Creative Experimentation

Encourage active engagement as well as creative exploration and experimentation of genre and style.

In my classroom, I will...

Poetry Students were hesitant to begin the poetry unit as they had never written poems before; however, what began with a highly-scaffolded form of writing turn into student experimenting with more complex forms, different types of figurative language, and types of rhythm and repetition.	Poetry Students were hesitant to begin the poetry unit as they had never written poems before; however, what began with a highly-scaffolded form of writing turn into student experimenting with more complex forms, different types of figurative language, and types of rhythm and repetition.
Poetry Students were hesitant to begin the poetry unit as they had never written poems before; however, what began with a highly-scaffolded form of writing turn into student experimenting with more complex forms, different types of figurative language, and types of rhythm and repetition.	Poetry Students were hesitant to begin the poetry unit as they had never written poems before; however, what began with a highly-scaffolded form of writing turn into student experimenting with more complex forms, different types of figurative language, and types of rhythm and repetition.
Poetry Students meet renowned poet and share their techniques for writing poems.

Publication Students share their finalized book trailer projects through "speed dating", moving about the classroom and watching their peers' works, ultimately deciding whether the piece was persuasive enough to get them to try the text.	Publication Student works decorate the walls of our classroom and serve different purposes. The purpose of these poems: Entertain.
Craft Students take turns in the role of teacher, leading the collaborative discussion in identifying the various craft moves the author employs. Note this student's observation about repetition in this piece!	Publication Student works decorate the walls of our classroom and serve different purposes. The purpose of these poems: Inform.
Author's Craft and Purpose Students use "PIE" to identify whether a piece is trying to Persuade, Inform, or Entertain!

Multiple Genres All of these works are by the same student. This is the student's sample of realistic fiction.	Multiple Genres All of these works are by the same student. This is the student's sample of fan fiction.
Multiple Genres All of these works are by the same student. This is the student's sample of an analysis of the symbol of a tree house in her text.	Multiple Genres All of these works are by the same student. This is the student's sample of poetry.

Students Are Comfortable Being Challenged

Students find connections between the genres with which they have been experimenting, applying the craft moves they've studied to more foreign, and seemingly more challenging, genres such as poetry. Students acknowledge that feeling uncomfortable when challenged is okay, and consistently seek out their own ways to make the texts they are reading and writing more meaningful to them.

Students Find Connections Between Author's Craft and Publication Purpose

Students have learned the importance of studying author's craft in conjunction with our analyses of author's purpose and publication. Students experiment with three main writing purposes: Persuasion, Information, and Entertainment. They are comfortable publishing their work and frequently ask to pause a lesson or workshop period to share-out their findings or their own writing.

Students Experiment with Many Different Genres

Students know that the writing they do in my classroom is not limited to writing about books. Our reading of texts revolves around immersion and response rather than summarizing and reiterating.

Additionally, our classroom is seen as a writing workshop with a great deal of time spent conferencing and doing pre-writing and reflective work. Students experiment with multiple genres in reading and writing such as realistic fiction, argumentative and informative writing, fan fiction, literary analysis, and even poetry.

In my classroom, I will...