Work-Over-Time 2015

This year our final bulletin board features a first grade student's writing.  We have had Adrian for two years and have watched him grow as a student, as a reader and writer, as a mathematician and also as a Scientist.  He is the total package! When I think of him in those first early days of kindergarten and then think of the strong young man he is today, I am just bursting with pride.  We titled this board from a Wizard of Oz quote, "You are capable of more than you think"  and added a beautiful background mural from a scene in the movie with work contributed by all of our first graders.

Adrian's first piece on this bulletin board is from the first day of Kindergarten when he was able to draw a picture with "amoeba" people (circles with arms and legs), tell us a story orally, and write his name.

Adrian entered kindergarten with a strong background, already recognizing letters and sounds and a few sight words.  He had been nurtured in the early years by a strong nuclear family where reading and writing were reinforced.  He was an eager learner.  It wasn't long before Adrian's writing took off. 

The board  has several more pieces including later kindergarten and early first grade writing.  The final piece is a realistic fiction piece, completed a few weeks ago, that is part of a series that he is writing about Dan, the sports guy.  Below is the piece and translation.

 One day there was a boy named Dan and he likes to play soccer.  He has a soccer game.  Dan said to his mother, "What happens if I don't make a goal?"  Mom said, "It will be fine. OK?"

Then it was time for the soccer game.  It started.  Dan had the ball first and he ran as fast as he could.  Then... he made it go so high it was almost higher than a humongous giant.  Then... it made it in the goal.

"That was amazing," said Dan.  "One to zero!" shouted one of his team mates.  Then BOOM!! "Aaaaaa!" said Dan.  He twisted his ankle so he had to stay out.  It was half time.  Dan was still hurt.

Then the other team scored. "One to one," shouted a player.  Then Dan believed he could do it with the twisted ankle, so he went out on the field.  He had a plan...  He kicked it

with his other foot and the last second he made a goal!!!!!!  Then everybody was amazed by him.  He was the extraordinary guy on his team so every game he plays, he believes that he wins!!!

Quite a transformation from an "amoeba" family to a complete story with dialogue, a beginning, middle and end, strong vocabulary, pictures with speech bubbles, and even craft! Adrian is so good at so many things, but I wouldn't be surprised if one day I am asking him for his autograph on his first published book!

Kindergarten Narrative

Our school purchased the new Lucy Calkins' Writing Units this year, not as an approved district curriculum, but from internal school accounts, because teachers begged for the new material!  We couldn't wait to get our hands on this new work by Teachers' College because we knew it had been vetted in real school in NYC by a group of teachers and coaches who collaboratively wrote the units and then taught them and revised them before they ever made ii to the pages of a manual for other teachers to follow.  The units arrived in the middle of the year, but our kindergarten teachers dived right into one of the new units - narrative.  We have not been disappointed

We've completed the unit.  Now is time for our annual kindergarten work-over-time standard-based bulletin board.  This board usually features a kindergartner's beginning piece and then a piece about mid-year and a final piece, all with commentary.  However, since we just finished this amazing Calkins' unit, I decided to do something a little different in honor of our new learning  I decided that  I would use the baseline and post-prompt pieces in our new narrative unit to show how some of our youngest writers had grown over the 6-8 weeks of this single new unit.  I posted a first day of kindergarten piece, and then the baseline prompt and finally the post prompt for the Narrative unit  for three students.  Below is one student's work..

The Kindergarten Narrative Standard
W.K.3 Use a combination of drawing, dictating, and writing to narrate a single event or several loosely linked events, tell about the events in order in which occurred, and provide a reaction to what happened.

The Task
Using Lucy Calkins’ new Narrative Writing Unit the class spent eight weeks working through every lesson, repeating a few that we felt we might have taught poorly the first time around!  Before beginning the narrative, students were asked to write a story about something that had happened over the Winter holiday (we started this unit the day we returned from Christmas/ Winter break).  They were given one workshop period to complete the project.  That piece was scored using the Reading and Writing Project- Grade K Narrative Rubric.  At the end of the unit the students were asked to write another story and the same rubric again was scored.  Remember that we had not taught the first two new units in the series but did teach the e-unit lessons published earlier by Teachers' College. 

