What's Up With Teacher Training? New Teachers? Mentoring? New Programs for Other Teachers? How's That Working?

Gosh, I wish some of you would comment or e-mail me about something!!! I am looking at my stats and seeing page views and I'm actually asking some questions because I want some feedback. Yes, I am your work horse.  I want to look for information, assignments or anything that can make your life as an educator or parent easier. I am revising my material from years past and modernizing it after looking over business articles, educational articles and anything that could potentially influence the lives of the children you are teaching and make your job easier. I am good at inferring things so your requests don't have to be wordy. Just says things like - more on Core or classroom management stuff - just a few words and I'm good to go.

New teachers - what are "they" doing to prepare you to teach in the manner your school district dictates? When I was still teaching, most districts had something in place that required you to report to a large meeting facility for a pep rally and then break out groups for your grade-level or subject-discipline were scheduled along with diversity training and other special sessions to be sure you understood the laws governing your behavior toward students, parents, co-workers and any other human being with whom you might have contact.

At the building level, you had a handbook and a mentor teacher.  The mentor teacher might get re-certification points for guiding you depending on the number of hours spent instructing you in the skill set(s) you needed to be exemplary.  There were also some off-site meetings to be sure that the new teachers weren't sinking because research is pretty damning about the loneliness and isolation surrounding inductees and how most leave teaching in the first four years.

I felt all this galloping about was a waste of time. Overcrowded classrooms, multi-levels of student readiness and ELL are just a few of the problems facing all teachers along with the stress of a business-model-style of evaluation that is just not measuring student learning or even if the teacher is truly effective.  So what would be a more effective use of time to train new teachers and give experienced teachers some time to work together to develop some effective teaching materials? I'm so glad you asked.

I have a complete version of this, but briefly here it is:
1. New teachers observe master teachers in their base schools in two hour blocks during the first grading period.  The final total of observation hours must be ten.  This will earn these new teachers ten re-certification points for the renewal of their teaching license. This can be structured for each school district.
2. During the observation, new teachers will use an enhanced evaluation form with a check-list and a small space for note-taking. (The evaluation form will be based on the school district's own evaluation form to help new teachers understand what is expected of them and identify best practices.)
3. Upon completion of the ten hours of observation - the new teachers will get together in teams (I would limit this to 2 people teams) formed by the principal or his/her designee and design a 12-slide Power Point presentation of best practices. (I have a directions for the format of this slide show and used it with my Foundations of Education graduate-level students to replace their 30 hours of writing observation journals.
4. The new teachers present the slide show at a grade-level meeting (or other meeting established by the administration) attended by the principal (or designee) and may be awarded additional re-certification points.
5. The master teachers get re-certification points for being observed.
6. The Power Points may be of sufficient quality to be used by the school district for instructional purposes or awards and bonuses. The ones my grad students produced were simple, effective and 30 hours of observation by 13 class members became 390 hours of shared information showcasing best practices. Yippee!!!!!!
If you want all the bells and whistles - I'm working on revising some of the pieces of it right now - but this will have a price tag.  Not sure what it will be, but not much - I never was about money.
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For teachers already hard at work - my training program involves training you to use video conferencing to develop your lesson plans in your comfy clothes and with teachers that have the same goals as you do.

This year, I was in class with a teacher who was the only Latin teacher in her high school and because of scheduling issues - she had multiple levels of Latin students in various periods.  This meant she might be teaching out of three different levels of texts in one period.  She was exhausted and I asked if there was a way for her to share with other Latin teachers across the county?  She didn't think so - but I wondered if since they used the same texts and levels what it might have been like for her if other teachers could have cooperatively planned a week's worth of lessons for a level, and then shared them using video conferencing.

Imagine developing outcome-based projects and STEM material with teachers that share your level of enthusiasm. Imagine publishing this material and/or getting re-certification points for it. Teachers need to have a certain level of intellectual property rights or value placed on the original material they develop on time beyond contract hours. I realize budgets are strained, but offering publishing rights and other options might spur competition to produce products of the highest quality.

Now you have the gist of my ideas for productive use of your training time. Time is the one thing we can never get back and it is like gold.  We must spend it wisely and well. Teachers need to be in control of their training hours and be sure that what they learn or produce is valuable. Remember, I'm your work horse - if you have a question - ask.

A Leadership Report Card - Another Chance to Channel Research into a Different Format and a Few Thoughts on Approaches to Common Core

It has come to me in the past few days that teachers are dealing with many issues as they implement Common Core or in the state of Virginia, tougher Learning Standards that mimic the Common Core in the mechanics or structure of the objectives. If you don't want to read this sort of philosophical hand wringing - just skip down to the report card.  Basically, it is application of critical thinking skills and transferring what has been learned to new situations. Teachers have been given the task of creating the autonomous student.

Teachers must insure that the material they have presented has "stuck" in the neurons and synapses of their students and can be used analytically on new material when students are presented with questions that ask them to pick the "best situation" answer. This will be much more subjective than objective and I think teachers are going to have to try and decipher how the test designers pattern the questions and set up the two answers that a thoughtful person would think might be the correct choice. I took a quick peek at the practice test web site and tried to do some analysis, but got a royal headache and stopped because I think it will take me awhile to nail it down.

