Final Reflection for 2009 Summer Institute

KMWP 2009 Summer Institute

Final Reflections

Each year near the end of the Summer Institute, KMWP seeks final, narrative, in-depth reflections from each fellow. Every thought and reflection you share are important to the leadership team as they plan next year’s Institute, so we ask that you please respond to the following prompts in a typed(half-page to a page, single spaced) reflection.

1. Reflect on aspects of collaboration that you have learned about or grown to understand better through participation in the Institute. You might consider how different components of the Institute (drama, group sharing/readings, teacher demonstrations, writing groups, e-anthology, wetpaint, etc.) as well as the larger KMWP community have impacted your understanding.
2. Describe a highlight moment at the Institute that might change the way you think about yourself as a teacher and as a teacher leader. Analyze how the Institute will change specific classroom literacy teaching practices.
3. What are some skills or abilities associated with good writing that you’ve worked on yourself as a writer during the Institute that you might be able to transfer to your students and/or teachers with whom you work?
4. What have you learned about inquiry and research during the Institute that you might be able to transfer to your students and/or teachers with whom you work?
5. The KMWP Summer Institute grows and changes through a “continuous improvement” model of assessment and refinement. Keeping in mind that each group of summer fellows has unique needs and that the NWP has certain requirements for Summer Institutes, discuss some suggestions you would make to the leadership team for next year (SI 2010).

Teach, Share, and Join the Dean for Lunch

We are all beautiful and handsome today. Small and shy. Brave and loud. Our voices are being showcased at the Dean’s Luncheon, and we do appreciate the opportunity to express our writing talents. The 2009 KMWP Summer Institute fellows are growing deep connections, roots for our future as a community.

The three teacher demonstrations today were presented by the Oak Grove Elementary team. Pat has been thinking deeply about  how to integrate reading and writing in her third grade classroom. Pat’s research supports linking the literacy processes and she taught us several instructional strategies easily adaptable to all grade levels. It is exciting to watch a summer institute fellow discover new best practices that can be taken right back to the classroom. Margaret has been questioning how to teach kindergarten students to use voice in writing.  One strategy for practicing voice is using GabCast to record stories, and the fellows had time to use this social networking strategy. Shaun’s inquiry focus is teaching editing strategies to young writers, particularly kindergarten. While teaching first grade students Shaun introduced her students to an editing method called COPS (capitalization, organization, punctuation, spelling), and she introduced us to a rap song about COPS. Shaun observed first grade students successfully editing and evaluating writing, and she is ready to use her research and COPS method in kindergarten.

Great work, 2009 KMWP SI fellows. Thank you for your outstanding professional accomplishments.

Memorable Monday

Today is the last Monday of the final week of the 2009 KMWP Summer Institute. The momentum is building. By July 2 there will be nine teacher demonstrations; four morning breakfasts and four dramas; the Dean’s Luncheon; and most importantly lots and lots more celebration of teachers as writers.

This morning we doodled to the mellow sounds of Rita’s musical collection. Silence, glorious, and time to express the inner artist. Sliding into oral storytelling for team work showed us all  how truly creative this 2009 fellowship is. You all ROCK !! 

Today we had an opportunity to learn from our teacher peers. John, Vickie, Karen and Shanna delivered specific research to support inquiry which all four of these teachers are planning to apply during the 2009/2010 school year. John worked with us to learn about gender differences in writing performance  according to NAEP statistics. His strategies and activities were connected to his readings, particularly a Ralph Fletcher text. Vickie pulled us into her inquiry about the significance of demographics and how we can tie history, including personal history, to writing. Vickie strategically planned the first segment of her teacher demonstration as a review of the brain and brain- based learning : vocabulary, systems, and functions. Great reminder, Vickie. Shanna and Karen were up to bat Monday afternoon. They are considering collaborative learning with blogs. Sometimes teachers cannot access technology at the very moment when most needed- right?  We practiced Shanna’s ’round robin writing’ and studied how to extend this practice with bloggimg. Karen discussed specific whys and hows we need to use collaborative learning ( ues it in any mode). Karen’s inquiry will  extended to next school year as she is planning a cross content strategy with blogs and the science teacher, in particular the development of a hypothesis.

Teacher teaching teachers. We are a rock and roll band, but I think our music genre’ may take a change tomorrow !! 

amy byram

Thursday’s Highlights

Pat got us started this morning with sweet rolls, biscuits and jelly, ice cold milk and a little dancing. What a fantastic way to stimulate our minds. Thanks, Pat, for reminding us that movement and music positively impact learners of all ages.

Our 2009 KMWP Summer Institute buzzes with activity. Teams of writers share their works of memoir, poetry, and research, and gently guide each other to think about possible changes. The fellows frequently comment on how much trust and courage it takes to go public with one’s written words

Two middle school teachers, Mandy and Lindsay, delivered a stellar demonstration that focused on teaching  grammar in the context of writing. Before the school year ended they incorporated new methods and strategies to motivate students to improve writing by using a concept called “mentor sentences.” Their particular school has access to many technology devices, yet we learned how easy it is to use “mentor sentences” with old fashioned paper, pencil, and colored markers. We were reminded to nurture writing, teach specifically for a skill, use language structures from great works to show what’s right, and evaluate gently. Thank you Mandy and Lindsay.

Afternoon business included planning for our last week. Several  fellows volunteered to read excerpts at the Dean’s luncheon next Tuesday, and we all agreed we would celebrate our last day with a potluck luncheon and a showcase of readings by all. What a fabulous team of teachers… a real community.

Another day of firsts…

We began the morning with a delicious breakfast from Nancy and an impromptu serenade as John composed a loving, funny, and collaborative song from all of our summaries of the SI experience. If this doesn’t become part of the final video, all will be greatly disappointed.

