Here's a little reflection on what I did with technology to make things go at least a little smoother:
Sra. Spanglish Rides Again: Rowdy Writers' Workshop (Now with Badges!): Writers' Workshop has gone through several incarnations this semester of Creative Writing alone. We started off in a circle with ha...I really wish workshop could be something we did with the whole class regularly, but I need some tips on how to effectively manage it. The norms and protocols that we established as a class did help, but they did not keep a group of freshmen on task. I have some thoughts on what might help, and I'd like some input from more experienced Creative Writing profesores.
- Should I have daily workshops instead of limiting them to Mondays and Fridays?
- Should I limit the workshopped pieces to one per session rather than 2 or 3 in a row?
- Should I put a page limit on how long a workshopped piece can be?
- Should I have designated roles for each person in the class?
- Should I restructure as a fish bowl exercise with half of the class observing while half interact?
- Should there be some kind of assignment or form for commenters attached to the workshop session?
- Should I cut back the number of workshops each author gets to 1 per grading period or even 2 per semester, rather than 2 per grading period?
Any other suggestions you have for how to run a successful writers' workshop would be much appreciated!
Wow! Great questions. I really like what you did with the workshop and how you allowed it to evolve to better suit the needs of your students. I think only you can answer your own questions because you know how your class is structured and what works and doesn't work for yourself. I'll tell you what I do, though, and maybe some of my ideas will be useful to you (and I might steal some of your ideas too!).
ReplyDelete* I have workshops when drafts are due. Depending on the length of the assignment, it may be a whole class workshop or a small group. Sometimes I allow students to pick when it is a group, but often I will divide them up with the intention of getting a variety of viewpoints into one group. Right now, we're doing poetry; on due dates, students read their poems to the class and must give specific feedback at least three times to receive a 100 for the day. Students are getting better at giving constructive feedback as opposed to "I liked it" or "It was kind of boring."
* I limit workshops by time rather than number. It can be overwhelming to have an entire class period devoted to workshop. I usually do a warm-up activity, any workshops for the day, and end with time for students to write and/or revise.
* I haven't generally used page limits, but if students' work is excessively long, maybe have them pick a section within that they really want to focus on for the workshop.
* I don't use designated roles, although that is just a matter of personal preference.
* I haven't used the fishbowl, but that could be interesting because it might force some of the less outspoken students to participate more actively.
* I've tried using an assignment (i.e. fill out this form to show you have given feedback) but my students have generally responded negatively to it.
* I tend to do workshops on most of the major assignments we do--students probably workshop 4-6 assignments in the nonfiction and poetry units and 2-3 in the fiction and scriptwriting units.
:) Happy writing!
Mr. B