Teachers at the Ripon Workshop
The teachers who create the Writing & Technology Workshop in Ripon are dedicated professionals who are intensely focused on each student's individual progress. They work and study as part of a university course sponsored by Great Valley Writing Project at California State University, Stanislaus. Fourteen GVWP Teacher Consultants met from January through May to plan the curriculum for this year's workshop. They created classroom lessons designed to stimulate thinking and to motivate students to express their ideas. Twenty-three additional K-12 classroom teachers signed up to work and study alongside these GVWP leaders. Together, they read articles and texts, discussed teaching strategies, observed model lessons, and practiced new techniques, with everyone focused on a common goal: to become better teachers of writing. In every classroom at the workshop, from kindergarten through high school, multiple teachers were on hand to meet student needs. Each teacher served as writing mentor for a small group of students, building personal relationships that revealed each student's strengths, needs, and interests. In just ten days, the small-group interactions helped to establish a safe environment that encouraged open communication and provided a solid foundation for academic growth. At the Writing & Technology Workshop, teachers learned as much from the students as the students learned from the teachers. Every day, after the students went home, the teachers met to discuss what they read, what they observed, and what they learned. K-3rd grade teachers studied A Place for Wonder: Reading and Writing in the Primary Grades by Georgia Heard and Jennifer McDonough. They used strategies from the book to transport children into the world of nonfiction reading and writing. Through “wonder centers,” guided sensory observations, firsthand collection of data, and cleverly-structured research projects, the teachers created a classroom environment where students’ questions and observations were valued. Their student-centered approach provided fertile ground to develop intelligent, inquiring minds. 4th-12th grade teachers studied Kelly Gallagher's Write Like This: Teaching Real-World Writing Through Modeling and Mentor Texts. They used strategies from the book to help students deepen thinking, organize their thoughts, and develop their written voices. In daily debriefing meetings, the teachers analyzed the instructional content and discussed ways to improve lessons. They found new ways to build social interactions, engage critical thinking, and jump-start learning. Through this process, teachers discovered effective ways to address the varied needs of a diverse group of students while helping them meet the Common Core State Standards. In August, they will bring new ideas back to their classrooms to recreate the excitement, productivity, and learning with students at their own schools. To learn more about the teachers at our Ripon workshop, read the Ripon Workshop Newsletters or take a peek at Comments that teachers submitted at the end of the program. |