Writing Skills

This Writing Skills class is one of my more highly organized units, because it is the more recent (2013). I was using Unit Plan templates to map out my units and then getting more detailed from there with lesson plans, day by day plans, etc.

This class was a general education class that was pushed forward by my principal to help struggling writers who were not receiving special education services. We wanted to push this class forward because writing across the curriculum was big in our school, and we also had a capstone senior research project that a small percentage of students struggled with. Therefore this course was set up as a semester course to help students with the foundations of being a successful writer.

One of the premises that this course was based on was the Jane Schaffer paragraph writing format. This is where students are taught how to use topic sentences, concrete details, commentary and conclusion sentences.

I have a test folder that also has study guides, alternative tests, and a form used to help students do “test corrections” to better learn the material and recoup points.

I also have a folder in the “MISC” section that has my “PBL” that I developed for the class. I didn’t get a chance to do the PBL given the semester nature of the class, but I put in a lot of work into it and feel like it’s a good foundation for a PBL.

Lastly, I tried to put all things not related to a “unit” into the “MISC” folder. So if I mention something in a Day by Day Plan and it’s not in that folder, it’s probably in the “MISC” folder.

Oh yeah…one more thing. The “weekly plans” are pretty detailed. I try to write down what we do every day and note what I will say to the students