An excel spreadsheet to track key words in the explanations given to justify the correct answer choice to find a pattern is probably the way to go.  I am not a math person so will only focus on one grade level in elementary, middle and high school in English to see if I find a reasonable approach to decision making choices you can hand off to your students.  I'll take a peek at elementary math because I did teach that at one point, but I make no promises about making any great finds.

Now the main point that flashed into my brain this morning that I want to share before I explain the leadership report card.  I've been reading impossible numbers for class sizes and the variety of student learning styles and needs being reported in newspaper and my informal talks with teachers I meet confirm this information.

The solution in the 70's was learning centers.  I first started teaching in an open classroom with eight other teachers.  We couldn't teach whole class.  We used a centers approach and taught small rotating groups. We even got together and designed centers so that we weren't overwhelmed with work.  We used those big manila envelopes so that all the parts could be stored upright in a Staples box with no lid - labeled the outside with the objective and passed them around. I'll write more about this later. Now, the leadership report card.

The Leadership report card is modeled on an old-fashioned elementary school report card.  It should have a front - designed by the student group preparing the report card and then be folded in half and have a left and right side.  The back is where the students will list their names and the citations from their research.  It will work best if the group uses Power Point to do this project because they can put in the text boxes and design features. Once the report card is ready the group should present this orally and average all the grades together to produce an overall leadership grade.

They can do a Power Point, a panel discussion, a tableau (could be fun if they dressed historically - one group in one of my classes did a report card on poor Marie Antoinette, she got a D and that was a gift of a grade - and they did a tableau - one was Marie and the rest her courtiers and she even had a stuffed toy poodle - each courtier stepped forward and related a story about her and she refuted the myth that she had ever said, "Let them eat cake." They used fake French accents and it was fantastic, well-research and really entertaining.
Front of report card:

  MILLENNIUM LEADERSHIP SCHOOL LEADERSHIP REPORT CARD

FOUNDED 2000 - 2000 MILLENNIUM JOURNEY ROAD

SUCCESSVILLE, FUTUREWORLD 2000-314159

 NAME OF LEADER: _________________________________________

 PLACE OF BIRTH:___________________________________________

 DATE OF BIRTH (DEATH IF NEEDED):__________________________

 CURRENT POSITION:________________________________________

 PAST POSITIONS OF NOTE:__________________________________

___________________________________________________________

PHOTO OR PORTRAIT:

TIMELINE of MAJOR EVENTS and ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Inside left of report card:  

Name of leader:_________________  Letter grades are given in each category with specific written examples of how the grade was determined.  A = 90% - 100%, B = 80% - 89%, C = 70% - 79%, D = 60% - 69%, F = 59% or below.

_________________________________________________________________________________

_____    Accomplishments or Products:

_____

Letter Grade

_________________________________________________________________________________

             Vision or Mission (Look for Quotes)

______

______

Letter Grade

_________________________________________________________________________________

            Intelligence/Skills Needed to be Effective in area of leadership ie. military, C.E.O., politics, other

            (Schools attended - grades - inventions - writings - etc.) 

______

______

Letter Grade

_________________________________________________________________________________

            Communication Skills/Charisma

______

______

Letter Grade

_________________________________________________________________________________

             Organizational Skills/Indications of Resourcefulness

______

______

Letter Grade

_________________________________________________________________________________

Inside Right of Report Card

_________________________________________________________________________________

             Persistence/Ruthless

_____

_____

Letter Grade

_________________________________________________________________________________

             Loyal

_____

_____

Letter Grade

_________________________________________________________________________________

             Sense of Values/Morals/Ethics

______

______

Letter Grade

_________________________________________________________________________________

            Physical Well-being

_____

_____

Letter Grade

_________________________________________________________________________________

            Risk Taker

_____

_____

Letter Grade

_________________________________________________________________________________

Back of Report Card: Names of group members starting with group leader - please list briefly what you did to make the project a success: __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Works Cited

Your Best Read? You Have to Be A Reading Role Model!!!

What book are you reading right now? I'm reading my training manual to become a Group Fitness Instructor put out by the American Council on Exercise to prepare to take my test this August before I take a graduate course in Introduction to Cinema Studies from George Mason University to self-renew my license to teach.

I know - you're thinking - she's retired, is she crazy?  She just met a nice woman at a group meeting who has ten years left and she wants to change professions or find another way to use her skill set and here you are getting back in the game.

It has to do with being a storyteller I think.  I have one more tattoo to get on my right ankle.  It will be a tribal raven. I just have to design the branch.

The raven is a storytelling bird, as well as a trickster. The raven is the first bird up in the morning flying through the sky to tell all the other birds the story and that is how I taught.  I told stories - not all of the time, but if the time was right, some tale would jump right out of my mouth and I couldn't do a thing about it.

One time, I even had my students convinced that I had been abducted by aliens.  I told them I had taken my poodle, Sugar, out for her nightly back yard stroll and lost track of time.  I had looked up and a very bright light filled the sky.  I always took Sugar out at 9:15 pm. and the next time I looked at my watch, it was 9:30 pm.  The next morning, I noticed a large lump in my thumb - it didn't hurt - it was just annoying.  I went to the doctor and he didn't know what it was even after taking an x-ray.  He said he could remove it, but I might not be able to use my thumb as well as I would like.  I decided to let well enough alone.

