Entry #5 My Writing Experience

As hard as I try, I cannot clearly recall my early writing instruction. I remember some of reading activities like spelling lists, sight words, phonics flashcards, and round-robin read alouds. Those activities and style in which they were taught most closely resemble the learning/word recognition view (Freeman & Freeman, 2004) so, my guess is that I was probably taught writing in the same way as a traditional classroom (Freeman & Freeman, 2004). I do remember hours and hours of D’Nealian handwriting practice which I thoroughly disliked and felt meaningless. I do not recommend this for students who seem to take the learning/acquisition approach to learning language. It might make them feel frustrated stifled. I felt this way about reading and writing for most of my education until I met a teacher who seemed to hold my similar view and focused on content. It was then that I felt free and began to love reading and writing again. Even in high school I do not recall any writing instruction that resembled what Freeman & Freeman (2004) call the process classroom. I do not recall a mini-lesson format or writer's workshop. I’m sure I looked to my teachers as models but I remember looking to them more for directions on a certain assignments or for an example of what they wanted. Since my positive experience was with more of a process and acquisition/sociopsycholinguistic approach, it might be why my own learning and teaching styles tend to lean towards the process and acquisition/sociopsycholinguistic methods of teaching.

References

Freeman, D.E., & Freeman, Y.S. (2004). Essential linguistics: What you need to know to teach. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.