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| Author: Tracy Gilmer South Forrest Attendance Center |
We began the day as usual writing into the day with the poem A Contribution to Statistics by Wislawa Szymborska, one of the prompts from our Share Your Writing Website. We really focused in on the last question of the prompt, "How does this poem relate to your current experiences?" We began with a read aloud then a quick response using the comments feature in a Google Doc. As always, there were many different perspectives and focal points by each of the TCs. Some focused on their experiences with students in the classroom while some focused on our current experiences of unrest in our country as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and protesters following the death of George Floyd. Still, others reflected on their own internal place within the statistics. We followed the comments with oral discussion using Zoom then transitioned into a time of writing and sharing of writing. I can't think of a better way to build community than sharing openly about internal thoughts and emotions.
Because teachers teaching teachers is at the core of the National Writing Project as well as South Mississippi Writing Project, an essential part of the Summer Institute is to provide a time for each TC a time to lead an article discussion using one of a variety of protocols. Of course, in a digital platform the protocols must be adjusted. Dylan Williams led first using the Save The Last Word For Me protocol as we discussed NWP Core Principles. Other than some technical inexperience with leading breakout rooms using Zoom, the protocol was effective. Dylan opened with a focus for reading the article: What does this mean for us as members of the writing project? We did a deep dive into the text to find what most stood out to us in the text then discussed in small break out rooms using the mentioned protocol then returned to the whole group to further discuss. Though we had all read this article before, everyone agreed that the discussion took us all do a deeper understanding of what it means to be part of NWP.
Next, it was my turn to facilitate. I decided to use an adaptation of the Making Meaning protocol in leading a discussion on Mozartians, Beethovians, and the Teaching of Writing by Diane Christian Boehm, a seminal text for SMWP Summer Institute reading. I chose this protocol because it provided lots of flexibility. The protocol begins with asking four questions: 1. What do you see in the text? 2. What questions does this text raise for you? 3. What is significant about this text? 4. What are your thoughts about ways this particular text might influence your work as an educator? I decided to use Padlet as a means of collecting and sharing the responses for each of the questions. Having everyone post to a Padlet wall allowed for everyone to easily see and reflect on the responses of others. We ended the protocol with an oral discussion using Zoom. The discussion started out much deeper than it may have otherwise been because each participant's thoughts had already been seen and reflected upon allowing us to move right into the more fruitful discussion. Of course, each of the facilitated discussions would not be complete without a time of reflection and response because we're always looking for ways to make our practice more effective, and that cannot take place without reflection.
I know that I appreciate this time together (even at a distance) to collaborate and practice through the process of taking the writing project principles into the virtual classroom. When we suddenly switched to distance learning in March, I know I was unaware of what to do. I have training in using many digital resources, but I was not prepared to go 100% virtual. Now that we have the opportunity to think about what distance learning can look like, I feel much more confident that I can teach my students in a digital fashion while building and maintaining community.
Tracy Gilmer is a South Mississippi Writing Project Teacher Consultant and currently teaches eighth grade ICT2 and seventh grade ELA at South Forrest Attendance Center in Brooklyn, Mississippi.
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