The kids all (well, almost all) wanted to feel the lump which was a harmless bone spur (I guess - that was the doctor's guess).  Word spread like wild fire and students from all over my middle school came to feel the lump in my thumb. I never said I was abducted by aliens, the kids just thought I had been.  Parents even called the school. Fortunately, my principal knew me well enough to know I was teaching units on myths and legends and was using this story to illustrate the difference - that a legend can be created from a kernel of truth.  To this day, I run in to adults (former students) who still want to think I was abducted by aliens.

So what does this have to do with what you are reading?  Hopefully, you will find the joy of giving a book talk or sharing a story or a piece of learning so that you become comfortable with the teachable moment when you pull out your tablet or book or whatever and take a few minutes to rave about something that got you inspired - passionate.  That's what students remember - the stories we tell - not our "lesson plans based on objective number 64".

Today, I learned how to modify exercises for pregnant women and it took me back to when I was pregnant with my daughter and how I had to go through 13 years of infertility treatments to have her and what a lucky woman I am to have been successful.  I also was reminded of one of my students telling me that the day I told the story of The Snow Queen by Hans Christian Anderson changed her life.  We were in the bathroom of a local restaurant and she shared that she had taken her nieces, nephews, cousins and finally her own children to see the show at the Kennedy Center Terrace Theater.

So read, share and be a role model for your students - you never know what moral compass you are gifting them with or what passion you are igniting.  I was lucky - I got to find out that something I shared made a difference.  

Student Book Talk Example - A Quick Way to Replace Book Reports and Encourage Personal Reading

In an increasing non-fiction atmosphere, English and history teachers will have to work hard to establish ways to connect students to "good" reads.  I found that tapping into one of my naughty, little-sister brat activities gave me an idea for an assignment that accomplished a lot of my goals.  I wanted students to hear from each other about books that they found exciting - not just me, I needed to keep the time this assignment took minimized -  yet generate teaching a lot of objectives or measuring the effectiveness of my teaching of a particular objective.

My older sister, a Phi Beta Kappa, very cerebral - used to keep a file of her numerous favorite quotes. These were decorated and neatly stored in a box on her desk that was off limits to me - seven years her junior. However, never let it be said that privacy was in my lexicon at that point.  I was nine and she was sixteen. I rummaged through her quotes and was impressed by her dedication, decorations and literary choices.

Jump ahead to 2004, and the increasing pressure to produce not just proficient test scores, but advanced proficient test scores and I remembered how intrigued I was by my sister's quotes.  Often, her quotes inspired me to seek out the book from the local library or make a mental note to check the book out later. I decided this was a quick and relevant way to get some literary analysis, without the mind-numbing requirement of a book report.

I did ask students to identify and define any vocabulary they felt might be considered difficult and I used those words for tests and quizzes. Additionally, the book talks generated an oral presentation grade along with a brief written report - but the oral reports were limited to 3 minutes. Usually, the whole class could present in a period.

An example is provided for you to use as you like - let me know of any modifications that work for you.

Book Talk: Example - Don’t forget to explain your book briefly, have a prop/graphic, and explain quote and why you chose it and vocabulary

                                                                     Suzie Student

                                                                     Jones English 2

                                                                     9/21/2014

Citation:

Caldwell, Ian and Thomason, Dustin.  The Rule of Four.

        New York: The Dial Press, 2004.

Quote:

               Hope, Paul said to me once, which whispered from Pandora’s box only after all the other plagues and sorrows had escaped, is the best and last of all things.  Without it, there is only time, And time pushes at our back like a centrifuge forcing us outward and away, until it nudges us into oblivion.  That, I think, is the only explanation for what happened to my father and me, just as it happened to Taft and Curry, the same way it will happen to the four of us here in Princeton inseparable as we seem.  It’s a law of motion, a fact of physics that Charlie could name, no different from the stages of white dwarfs and red giants.  Like all things in the universe, we are destined from birth to diverge.  Time is simply the yardstick of our separation.  If we are particles in a sea of distance, exploded from an original whole, then there is a science to our solitude.  We are lonely in proportion to our years (Caldwell & Thomason 196).

Vocabulary:

1. centrifuge- an apparatus consisting of a compartment spun about a central axis to separate contained materials of different specific gravities

2. oblivion- a place of nothingness

3. diverge- to go separate ways

Visual Storytelling and Interactive Data from USA Today - Finding Your Students' Passions and Correcting Behavior Issues

Yesterday, I attended a meetup developed by Gannett News and USA Today about their Visual Storytelling and Interactive Data Department.  I'm not sure if department is the proper name to give this team, but they are a highly creative group of people dedicated to putting interested people in touch with a story in a unique way- a sort of 360 experience with the data being expertly available at the level the person chooses.  It's a very forward-thinking concept and they follow stories that stir their passions.

Passions is possibly the key word that grabbed my attention throughout the session. These professionals have a gut-level passion about what they are doing.  It is and has been my contention that our job as educators is to keep providing "aha" experiences for our students - not an easy job with all the pressures of curriculum changes, testing and what I like to call the-tail-wagging-the-dog syndrome. I would keep an eye on the stories this team is producing because the powerful graphics, images, narrative and interactive nature of their product should have multiple applications in the classroom - especially in the area of enhancing the appeal of research and technology.

The-tail-wagging-the-dog syndrome has to do with classroom behavior or lack of it.  Teachers tell me that they often lack the support of the administration and that individual students can "pick apart" a good teacher's reputation. This is sad and wrong. Hopefully, getting a committee to survey teachers and get some data about teachers' level of satisfaction focused primarily on student behavior may be an effective way to demonstrate that this is a building-level problem.

