Lucy has once again challenged me to push myself further than I thought I could go. I call her Lucy because I feel add much add I've mentored with get through texts,I feel I know her.
This year I feel that my writing program has become more balanced between fiction and non-fiction as we work to do Lucy Calkin's First grade yearlong curriculum.
This year we decided to try realistic fiction. I was so apprehensive! I wasn't sure how to go about it because this unit isn't as scripted as the others and because I wasn't sure how first graders could transition from small moment writing. Honestly, it went smoother than expected. Students were able to easily transition.
I started by reading several realistic fiction texts, including Freckle-faced Strawberry by Julianne Moore. It is a very relatable story as it talks about a young girl who tries to rid he rself of her freckles through several means. Eventually, she learns to love herself for who she is. The kids loved the story and used it as a springboard to write their success stories of overcoming bullies in their lives.
Coupled with the story of Stand Tall Molly Lou Melon kids begin to see how two authors handle the same bully kind of situation.
What I love about this unit the most is that it assists kids in working to create solutions to their own real life problems! They learn so much from their peers. I took awhile to post this because I wanted to leave you samples of what they've done, but alas there was some trouble with the camera. I do hope you will join me later to see what first graders can do!
Two pieces of advice that would most assist you is to make sure you define what realistic ficiton in and remind students that the stories can come from their own lives. Parents can easily assist in generating topics if you send a letter home prior to the unit. And the second most important thing is the paper. Students will write more if there's more paper. We used four page booklets that had room to draw a picture on top. We don't use handwriting paper as, that is a different skill, and we want the worry of getting letters perfect to get in the way of content. That's what revising and editing are for!
I can't wait to try this again next year and share all that I've learned. For now, I hope you decide to take a chance and see what happens. I KNOW you will be pleasantly surprised!
Please share your tips and tricks and successes!
:)
This year I feel that my writing program has become more balanced between fiction and non-fiction as we work to do Lucy Calkin's First grade yearlong curriculum.
This year we decided to try realistic fiction. I was so apprehensive! I wasn't sure how to go about it because this unit isn't as scripted as the others and because I wasn't sure how first graders could transition from small moment writing. Honestly, it went smoother than expected. Students were able to easily transition.
I started by reading several realistic fiction texts, including Freckle-faced Strawberry by Julianne Moore. It is a very relatable story as it talks about a young girl who tries to rid he rself of her freckles through several means. Eventually, she learns to love herself for who she is. The kids loved the story and used it as a springboard to write their success stories of overcoming bullies in their lives.
Coupled with the story of Stand Tall Molly Lou Melon kids begin to see how two authors handle the same bully kind of situation.
What I love about this unit the most is that it assists kids in working to create solutions to their own real life problems! They learn so much from their peers. I took awhile to post this because I wanted to leave you samples of what they've done, but alas there was some trouble with the camera. I do hope you will join me later to see what first graders can do!
Two pieces of advice that would most assist you is to make sure you define what realistic ficiton in and remind students that the stories can come from their own lives. Parents can easily assist in generating topics if you send a letter home prior to the unit. And the second most important thing is the paper. Students will write more if there's more paper. We used four page booklets that had room to draw a picture on top. We don't use handwriting paper as, that is a different skill, and we want the worry of getting letters perfect to get in the way of content. That's what revising and editing are for!
I can't wait to try this again next year and share all that I've learned. For now, I hope you decide to take a chance and see what happens. I KNOW you will be pleasantly surprised!
Please share your tips and tricks and successes!
:)
