Reflection: 2024–2025
After reviewing all the new classes I experienced and the professional development workshops I attended this year, the Collegial Group remains my top choice for professional growth. Even though I had already read Pedagogy of Play with my Reggio Study Group, exploring the book with one of its co-authors, Yvonne Liu-Constant, pushed me to rethink how I can offer more choice to my students across the curriculum.
This year, my goal was to integrate explicit grammar and spelling instruction into my writing practice to enhance student outcomes and promote transferable skills in other subjects. I wanted students’ writer’s notebooks to become true resources—complete with charts and mentor texts—to support writing across a variety of genres. We better organized the notebooks this year by creating a dedicated chart section, and students used it consistently to find helpful tools. Since each unit includes many charts, I decided to include only the ones students would reuse and truly understand. I’ve often felt that students don’t use charts meaningfully, so this year, I implemented a routine where students were asked to “find a chart” to support their writing—whether it was for showing rather than telling, using dialogue, writing paragraphs, adding transition words, or editing. This practice made students more proactive and independent in seeking support during the writing process.
In the past, the notebooks I called Word Study Notebooks didn’t include much actual word study. This year, I made sure they included both the grammar lessons we practiced and several different spelling choice boards. Allowing students to choose their spelling homework seemed to result in a happier, more engaged group. When students are given a say in their learning, they feel more ownership and control, which increases intrinsic motivation. Most spelling assignments were completed because students had selected them themselves. This approach respected different learning styles and interests and encouraged students to try new strategies.
My goal this year was to help students write with complex sentences, enriched vocabulary, and consistent punctuation. I wanted their writing to be better organized, with clear transitions and varied sentence structures. Overall, I was more mindful of reinforcing these skills, but I still had a handful of students who regularly forgot to capitalize the first word of a sentence or use ending punctuation. Reflecting on this, I could have done more to reinforce spelling work alongside grammar instruction. Next year, I plan to integrate lessons from the new TC Spelling Modules with Spelling Connections, using a mix of whole-class and small-group instruction to target specific skills.
Each year, I give students a writing survey to reflect on their growth and to help me improve instruction. Here is the survey I used this year, along with a few of their responses:
Writing Survey Highlights:
“I liked learning about transitions because it helped my stories sound smoother.”
“I always used the chart with dialogue—it helped me remember punctuation.”
“Next year, maybe do more writing games. They made grammar fun.”
“My favorite part was being able to choose how I did spelling homework.”
My final thought on the Collegial Group is one of deep appreciation. The group consists of highly motivated educators who view themselves as lifelong learners. We act like first-year teachers, always trying to better our teaching. We share resources, ideas, and feedback that continually improve our teaching. For example, I observed a “Choice Studio”, role-playing to inspire student writing, explored new strategies for teaching theme, and experimented with Poetry Comics. Everything I learned has become part of my fourth-grade tool kit. This group is unique: we think together, problem-solve together, and have built a strong professional bond.
Sue, thank you for all you contributed to this year’s experience—your encouragement, your ideas, and the thoughtful professional development you offered. I carry it all with me, and I’m so grateful.