I know end-of-year surveys often gather this type of information, but it is often too generic to be effective in driving change. If several teachers are being held hostage by a few students per-class, then maybe some table talk at lunch might generate some solutions. I'm not advocating gossip, but some sort of positive sessions that unite a department or grade level in some strategies to help each other.  Break down the silos - share!  This job is too hard and too rewarding to go it alone.

Training and Testing - Teachers Must Be In Charge!

This will be a quick blog because I wonder what the training will look like to prepare teachers for administering the Common Core tests or tests that are more "situational" in nature.  This is interesting to me because I am preparing to become a Group Fitness Instructor and have to take an exam that is set up along the same format.  I will be given a situation and out of four possible choices, I must choose the best solution or path based on my accumulated knowledge.

So far, I haven't taken any of the practice exams yet, but the complexity of the material reminds me of the knowledge required to be an effective teacher.  Group Fitness Instructors must know various learning styles, be aware of the different needs or limitations of the learners within their classes and offer appropriate adaptations and most importantly, be motivational.

Does any of that sound familiar? In fact, two chapters and a little more of the manual made me feel right at home because Group Fitness Instructors are teachers in every sense of the word.  Outstanding GFI's are just like outstanding teachers - he or she can monitor and adjust the pace and focus of the class rapidly because assessing the needs of the group and the individuals making up the group become second nature to a professional.  Instinct helps a teacher to pick up when students aren't mastering a skill and experience gives a teacher many tools to offer adaptations for a student to become successful and feel included.

The trick is knowing when and how to step in and offer assistance.  Experienced, successful teachers will tell you that "the trick" is offering the student a chance to communicate with you in a non-threatening way. You are not their friend, but you are there to get things right.  So make yourself available as much as possible in ways that don't attract attention. Ask the student for help putting away materials or other easy chores.

I hope that the training teachers receive to implement testing will be effective.  I hope that teachers will be able to work together to develop strategies to prepare students for these complex test questions. Most of all, I hope that if the training sessions are ineffective - that the feedback teachers give on evaluation sheets will be noted and more effective training will be offered. Speak up! Demand time and training!  Teachers are the professionals and it is time for us to have a much larger role in test implementation.

Test Prep Review - One Stop Shopping for an Overview of Common Core and Other Standardized Tests URL Given FYI

http://www.testprepreview.com/common-core-test-prep.htm

Now that I have visited the above referenced site, I can see why teachers are pulling their hair out over implementing the new tests.  I've been in a room with four English teachers who couldn't agree on various usage issues.  As I worked my way through the 10th grade English practice tests questions, some of the questions and answers worked - not too hard to figure out how to present the material using best practices in the classroom.

However, one question and the correct answer really had me scratching my head. It was the choice for the ending of an essay and the correct choice involved interjecting the personal pronoun "my" as in my business plan. Of course, I retired to my fainting couch because in the opening of the essay there was no indication that this was an informal essay.  I would have preferred the word choice - a potentially successful business plan - as the word choice because this was an essay intended for a scholarship committee.

It is painfully obvious that STEM is the driving force behind setting up the essays - hence (awkward use of antiquated word would earn me a slap on the Common Core wrist for being too formal) most of the sequenced essay set-up questions deal with science-related and business-related topics. Yikes - English teachers - I'd be sure to understand the business world jargon for sure and be sure you have the main ideas behind STEM working in your classroom to prep for these tests and this was on the 10th grade level. Sigh . . .

While I wouldn't necessarily say this is a horrible thing - I fear it may turn English/Literature teachers into business teachers in terms of content selection and eliminate comparing and contrasting major literary themes. My daughter had a business course in high school and some of what I'm reading sounds like the curriculum that came from that class and the text book she used.  Of course, she's a successful C.P.A. and twenty-eight, but that's a choice she made having had at least a grounding in some classics while in high school. Colleges have become so specialized, that unless a student majors in English, the course freshmen take  "Communications" doesn't require much in the way of understanding or deconstructing: themes; character traits; effective use of language, and the multicultural issues that can be effectively handled in fiction and then linked to non-fiction material.

Teachers - I think there is a strong argument for holding off counting these tests as measures of teacher effectiveness for at least two years and to use them as field instruments only.  Best wishes for those of you faced with understanding these rather complex instruments - yes, they do require thinking and are better than the current recall measures, but in setting up essay and complex usage scenarios, it should really take four years to weed out test questions that aren't on point and teachers working with the curriculum should have the final word.

What is Your Favorite Trade Book?

In Prince William County Public School, VA., we have particular required readings for each grade level with some extra readings for our Gifted and Talented students. Before reaching 8th grade language arts, I had spent several years reading aloud: The Hobbit and Tom Sawyer. I loved reading both books and had fun turning them into cliff hangers stopping at just the right moment to insure that my students would be begging for me to continue.  I continued to read aloud to my high school students - not whole books - but following the model of the Great Books series.

I think that students never outgrow the need for informal "book talks".  I always carried a novel or non-fiction book that was appropriate to share with my students and if things were dragging, I could spring into action becoming an advertisement for whatever material I was reading. I still carry a book so that I am never bored.