Sawyer's Narrative

Narrative Baseline Prompt

  

Translation: Unreadable
Baseline score = 2.0

Structure	Sawyer’s baseline piece does not meet any of the criteria of this element.  It is written at the pre-kindergarten level or below.
Language Conventions	Sawyer's piece looks like a string of letters and is simply unreadable.  However, if he tried to reread the piece, he has probably put some letters for the words he has tried to write.  You can even find a few sight words (the, Santa, eat). Sawyer probably did not use the word wall as these sight words are all part of his spelling vocabulary, even at this early stage.  If given the chance, Sawyer probably could have read his piece and surely could have described in great details the event he had written about, because he is gifted expressively and quite animated!
Development	Not only does Sawyer's drawing have no detail or labels, the reader  has no idea what it is!

 

Narrative Post Prompt

1.It was my brother’s birthday.  For breakfast I had Dunkin’ Donuts.

2.Next I had a water balloon fight.

3 I played outside.  I was really happy.

Post prompt score = 3.5

Structure	Sawyer’s birthday story has three numbered pages, with a beginning, middle and end.  He has a first page that tells the beginning, It was my brother’s birthday, and has an ending page that tells what happened last, I played outside. The end page also explains how he felt, I was really happy.
Development	Sawyer does label many of the things in his illustration. It is difficult to tell what many of the things are in his drawing but that is probably because he is always in such a hurry and is not interested in illustrations!
Language Conventions	Sawyer starts all of his sentences with capitals and uses the capital I, but he uses punctuation inconsistently.  He spells many sight words correctly and is not afraid of bigger words, such as brekfist for breakfast.  He easily reads his own writing.  There has been a huge improvement in Saweyer's handwriting as he realized that other people had to be able to read his stories.  His use of spaces also makes the work more readable.

 Analysis

In comparing Sawyer’s two pieces, the progress is rather apparent and amazing.  His baseline piece is unreadable.  To go from that to a simple story with a beginning, middle, and end, is dramatic in such a short time. The reader has to be impressed with the sheer progress in readability. The use of spacing and improvement in his handwriting during this short period of time are also striking.  So, it is no surprise that his greatest improvements on the rubric are in Structure and Language Conventions.  Sawyer proudly shared this piece with his peers.  He could barely stay still to read it, he was so excited! Way to go Sawyer! 

A Work Over Time

Each year we choose one student's work to showcase on our final standard-based bulletin board. Since this class has been together for two years we had the option to review both the kindergarten and first grade portfolios before making a decision. It really was exciting to go through the work and see how much each child had grown.  It was very difficult to choose a single student's work to showcase. We chose a student that has shown such good progress-the type of progress we expect when students are exposed to a Readers and Writers Workshop every single day.   Below is the general commentary on the student's progress.

A Work Over Time

All the right ingredients

This student entered Kindergarten with a big smile and all the right ingredients.  He came from a supportive nuclear family and had been exposed to a wide range of experiences with numbers, letters and sounds. 

 Mix and stir

This adorable little boy came to Kindergarten with the ability to retell a familiar story at a Level 4 on the Sulzby Scale and so with rich and repeated read alouds, he quickly grew in his ability to retell.  At the same time, he was putting letters and sounds together.  He came with a strong vocabulary, so it was only a matter of time before he was able to put letters and sounds together to write stories on paper.  By the end of Kindergarten he was reading above the expectation.

Frosting the cupcake

As a first grader, this little live wire began to read chapter books and enjoyed talking about what he was reading.  In Writing he easily took in the basic structure of narrative, informational and persuasive writing.  He understood strategies and craft and began adding them in his writing.

Adding the cherry on top

First graders embrace deeper reading and written comprehension assessments in the second half of the year, and this very bright first grader has breezed through this transition.  He reads a broad range of genres with accuracy and fluency.  As he has developed as a writer, his natural  sense of humor has become evident in his writing.  He uses craft in his writing that make his pieces engaging to the reader.  One of the most interesting things about him is that he is also a very strong Math student.  He is the total package.