After some much needed time in our writing groups, Peyten led us in the first Teacher Demonstration of the week, modeling the kind of authentic, classroom-centered research that will improve the practice of all involved. Updates to the wiki with her research and demonstration materials coming soon!

Everyone continued to record their digital reflections for the 2009 SI video, and massaged their works in progress, both for the Teacher Demonstration and more creative works shared on their blogs and the E-Anthology. We are all looking forward to the demonstrations ahead!

Working forward

Our 2009 KMWP Summer Institute is deliberately progressing, thanks to the leadership of myself, Jennifer, Mary Lou, Jessica and Dawn.

My intentional observations today were related to the how the day worked itself into a real learning moment. I observed the work of teacher conversations, how they are threaded into an instructional day, and how we know we must maintain an active conversation within our own community, and to be happy just to be a contributing member.

Our KMWP 2009 Summer Institute Fellows begin their demonstration/workshop presentations tomorrow. The opportunity to learn from each other is embedded in the institutes’s component called teacher demonstration. I hope the teacher presenting as well as the teacher audience will enjoy an opportunity to learn from a new colleague and a fellow teacher.

2009 SI Video Reflections

Hi All,

Just Jess again with some suggestions for your video reflections tomorrow and Thursday. I know some of you may still be struggling with what to say, and I thought some sentence starters might lead you in the right direction…

Suggested sentence starters:

• Before the Summer Institute I…
• For the first time, I am…
• Without this opportunity, I would never have…
• I am learning that…
• The Summer Institute has given me a chance to…
• The people I’ve met through the Summer Institute have…
• My writing has…
• I now see myself…
• The last thing I expected was…
• Although I felt…
• When I return to my classroom, I hope to…

Other ideas for your video reflections:

• A “Once I was… Now I Am” poem, outlining the changes you’ve undergone as part of the SI
• An extended analogy–This experience has been (like)… Teachers are (like)… We are all (like)…
• A poem or short story that reflects upon what you have learned, with the refrain “I am learning…”
• A fictional account of what your summer would have been like without the SI
• Any other creative, compelling, passionate, personal response–the sky’s the limit!

Before you record, remember…

• Your first try may be your best, but if it’s not, we can delete and try again.
• Practice reading your piece aloud in a private space. This can help you to revise, and will give you a chance to practice your timing.
• Keep an eye on the clock. Remember to keep your total time to one minute or less. If you run over, you’re reflection will be edited to fit.
• Avoid complication when a simple word or phrase will do.
• Remember your audience. A teacher curious about the summer institute is probably most interested in what they can gain from participating, and whether it is worth their time and effort to apply.
• Strike a balance between heart and mind. There is nothing more persuasive than a heartfelt approach, but be wary of waxing too poetic. Temper your passion with reason. Add warmth to exposition with a personal touch.

Monday Momentum

Monday morning started with breakfast by Lindsay and a fun, thought-provoking drama by Margaret.  The “Who am I?” exercise was a lively way to start off the week and showed us how well we’ve gotten to know each other in just over a week! Who would’ve thought?!

Continuing our writing momentum from last week, most of the morning was spent in writing groups – a much appreciated block of sharing and responding time.  We also talked about some of the final finished products the Institute will produce:  Jen discussed annotated bibliographies; Mary Lou showed examples of past  SI Anthologies and t-shirts (and we formed committees for this year’s projects); and Jess discussed the SI video.  Sign-up for the video segments has been posted on the wiki, and we’ll set our reunion date soon.

After another working lunch (filled with research, reading, and a big rain), the afternoon was spent with some fellows conferencing with Jen about their demos, while others continued to work on their demos.

Friday’s Festivities

We opened the morning with a lovely breakfast of grits and bananas from John who also played Jen’s new guitar for us. Petyen and Renee led us in a drama that involved creating character sketches of each other.

We engaged in a second day of revision with Janice Ramsey where she shared a lot of good practical ideas from notable authors and teachers such as Nancie Atwell. In her classroom, Janice has a WEIRD (We Enjoy Independent Reading)Day. She also shared writing from fifth graders that resulted from the students’ engagement with the strategies she shared, and she also shared students’ Photo Stories from their published writing. Our focus in revision today was concise writing with precise nouns and succulent adjectives.

After revision, we talked about identifying and focusing research questions. We then moved outside where we shared and discussed our research questions as a whole group with a focus on refining them. Fellows recommended resources and ideas for each other. Michelle and Jen led the group in facilitating this dicussion.

After coming inside and cooling down from the hot Atlanta heat and having a working lunch, we used the afternoon time to continue to work on our inquiry and to receive individual coaching from the teaching team before moving into reflection and hybrid work. It was a productive, calm conclusion to our first full week!

Thursday’s Tidbits

We began our morning with a breakfast of croissant and cherries provided by Peyten. Peyten also presented our drama this morning where we recorded our high and know from the past week. This was inspired by the Highs and Lows writing we had done with Dawn on Wednesday.

Janice Ramsey joined us and led us in revision exercises. We revised one sentence using eleven steps, which really had us reviewing our recall of the parts of speech. We wrote ABC stories — 26 sentences where each one begins with a specific letter of the alphabet moving from A to Z. We shared these stories with the whole group asking questions that Janice had provided for posing during the revision process. We also worked with Janice on revealing story through dialogue, which was challenging and fun.

Afterward, we had a working lunch where some fellows received additional coaching on their demos,we gathered for work time. Jessi had posted resources to her blog for everyone to explore. We used this time to explore those resources if they were of interest to us or to simply continue working with our teacher demos and writing. Jessi posted a reading on Networked Learning Communities for us to review at home for discussion on Friday. We then wrapped up the day with reflection and hybrid work.