I encouraged students to share what they were reading as long as it was appropriate for school. As far as the trade books that teachers were required to teach at each grade level, we had ancillary materials, usually a film and I always turned to my support team - the school librarian and/or the public librarian and the buyer for Barnes and Noble to find additional works.  Plus, I sent home the fliers from Scholastic (even in high school) to earn points to "buy/select" books for my classroom library. We have a great used book store in town and Salvation Army has loads of inexpensive paperbacks. I was always handing students books that I thought might work for them.

But my question is what trade book do you enjoy teaching/reading to your students and why?  I love Call of the Wild by Jack London because it can be used to teach leadership skills - compare and contrast the styles of Spitz and Buck.  The narrative includes descriptions of the dogs in the team that can translate into the kind of people you may find in your place of employment - some are slackers, some are good, but have special needs, others must be prodded to do their jobs - but will surprise you when treated fairly and with respect. I found this a tremendous opportunity to teach the roles people play in groups or teams and how a leader can get the most out of a team with proper leadership and management skills.

Also, the setting, Alaska/Canada, the historical implications and the actual man against nature element of the story are a (excuse the pun) gold mine of research opportunities for student groups. There is plenty of primary source evidence - photos and newspaper articles, plus material from the Canadian Mounties that show just how harsh the environment was and how much people scarified for the slim chance of a fortune.

There is also the poetry of Robert W. Service to add a variety of genres to a unit of study and the biographical details of London's own life that may serve as an inspiration to students that live writers do become famous and rise above very difficult early childhoods.

Please let me know what you love to teach and why - I enjoy hearing what other teachers are passionate about and why it feeds their love of teaching. Hope you will share.

How Do You Prep Students For Tests? Please look over the Archived Titles for Children's Book Idea . . .

Multiple choice test design normally has two distracting questions and then the students has a 50% chance of getting it right.  I've heard stories of students who simply bubbled in C for the whole test or B.  I remember designing tests and then working back through them to be sure that there was no pattern or answer choice that kept reappearing. Things like four B's in a row.  When word processing programs came out I thought I had died and gone to heaven.

We old dragons remember typing our tests/assignments on memo-graph style paper and then running the product through a special hand cranked machine that turned out purple dittos or worksheets. The liquid you poured in the machine was clear, but if you spilled any on your clothing - it was purple forever...

Back to test taking strategies - this is much like good pre-reading strategies. Key words, key words and look for superlatives - no always, never or most of the time. I promise to find the writing scoring site for you - I hope you can score a 4 when you challenge yourself by answering the prompt and I hope it's still there in the world of the Internet.

Have a great weekend.

No Counting of the Common Core Tests in the District for One Year

Today's Washington Post made it official - teachers and principals won't be held accountable for the test scores on the more difficult Common Core Tests for one year.  This makes me wonder what the tests are like?  Are they like the old SRA's that I used to give to sixth-grade students in Fairfax County, Virginia? Do they break out the demographics of the scores?

In the SRA, the reading test domains were all non-fiction and indicated whether students had mastered the skills of separating fact from opinion, making predictions, drawing conclusions and the like.  In the ten years I spent teaching sixth grade, students had the most problems drawing conclusions. After I noticed this trend, I tried all sorts of strategic interventions, but the scores stayed relatively flat. Since I am a believer in Piaget's theories that children don't do well with abstract thinking until they are developmentally ready, I felt that perhaps this skill was just a little beyond their developmental level.

I already indicated that I will see what I can find out about the tests and will spend some time next week looking for a web site that I used to share with my grad students.  It gives you a writing prompt and then scores it for you on a scale of 1 to 4.  The site also provides feedback - explaining why you got your score.
I have explained that the Common Core anchor papers are formulaic. Think of this as a syllogism - this web site will be useful to you because if you use the Writing Rubric I designed based on the Virginia Standards of Learning and the ACT test - your students should be able to rack up 4's on this site. The only thing you need to teach them about is T-scores.  This is an old measure and has to do with the length of the sentences and the number of syllables used in a variety of words.  The idea is that the writer demonstrates control if he or she can write a few complex sentences with multiple uses of poly-syllabic words.  

I don't remember how the score is derived - but I tossed out a number of between 5 or 6 long sentences in a five paragraph essay and that seemed to work.  If anyone out there remembers how the T-score is obtained or thinks that students need more than 5 or 6 "long" sentences - please chime in - I hate this kind of stuff, but it is what we must do for our students to get scholarships and have a pattern in place for the day-to-day grind of survivalist writing. Cheers - I'll be sharing some more ideas about how students can write for publication.

The Rest of the story of BIG BOY . . .

 Here's the article that inspired the children's book

Another Take On Research - Using a News Story to Help Students Create and Publish A Children's Book or YA Fiction

Like most readers, I go through phases and read various styles of fiction and then fall in love with non-fiction. One book that got me hooked on well-written, well-researched non-fiction was: Ship of Gold in the Deep Blue Sea: The History and Discovery of the World's Richest Shipwreck by Gary Kinder.  This is the brief summary from Amazon.com.  Ship of Gold tells the gripping tale "of the sinking of the SS Central America, a side-wheel steamer carrying nearly six hundred passengers returning from the California Gold Rush, two hundred miles off the Carolina coast in September 1857. Over four hundred lives and twenty-one tons of California gold were lost. It was the worst peacetime disaster at sea in American history, a tragedy that remained lost in legend for over a century." Reading this and other non-fiction books helped me decide that it was a possible source of publication opportunities for my students.