We present a graph on the bulletin board that graphs this student's reading levels through his first two years of school.

The bulletin board also shows four pieces of student work.  The first piece is from early kindergarten

 

and includes this commentary on the work.

 

Beginning Kindergarten Commentary

Writing

By September of the student’s Kindergarten year he was able to draw a picture and write about a small moment.

The time I went to Orlando I went on a boat to get there.

In this early piece he writes about his trip to Orlando.  He can already spell a few sight words such as the, to, Mom, Dad, me, and on.  He draws a picture to match his words and labels Mom, Dad, me, the wind and water!  He hears sounds in words and is able to write the sounds that he hears.

Reading

Nicky entered Kindergarten able to retell a familiar fairy tale at a Level 4 on the Sulzby scale.  This means he could recall the events of the story but did not tell the story in “story language.”  He did not use detail in his retelling and was not yet able to tell the story in a way that sounded like he was reading it.

 

The bulletin board includes two additional pieces with commentary at the end of Kindergarten and the middle of first grade.  By the end of first grade, the original writing for the following story was included, along with commentary.

 

 

Space Hamsters

One time there were four hamsters.  Their names were Leo, Mark, Jack, and Snacky.  They were special hamsters.

“COOL,” said Leo.  “But what’s that?” said Mark. “That’s a warning light,” said Jack.  “I want a snack,” said Snacky.  “What’s that lever for?” said Snacky.  “Don’t touch that!” said Leo.  But he touched it…

“NO!  We’re not ready to go to Venus!!!” said Leo.  “How do we steer?” said Mark.  “I want a snack!” said Snacky.  “I think I know how to steer?” said Jack.  So he tried and he did it…

And he stepped on the gas pedal and he wasted all the gas!  They screamed, “Ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah!!!”  “I wanted a snack for this whole trip and now I’m going to die!!!  So now, can I have a snack?” said Snacky. “NNNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOO!!!” said the others.  BOOM!!!  “AHAHAHAHA…”  “Wait a minute.  I think we’re alive,” said Snacky.  Jack felt a tap, tap, tap and he screamed.  “Ah ah ah ALIEN!”  said Jack.  He jumped into Leo’s hands!  It was another space hamster!

“Oh, hi,” said Jack.  “What’s up?” said Leo.  “Hay!” said Mark.  “What’s your name?” said Jack.   “Giovanni.”  “WWWWOOOWWW!!  Nice name!” said Jack.  He was sarcastic.  “Where’s your spaceship?” said Mark.  “Over there,” said Giovanni.  “Have any gas in it?” said Leo. “Yup!” said Giovanni.  “Yay!” everybody said.  “Let’s get on and go!” said Jack.  “Okay then, let’s go,” said Leo.  So they lifted off!

Late First Grade Commentary

Writing

As we come to the close of first grade, this student’s narrative portfolio piece is characteristic of his fiction writing.  He has imaginative characters (space hamsters) and settings, and he adds his own personal touch of humor ("Snacky" is a space hamsters that repeatedly asks for a snack!)    The piece has a definite problem and solution.  He does a nice job of moving the story along with dialogue and punctuates the discourse correctly.  He even uses the vocabulary word sarcastic correctly!  This first grader uses onomatopoeia and all caps to show the character is saying the words LOUDLY!  He even uses several revision strategies.  He uses a variety of punctuation including an ellipse to build suspense.   When you look across the two years, it is AMAZING the writer he has become!

 

Reading

As this bright young man leaves first grade he is a strong reader, reading  at a DRA level L, which is an end of second grade level.  He enjoys a variety of genres.  He can talk about what he reads with enthusiasm and depth, and always with a smile.  He enjoys life and his friends and has a broad range of interests!  Keep an eye on this little reader because the sky’s the limit!

