offering students choices through multigenre writing and an introduction to the R.A.F.T.S. model (Role, Audience, Focus, Topic). These strategies are easily adaptable for all disciplines and grade levels and will move students toward higher order thinking skills.
"Helping Storytellers Become Story Writers"
Presenter: Tiffany Marmolejo, 1st and 2nd grade, Avondale Elementary School
This demonstration discusses how to inspire creative ideas from reluctant writers in the K-12 classroom through collaborative exercises and assessment strategies.
"Revisiting Revision"
Presenter: Nancy Oswald, 5th Grade,
Practical and meaningful strategies to move students from seeing revision as merely "cleaning up" a paper to a powerful technique that may be used to strengthen writing and maximize audience appeal. By creating a "classroom of questioners," adding detail through "snapshots and thoughtshots,"and exploring the concept of "exploding the moment," this demonstration discusses how to engage students in the effectiveness of revision.
"Writing to Learn Through Authentic Writing Opportunities"
Presenter: Connie Prewitt, 5th Grade,
Authentic writing opportunities help to inspire excitement and foster engagement in young, developing writers. This demonstration emphasizes the differences between "learning to write" and "writing to learn" and discusses ways to provide your students with authentic writing models and opportunities that show them how writing is relevant to their lives beyond the classroom walls.
Mathematics
"Why Integrate Writing into the Mathematics Classroom?"
Presenter: Michelle Gray, Math Specialist,
Inspired by a need to reach English Language Learners, this demonstration makes a strong case for writing as an authentic tool for teaching in all disciplines. Various approaches from academic writing to creative writing are demonstrated as means that may be adapted for use in all classrooms.
"Necessary Writing"
Presenter: Bret Orton, Mathematics,
This demonstration discusses the need for reading and writing in the mathematics curriculum and shares standards-based strategies and assignments that can be easily implemented into both writing and math curriculums.
Science
"Writing Strategies for the Science Classroom"
Presenter: Brian Davis, Science,
Writing serves a number of different purposes in the science classroom from brainstorming to problem solving to explanation to reporting. This demonstration looks at ways to engage students in writing in the science classroom while using writing to deepen understanding and inspire critical thinking.
"Key Words in the Science Lab: Creating Consistent Communication Across Disciplines"
Presenter: Janae Passalaqua, Science and Italian,
This demonstration discusses the necessity of incorporating writing into a science curriculum and demonstrates how the vocabulary found within a science curriculum is applicable across disciplines and may be used to reinforce the vocabulary skills necessary for success on standardized tests.
Special Education
"Write without Writing"
Presenter: Patrice McGowan, Special Education,
Dysgraphia is defined as an impairment of the ability to write and is usually caused by brain dysfunction or disease. When a student is limited by a disability that physically interferes with writing, what options are available to a classroom teacher? Recommendations and suggestions for appropriate modifications, accommodations, and expectations are examined that will benefit all students.
Technology/Business/Marketing
"Writing in a Business Class"
Presenter: Mel Otero, Business/Marketing,
This demonstration discusses the use of multimedia resources and multigenre writing in developing marketing and advertising awareness and how to implement these strategies and reinforce social consciousness in various classroom settings.
World Languages
"Strategies to Stimulate, Motivate, and Encourage Creative Writing"
Presenter: Lora Perea, Spanish,
Reach students with different learning styles and stimulate their creativity and engagement in the writing process by using music, art, noise clips, and various media. While developed in a foreign language classroom, these strategies are applicable to any classroom across disciplines and grade levels. Includes suggestions for clever, effective, and often inexpensive classroom materials.
"Writing in the Second Language Classroom"
Presenter:
This demonstration discusses the challenges facing second language learners and the use of collaborative writing activities to reinforce and challenge their communicative skills.