I had noticed a growing trend in children's books to connect stories to some news worthy, historical event or use the narrative to explain a process such as voting. The excellent children's book buyer at Barnes and Noble provided me with several sample books - which I purchased to use as examples for my students.

You could visit the public library and get the same support. Elementary teachers are looking for non-fiction texts that provide high-interest reading topics for their students so that they can meet the demands of the Common Core and/or just find good source material to get students involved in enjoying research at an early age. It's also a great motivation to write with an actual audience in mind.  If you can use your school district's instructional support personnel to match you with an interested elementary teacher, that would be an excellent way to find topics.

One I had introduced the format for children's books which was extensive use of illustrations, limited use of words per page and limited vocabulary - my students took on the challenge of writing children's books based on a newspaper article (it could also be YA).

Note: It will take me some time to scan in the pages so I will do this over the next few days - please have patience.  The first scan is the article that inspired Alicia's book: Big Boy The Tree Cat.

 I will be adding the rest of the pages over the next few days because each scan with my old machine takes ten minutes or longer. So you will get the whole story of Big Boy!!  This assignment does have the potential to be a money maker if handled properly.  For my students who were not artistic - computer generated copyright free clip art was fine or finding another student to act as an illustrated was also fine.  Good luck for a restful summer - go to jjcombosizing.com for some exercise ideas to get healthy on summer break. :-)

Using Paper Bag Puppets and Student Created Products to Reinforce Use of Propaganda and Persuasive Techniques

Using Paper Bag Puppets and Student Created Products to Reinforce Use of Propaganda and Persuasive Techniques

The Dreaded Research Paper - can it be any better?

The dreaded research paper – how do you tackle that assignment?  Over my thirty-five years of assigning formal research papers or papers that required research and proper documentation, I have found a few things that made life easier.

Start teaching the basic MLA or proper style format your school district uses from day one for:

Books; Internet sources; Magazines, and newspapers.  I created posters – had them laminated and hung them around the room.  Each week, I had a quiz or test – students were asked to write an imaginary bibliography for a source using the correct format.  Even with the signs hanging in the room – many still had errors, but practice does help improve their command of proper documentation throughout the year and understand the plagiarism will not be tolerated.

If you can – choose a broad umbrella topic. One year I did: Medicine from the middle ages compared to modern medicine – better in most cases?  My students did oral reports using visual aids with this one and although some of the information was pretty ghastly – they loved it. Having an umbrella topic helps you connect with the librarian, your very best friend in collecting sources and getting a better handle on introductory and closing paragraphs.

Please teach outlining – do not let students outline the opening or closing paragraphs.  The purpose of the outline is to show the structure of the research: main topics: sub topics; details and supporting details.  I finally started having my students add the source (properly formatted) to the outline so that I could really dig into the logic of their organization before I reviewed their first drafts.  When I came up with this bright idea – it saved me a lot of time because I was able to catch mistakes of organization in their writing. Having the source identified allowed me to see if the student had made an honest effort to find relevant and/or up-to-date material.

To get ideas for umbrella topics – look to other content areas or non-fiction possibilities generated by the literary pieces you teach.  Try to find topics that don’t exist on the Internet.  When my daughter was in high school – I am sad to say that she did not have one research paper except for freshman year – that could not be found on the Internet. What was her freshman year assignment? 

Every freshman in her high school had to research potential jobs that would exist ten years in the future, find out what it would take to be eligible to be hired for the position, what the salary would be and other data related to the job and possible pluses and minuses for the field of employment.  Because of that paper, my daughter is a successful C.P.S today and knew exactly what moves she needed to take to insure her future.

Yes, I know there are software programs to catch plagiarism, but wouldn’t you rather build dynamic topic choices with your students that didn’t create that problem to start with?  Research papers can be a source of pain or pleasure – I happen to think that handled properly – focusing on topic choice – students can become consumers of information and understand how to use it to their advantage.  I have a really great follow-up assignment mixing research with creating a children’s book. So look forward to that.

The best lesson ever ... Media Literacy - Speed data collection

What was the best lesson I ever taught? I think it was how to collect relevant information in today's technological - 24-hour news cycle - social media world. This could also come under the heading of Media Literacy.

Objectives to be taught: Key word development, scanning first and last paragraphs and looking for statistics or numerical data for personal research and development

Materials needed: Lots of newspaper/magazine articles or printouts of newspaper/magazine articles - enough for two or more per student. Several rolls of scotch tape.  A cutout of a person made from newspaper that you tape to the chalkboard or some other convenient surface. Highlighters of various colors. A Facebook Profile of Person X that is student generated

Preparation: On white board (computer), over head, chalkboard - make list of topics that Person X, a junior college freshman, with writing talent and experience in retail might want to track using various forms of media.   Person X will have a Facebook profile, before you begin the assignment have your students create a profile for Person X. This will help them and you generate a list of interests for this imaginary person.

Pose the question:  How does person X quickly collect and/or track only relative data or knowledge that will improve his or her: employment/education opportunities; knowledge of important current events; insurance options; living arrangements; relationship advice; health and fitness options; entertainment opportunities; shopping bargains and hobbies?

Students will already have some knowledge of scanning for key words. Remind them the trick to information management is learning to scan and listen for key words. Person X must first develop a filter - just like a search engine, but the trick is knowing where to look and when to listen.
 Ask students how do search engines work with key words?
Let them know that:  Headlines, opening and closing paragraphs are the most likely places for clues to decide whether to read an item or dismiss it - the same with commentators - openings and closings. Charts, graphs and statistics are also clues to relative importance. Have one example prepared and highlighted as an example that you can show on your whiteboard or use a class set.