Work Over Time, 2010

This is the time of year that Kindergarten teachers post work that shows individual students work over the year. Kailey's work below is typical of what we expect in kindergarten. Children begin the year with simple pictures to illustrate their stories and can often write their name and copy a date. By the mid-term they are beginning to sound out words and to use the few sight words that they know with their more detailed pictures. They often start a new page of work each day but by the end of the year their fluency has exploded and they are working on the same piece for several days. Pieces are anywhere from a few pages to many pages and often include detailed pictures. Words are sounded out and many sight words and vocabulary words are used. It's an amazing process to watch unfold!


At the beginning of the kindergarten year, Kailey wrote the piece above. It's the story of a birthday party. While she drew a simple picture and had no letters except her name, she could orally tell the story.

By January Kailey was blooming as a writer. She was drawing more detailed pictures that foreshadowed the writing ahead. In the piece above she wrote a personal narrative in her one page about seeing a classmate at the water park, and how they played on the slide. Kailey showed control over the sight words to, we, play at, the. She also used appropriate spacing between her words making the work readable.

Her final piece in March shows Kailey's understanding of the writing process. In this response to literature that she completed during our author study of Eric Carle, Kailey retells the story The Grouchy Ladybug. This is the first page of a six page retelling that includes a one page chart of the animals and the times they each spoke with the ladybug. Her writing fluency is remarkable at this time of year. Kailey sounded out each word and gave a detailed account of the animals as they were visited by the ladybug. Kailey's work is typical standard work at the end of the kindergarten year.

Kailey, we can't wait to see what next year holds!

Our Little Seeds Have Bloomed

The TDRs display the work over time of two different students on this final bulletin board of the year. Reading across the board is one student's work and then under his work, is another student's work over time.Parker begins first grade full of things he wants to write about. He uses some sight words and uses invented spelling for words that he doesn't know by sight. His work is easy to read because he has made the letter sound connection and easily hears sounds in words. He opens the piece establishing the context and then writes three pages describing a series of events. His ending provides closure for the piece. Parker also demonstrates that he is learning some conventions. Even early in the year you can find a sense of humor in his work. In this first piece he writes about liking being alone in his room which is funny in his family of three sisters!By mid-year Parker has written many engaging pieces. The piece above is an example of a nonfiction work where he writes all about computers including instructions for getting on the computer. He obviously knows lots about technology. He uses a series of questions to drive the piece. Parker demonstrates that he knows lots about nonfiction writing and includes many nonfiction conventions. His language conventions and spelling have greatly improved but it is his writing fluency that demonstrates the most obvious progress.

Parker's final piece, which was written in early March, is a response to literature written during the Kevin Henkes author study. Parker has a complete retelling of Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse. I think it is probably one of Parker's favorite stories because it's the one that his mother read to his class. Parker's spelling and use of sight words has really improved along with his use of conventions. He even used dialogue in the retelling, along with quotation marks! Parker is developing his own voice in his writing but it is the ten pages that he writes that is most impressive.

Parker is a wonderful example of what can be accomplished when a student writes daily in a Writers' Workshop and is exposed to mini-lessons that teach him all about genres and writer's craft.

"Watch" How Time Will Tell!

It's time for the last standard-based bulletin board of the year. Most teachers have posted "work over time." The Mallards have looked at writing over time and have posted work over the Kindergarten and first grade year of a single student. The first piece, which is a writing log, looks at how the child's writing changed with a sample from kindergarten each month of the year. The growth is obvious as the student moves from a drawing that tells a story in August to a long written piece by the end of the year that shows a growing sight word bank, beginning punctuation and writing stamina.
The first piece written in early first grade is a small moment, "When I Went Ice Skating." The author writes a series of mini-events and shows that she has learned to edit her own work (using a green pencil). In October the student completed a Question/ Answer pattern book, "Swimming Fun," that introduced a unit on nonfiction writing.
The December piece is a report about the student's family. It includes a Table of Contents, comparison, a "how to"/ procedural piece and a narrative about a vacation. The piece shows that the student has been exposed to and has internalized the nonfiction conventions.

