Teach Writing With Confidence: For Teacher Candidates in Social Science

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Teach Writing With ConfidenceFor Teacher
Candidates in Social Science the Humanities and
Canadian World Studies

• Risa Gluskin
• York Mills C.I.
• Oct. 11, 2012

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Talk About Writing
Adjectives are your best friends
The writer is like a tour guide for the reader
Thats a good topic sentence because
Use strong words to indicate your position
directly
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Whose Confidence?

• The title of the presentation is teach writing
  with confidence
• Did you take confident to refer to you or the
  students?

anxious teacher
nervous student
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Have a Course or Unit Plan

• Start small
• Paragraph before essay, even in grade 12
• Topic sentences before thesis statements
• Start with in-role writing
• It forces students to take a position, from which
  they learn to argue and use persuasive and
  descriptive language

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Structure

• 5

Teach paragraphs first
Is flexible

• Is adaptable
• in-class essay
• visual essay

Is a great place to start -build to longer essays
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Scaffold
Support your students Dont assume they can do
things without being taught how
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Integrate with Course Material

• Skills content can be taught together
• They dont need to be separated
• Linking to course content makes it easier for
  students to use the skills
• Requires planning ahead
• Reinforce skills orally through debating

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Use Formulas

• Thesis main argument sub-topics
• Topic Sentence main argument sub-topics
• Adjectives help to convey a strong position

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Thesis

• Glue what holds the sub-topics together

Sub-topic 1
Sub-topic 3
Sub-topic 2
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Seesaw
Argument
Light a list
Light opinion only, a rant
Heavy a list
Heavy opinion only, a rant
Evidence
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Build a Hypothesis (Social Science)

• High poverty levels and low levels of health
  literacy are directly related in Canadian
  society the lack of education options available
  for low income earners as well as communication
  barriers between new immigrants and health
  professionals are clear indications of systemic
  discrimination within the health and education
  sectors.

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Build a Hypothesis

• Strong words
• High
• Low
• Directly
• Barriers
• Clear

end point
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Topic Sentence Scaffold

• Life in the 1930s was a hardship for most
  Canadians as demonstrated by
• Life was a hardship main argument
• Students would then describe sub-topics using
  STRONG adjectives
• Challenging living conditions
• Destabilizing social unrest
• Widespread discrimination
• Difficult environmental conditions
• Stigmatizing feelings of personal shame

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Use Common Terminology

• Be consistent
• Point general idea
• Example specific evidence, detail, proof
• Argument explanation, connection or link to
  thesis or topic sentence
• How the evidence proves the thesis or topic
  sentence

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Note-Taking

• Support and encourage the right kind of
  note-taking
• Teach a format that will encourage students to
  look for and record detailed examples
• Practice using this format in class
• Start with the textbook
• Have students distinguish between general ideas
  and specific examples in the textbook

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Note-Taking Method 1

• Support and encourage the right kind of
  note-taking
• Teach a format that will encourage students to
  look for and record detailed examples
• Practice using this format in class
• Start with the textbook
• Have students distinguish between general ideas
  and specific examples in the textbook

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Note-Taking Format Method 1
afterlife
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The Book of the Dead contained scenes that
illustrated how a person was to be judged worthy
or not of the afterlife
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Note-Taking Method 2
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Using Your Own Words

• Most common problem
• Students copy directly from the source without
  quoting
• Even if they cite the source they are still
  plagiarizing by copying the words of the
  author(s)
• Solutions?
• Check hand-written notes (handed in)
• Do a class example together of how to paraphrase
  and cite

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Plagiarism Prevention

• Proactive tips
• Change assignments or topics often
• Have students write the final product in-class
• Make assignments date-restrictive (e.g., use
  articles written after January, 2011)
• Have note-taking done by hand

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Highlighting Sub-Topics in Notes

• Have students highlight their notes using
  different colours for different categories
• categories sub-topics
• 3 colours 3 sub-topics
• Encourages students to use their notes more
  effectively
• Helps them see patterns and relationships (and
  repetition)

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Sample of Notes
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Outline Stage

• Transition from research to writing
• Allows teacher to see students progress BEFORE
  the essay / paragraph
• Encourages good habits
• Preparing in advance
• Citing sources
• Connecting evidence to argument
• Teacher can provide electronic template

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CHC 2D 1930s Argumentative Paragraph Scaffold

• Example/Evidence 1
• Source
• Explanation/Argument

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Outline
Point- form outline
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Outline
Electronic template
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Go Forth and Be Confident

• Talk about writing casually and formally
• Get students to write often
• Give feedback
• oral and written