With that in mind - have the articles you have had your librarian help you find (notice how I assume the librarian will be your best friend - if he or she isn't  - I'd Luke Picard that and "Make it so!")and print out grouped in random piles.
The day of the activity - place students in groups - handing each group a stack of articles. Give them five minutes or less to sort the articles for Person X into pile A -keep and read or pile B - dismiss.

Next have them highlight the specific key words or data that matched Person X's profile and then have them bring the articles up and tape them around Person X.  With the profile of Person X still up - have a class discussion about the chosen articles - did the articles selected as "keepers" really match Person X's needs? What mistakes were made? Keep up with Person X . . . have students find a "home run" article or piece of information that matches Person X's profile with the key words or numerical data highlighted.  I only had a chance to do this once because it was a brainstorm idea - what I like to call a shower idea. I saw the trend for media overload and how unprepared our students would be to pick the best information from the coming deluge.  I think we owe it to them to help them wade through the garbage and learn how to become savvy consumers of information.

A follow-up lesson is to demonstrate how a lot of television shows can be accessed later and more information is provided on the affiliate's web site. Golden opportunities for creating an information folder on your desktop filled with your top picks of articles just for your lifestyle needs.

Rubric for Scoring Visual /Graphic Presentaion

Tough Week for the Common Core?

http://www.npr.org/blogs/ed/2014/06/09/320041096/tough-week-for-the-common-core

I just accessed this article today 6/11/14 and it is from NPR which receives money from The Gates Foundation so it is a fair indication of some of the conflicts revolving around the process involved in the set-up and roll-out of The Common Core.  I urge those of you with time and experience to read through those who had a hand in preparing the material - the ivory tower group is still heavily involved.  It troubles me that truly experienced teachers get a wink and a nod - and I still see a lot of recycled 70's material that may have gotten a face lift.  I promise to go back and pull my printouts out of my folder to verify my initial reactions!!!!! I don't want to spout an opinion without giving you some examples so that will be coming after I put up the Visual/Graphic Presentation Rubric Score Sheet.

One item of interest is that as I read through my training manual to prepare to take my American Council On Exercise Group Fitness Instructor Manual, I am stuck by the similarities in preparation to being an excellent teacher -

• Know your material and be certified in a particular area and only that area - you may obtain certificates in additional knowledge, but to add another area of expertise - you must pass an exam.
• Be prepared and safe - know CPR and in the case of Group Fitness Instructors know how to use the portable or automated external defibrillator (AED) - One of my teacher friends said that teachers must now be CPR certified, but it can be an online certification - I'm headed for the local American Red Cross for my training in both CPR and use of the AED
• Check out your environment for safety issues - use wipes and insure the integrity of your equipment
• Only give advice that you are certified to give
• Give pre-tests or  self-evaluations to know the varying fitness levels (in the case of students, learning levels and styles) of participants - get medical records or referrals as needed if certain benchmarks are indicated - high blood pressure, diabetes, family history of heart attacks and other indicators of possible health issues.
• Be encouraging - show modifications in a manner that will make participants feel included - not singled out 

So far - I feel right at home - these are the hallmarks of good teaching practices.  It makes me happy that my career path is lining up with prior experience in an unexpected way.  I can see myself working in an independent location demonstrating proper form so people will feel comfortable Combosizing on their own listening to their own playlists, but feeling confident that the modifications they make are right for their physical abilities. So teachers - what we do is standard practice in many fields.  I worked nine jobs after retiring from teaching and was trained anew for each one - the training materials always worked to match varying learning styles and be hands on - cute huh? 

Guess what?  Despite the fact that teachers are enduring industries attempts to "measure" the quality of our output, they are relying on our methodology to train employees. I find this amusing on one level, but irritating on another as more well-meaning people, like the Gates impose well-financed blitzes to reform and quantify learning in what has proven to be an expensive trial and error method that is now facing the reality of the multiple factors that influence learning and learners. I'm practical and it seems to me that we've just gotten way too fancy. My first principal had a developmentally sound approach to learning and we stressed less about tests until the time was right. Another interesting article -  http://dailycaller.com/2014/06/11/now-bill-gates-demands-that-common-core-tests-be-pointless-for-two-years/  (I do not endorse this article because I do not know the track record of this site, but I put it up here FYI only!)

Common Core - What Do You Think? Do student test results really show your worth as a teacher?

When the Common Core was first announced, I reviewed the reading/literature/grammar part of it because I wanted to see how different it was from what I had been teaching.  Having started teaching in 1972, my first thought was how familiar the methodology looked.  Discovery techniques, making connections, relying on skills rather than data memorization and the recommended reading lists were familiar as well.  In fact, I was surprised by the copyright dates which made the selections seem dated.

Next, I looked at the sample anchor papers and that's when I went into full-on dismay mood.  Just take a peek at the 10th grade writing sample and you'll see that it is formulaic, dull, limited in scope and a boon to teachers who wish to keep their students' writing mediocre. So non-educators - The Gates Foundation - got on a band wagon and it steam-rolled into another test measurement guided curriculum screw-up. In other words, the logarithm for producing the tests will determine the curriculum.