In February the young author wrote a response to the book, Wemberly Worried, during an author study of Kevin Henkes. This is one of many responses that the student wrote during the author study. The work meets the standard as it includes an opening, a detailed retelling and a closing.



The final piece is a letter written during our persuasive writing unit. This young writer wrote to the lifeguards at the beach asking them to come out a little earlier so she can have some fun!



It is always amazing at the progress that children make from the day they enter kindergarten until they end first grade. This bulletin board certainly displays that well and shows a young writer that is well on her way!

Work-over-time 3, 2008

Cheryl Dillard showcases Daniel's work across the kindergarten year. She includes a "task" and the writing standards on her standards-based bulletin board. The board also includes three pieces of Daniel's work - one piece at the beginning of the year, one in the middle of the year and one at the end of the year - along with commentary.Each standard-based bulletin board includes a "task." In Cheryl's task she describes the Literacy Block in her classroom. Her students have benefited from a daily Readers' and Writers' Workshop. In writing they have generated their own topics, worked through five genres (narrative, procedure, reports, response-to-literature, poetry) of writing and have polished a piece in each genre to go in their final portfolio.
Daniel attended Pre-Kindergarten and was well prepared for Kindergarten at Chets Creek. When Daniel entered he knew most of his letters and sounds. He could retell a story that had been read to him several times using his own language. However, he did not enjoy Writers' Workshop and was easily upset when it came to writing. He even tried to convince his mom to let him stay home so he wouldn't have to write! In the beginning Daniel did draw pictures and could write his name, although most of the letters were uppercase.
By January Daniel knew all his letters and was reading at the B level (the end of kindergarten benchmark). As he became most confident in writing, he began to write small amounts about his pictures. His pictures included more detail and so did his oral stories about his picture. He was beginning to use spaces, had left-to-right and top-to-bottom directionality, and spelled most words phonetically. His writing was readable. I went to the airport to pick up my Grandma and Grandpa.
On Spring Break I went to the Magic Kingdom The hotel was the Pop Century. On the second day I went to the kingdom. I went with my grandpa, grandma, dad, mom and two sisters. I liked Splash Mountain and Buzz and pirates. I got frightened (a vocabulary word from our Star Vocabulary Unit!) on Big Thunder! On the third day we went on the Monorail and a boat and a bus. This was my second favorite vacation.

By the Spring Daniel has really increased his stamina and fluency as seen above in his 3-page story that was written in a single Writers' Workshop. It is evident that he now enjoys Writers' Workshop and can write the stories of his life. He writes many words phonetically and uses many sight words with spaces between words. All of this makes his work easy to read.

These three pieces of Daniel's work provide a snapshot of his literacy development in kindergarten. He has learned a great deal as a writer. His remarkable growth as a writer is due in no small part to the quality instruction he has received in Mrs. Dillard's class!

Work-over-time 2, 2008

Maria Mallon keeps her work-over-time in a little different way - The Writing Book. While she keeps a final portfolio that includes a piece of work in each of the four genres and three pieces of work over time for each student, she also makes a booklet for each of her students and finds a time for them to write in it at the beginning of each month. In this way she can send home a work-over-time, a keepsake, that represents each month of the year so that families can join with their child to celebrate progress. The parents - and the child - are often amazed at how the work has changed across the kindergarten year. Maria showcases three booklets - three children - on her bulletin board, but in this entry I'll take a look at Connor's work.In Connor's booklet in August he is able to draw a person but is not yet able to write letters and words to represent his thoughts. He can tell about the picture orally but does not realize that he can also write about the picture.By November Connor is using the letters and sounds he knows to write words phonetically and also uses some of the sight words he has learned. When I went to school on the first day, I was frightened (vocabulary word from the Star Vocabulary Unit!) My grandma said, "Do not cry."By the end of the year Connor is able to write his thoughts and feelings. He is able to write a story that has a beginning and an ending and has many details. Because he writes words that he does not know phonetically, uses many sight words and spaces, his piece can be easily read by an adult.

Connor's booklet offers a snapshot of growth from August until May that is fairly typical of many kindergarten students at Chets Creek. What a celebration!