Idea Notebooks

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Idea Notebooks

• Presented by
• Lila Jorge
• Patricia Krivac
• Stacey Shubitz
• Thursday, June 8th, 2006
• Professional Development Day

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The 5 Ws of Idea Notebooks

• WHO
• Students K-7
• Faculty
• Administration

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The 5 Ws of Idea Notebooks

• WHAT
• A place to find collect new ideas

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The 5 Ws of Idea Notebooks

• WHEN (pick what works for you)
• Morning lineup/sitting in auditorium
• On the way to assemblies
• Transitional times/early finishers (in class)
• Recess during inclement weather
• Waiting for after school to begin
• In the morning, evenings, weekends, vacations

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The 5 Ws of Idea Notebooks

• WHERE (pick what works for you)
• Classrooms
• Hallways
• Auditorium
• Cafeteria
• Playground/Yard
• Field Trips
• Subway or bus
• At home

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The 5 Ws of Idea Notebooks

• WHY
• We cant give children rich lives, but we can
  give them the lens to appreciate the richness
  that is already there in their lives. Notebooks
  validate a childs existence.
• --Lucy Calkins, Living Between the Lines, 35

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The 5 Ws of Idea Notebooks

• WHY
• To provide a place for students to practice
  writing.
• Generate texts
• Find ideas
• --Aimee Buckner, Notebook Know-How, 5

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The 5 Ws of Idea Notebooks

• WHY
• To give children a place where writing matters to
  them.
• To develop a love of writing.
• To find excitement in the act of collecting ideas
  that hold meaning to them.

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Implementation Option A

• Teachers will model how to use the Idea Notebook
  during the first week of school.
• During Writers Workshop
• Students will carry their Idea Notebook to and
  from school beginning the first week of school.

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Implementation Option B

• Teachers will spend about two weeks talking-up
  the Idea Notebook.
• Modeling how to use the Idea Notebook.
• Countdown the days until the kids receive their
  Idea Notebooks.
• Launch the Idea Notebook with some fanfare in
  your classroom.

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What Goes In An Idea Notebook?

• Observations of people or situations
• Overheard conversations
• Sketches
• Snatches of talk
• Longer entries
• Once kids feel comfortable using their Idea
  Notebook.

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Early Literacy and Writing Concepts

• According to the National Council of Teachers of
  English
• 1. Young children possess knowledge about
  written language and a variety of forms of
  writingstories, lists, signsfrom an early age
  quality instruction in the primary grades
  reflects childrens experience and knowledge.
• 2. All families engage with literacy and
  literacy-related experiences.

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Writing Concepts (cont.)

• 3. Writing develops in non-linear ways and takes
  multiple forms as it becomes more conventional. 
• 4. The language arts develop in concert.
  Drawing supports writing, writing supports
  reading opportunity to use multiple expressions
  of language increases language learning and
  ability
• 5. Writing is a social activity writing
  instruction should be embedded in social contexts.

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Writing Concepts

• 6. Language learning proceeds best when children
  use language for meaningful purposes.
• 7. Experience with a particular kind of writing
  is the best indicator of performance extensive
  reading and writing within a particular genre or
  domain increases successful performance.
• 8. Writing is effectively used as a tool for
  thinking and learning throughout the curriculum.

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Writing Concepts

• 9. Students writing and language use reflects
  the communities in which they participate. 
• 10. Control of a written and spoken discourse
  supports personal/political power.
• 11. The intent of education is to increase and
  broaden our use of multiple social discourses, as
  well as to understand the implications of their
  use.

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Considerations for Early Childhood Writing

• Children need to know that writing is a social
  process that brings people closer.
• Writing has many purposes and forms.
• Oral stories drawn from their own lives is
  quintessential in the writing process.
• Students need to think of themselves as authors.
• Teachers need to model all the many ways we use
  writing.

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Differentiation

• Sketching and labeling are the two best ways to
  get them started.
• Give the students time to share their notes or
  write to a partner/teacher.
• Capture students stories during centers, as
  students unpack/pack, return from trips or
  vacation and create conversations on these
  moments.

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What does it look like?

• Faculty/Administration
• Continue to use your Blueline Notebook (aka your
  Writers Notebook) for this purpose.
• Grab an Idea Notebook, like the one your kids
  will use, and carry that around if you prefer!
• Students
• Thats up to you.
• Youll get to choose from a few small notebooks
  whichever one suits you and your students needs
  best.

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So the kids are writing in little notebooks now
what?

• Idea Notebooks should be semi-private.
• Encourage your kids to share their entries with a
  writing partner or the class.
• Give students time to transfer Idea Notebook
  jottings into their Writers Notebook so they can
  develop good jottings/sketches into seed ideas.

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Next Steps

• Select an Idea Notebook.
• Develop short lessons to model the way to create
  entries in an Idea Notebook.
• Decide how youll promote the use of the Idea
  Notebook with your students.

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Questions/Comments

• Does this mean kids cant carry books with them
  like they used to?
• Will there be Writing Certificates (similar to
  Reading Certificates)?
• How do I prevent my students from using their
  Idea Notebook for writing notes to friends?
  Tearing out pages?
• How do I assess the Idea Notebook?
• Should time be allotted during the school day for
  students to write in their Idea Notebook or
  should this be done on-the-go?
• Do I have to carry a Writers Notebook with me
  everywhere I go?
• What happens if a student loses his/her Idea
  Notebook?
• What do I do if my students run out of pages in
  their Idea Notebook?
• Anything else thats on your mind

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A final word about goals

• We are striving to become a community of writers
  at P.S. 171.
• If we show the kids that their writing matters,
  then well be on our way to building a thriving
  community of writers this fall.