What is Interactive Writing?
Interactive Writing provides an opportunity for students to “share the pen” with the instructor. While teacher and students collaboratively construct text for an authentic purpose, together they are working to create a text that makes connections between what is read and the written word. Jointly, they negotiate the text, making decisions about what to write. They share the duties of scribe. The students may rehearse word parts or words on white boards while a student is selected to write the appropriate word on the large chart. After each word is written, the group rereads to check if it makes sense. Teacher and students may work together to apply skills learned during Word Work, Shared Reading and Guided Reading, as well. The teacher’s role varies according to the needs of the students: i.e. demonstrating reading and writing strategies, modeling the correct use of print conventions, directly and explicitly instructing on phonology and word analysis, etc. As the students become more proficient as readers and writers, lessons can begin to focus on style and writing for different purposes. Interactive Writing is appropriate for Pre-Emergent and Emergent learners. It is typically used in K-1 and is often used to support ELL learners in other grades. |
What is "Word Work"?
We learn best by active involvement and practice with the task at hand, which allow us to see word and letter patterns for ourselves. Research suggests that the brain is a pattern detector, rather than an applier of rules (Cunningham, 2004). If our brains are indeed "pattern detectors," then we should provide our students with plenty of opportunity to investigate and organize those patterns. The field of "word study" provides students an opportunity to manipulate words (and parts of words) in meaningful and enjoyable activities and games. Reading ability can develop dramatically as word study lessons develop experience with: • Letters and their corresponding sounds. • Components of words, such as roots, prefixes, and suffix • Patterns of how words are spelled, such as word families. • How parts of words often will give hints to the meaning of a word, as well as its spelling or pronunciation. Word study activities call for active problem solving. Students are encouraged to look for spelling patterns, form hypotheses, predict outcomes, and test them. These activities require students to continually ask themselves, "What do I know about this new word, and how is it similar to words that I already know?" |