If the reading list had been more multi-cultural or showed reading selections that fostered a strong inter-disciplinary approach in high schools, I would have felt that it was indeed moving toward a 21st century model.  I think we have to come to grips with the changing nature of our population and how best to serve the single-parent household. I believe that will only come if we extend teaming or outcome-based learning into high schools and continue to collaborate with corporations to insure our students are competitive.  Many school systems are doing this, but students are still tracked because schedules can't be flexible - it is hard for AP students to get job skill certifications and equally hard for students in job skill certification programs to fit in AP classes.  Virtual high schools have made this easier, but not every family can afford a computer.

So what do you think? How do you feel about test scores evaluating your worth as a teacher?

The New Essay Portion of the ACT and SAT Some Updates . . . and junk research papers verses the real deal!!

Since I taught high school on the east coast which notably favors the SAT, I knew little about the writing prompts or the scoring of the ACT. However, a brief search revealed that in the past, ACT prompts were somewhat general, students were given a brief overview and thirty minutes to write a clear, well-thought-out essay.  The writing rubric I designed based on the domains for the Virginia Standards of Learning will work to prepare your students to excel on either the ACT or the SAT.  The ACT is holistically scored by two readers on a scale from 6 to 1. Writers who score a 6 demonstrate the most control.  The two scores are added together to obtain a writing score from 12 to 2 which is then added to the English test score. Two scores are generated - the combined English/Writing Score and a writing sub-score.  Visit this web site for more info:  http://www.actstudent.org/writing/writing-scores.html

However, both ACT and SAT testing services are upping their game - revising their test for more information please read this article: http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/act-college-admission-test-to-report-new-scores-in-2015/2014/06/05/1dbd96a8-ecaa-11e3-b98c-72cef4a00499_story.html

When I designed the rubric, I designed it to stand the test of time and I wanted it to reflect not just what the state Standards of Learning valued, but what writers and readers know is the internal checklist writers develop over time. Writers who are compelled to write don't necessarily follow the rules or even care - their passion drives them to create just as hunger drives the rest of us to eat.

The rubric is a tool - not a rule book - it should not be used to red ink students, but to assist them when they find a topic that excites them. I found that to be the most challenging part of my job - constantly generating situations that could set my students free to write about something important to them.  One of my worst days as a sub (after I retired) was asking each student in an 11th grade general English class what his or her topic was for the county mandated 4 page - 5 sources research paper.

It was obvious the students didn't have any passion for their topics - most of them had to refer to their notes to remember what they were. So much for generating a love of research and media literacy. Kids are savvy - it is sad that teachers' hands are tied by the culture of testing and fear of hot topics and the wrath of vocal groups of parents. As always - there are ways to find topics with the help of intrepid librarians - I hope yours is as good as mine always were and that you can encourage students to become fluent and inspired writers.

Rubric Score Sheet for Oral Presentation

New ACT Writing Test and SAT Test?!?

I hope everyone is following the changes in the college board exams and the fact that some colleges aren't even looking at test scores to admit students. The most significant question for English, history and other classes that are heavily involved in writing, is what type of assignment is best for student development if testing profiles are changing? The more involved the writer is in designing the piece, the better the outcome, but are teachers free to pursue that option?  More on this topic to come - I'll be checking my last revision of my writing rubric and comparing it to the ACT scoring profile so that the 12 point scale works with the rubric I've designed. If another revision is needed - I'll do that to make sure that the rubric will target the domains that will be scored so that the emphasis is provided when you assess their progress.

Bullying Revisited - If Educators Can't Stop the Bully - What About Giving the Bullied Improved Coping Skills?

Bullying has not gone away and we are still seeing horrific violence and tragedy, such as the Elliot Rodger killing spree, created by imperfect mental health options. Snark is well and on daily display - not just in social media, but in all media. Teachers are dealing with the constant barrage of the twenty-four hour news cycle. It headlines tragedies about teens and families that are beyond our comprehension. Frustrating to classroom teachers are the armchair quarterbacking pundits, untrained (in education) commentators, over-trained and under-experienced experts and celebrities who feel free to tell us how to do our job.

Despite studies, training, courses and public service announcements - students and educators are in many ways powerless. It has been my experience that both bullies and the bullied have serious problems and need mentoring from a very early age. This is an area for guidance counselors and other services to come into play because to highlight these issues in the classroom is often putting a target on someone's back. What role do school's Codes of Behavior play in dealing with bullies in school districts?  Many have gotten tough with bullying and cyber-bullying penalties, but consequences occur only after the damage is done. That is often the case in most situations - an attack has to occur before any corrective action can be taken which is why districts have taken the precaution of instituting courses to prevent bullying (I'm sure they are good - that's not my issue). I just suspect they don't always work as intended.

Fairfax County Public School in Virginia (one district where I used to teach) is overhauling its very tough Code of Behavior to decrease out-of-school suspensions and give more freedom to principals in deciding what consequences will be doled out. Now teachers will face the fact that powerful parents (sometimes bullies themselves) - or cranky parents, or the squeaky-wheel syndrome, will sway administrators from treating all students equally.  In-school suspension, which I support, is making a comeback in this district, but if the program turns out to be just a holding tank, it undermines teachers' authority. However, if the in-school suspension setting is conducted under strict supervision with trained personnel, stringent rules and a set list of assignments kept on file by the guidance counselor for future reference - it might work. It has the possibility of creating a guidance-secured paper trail, increasing teachers' ability to exercise classroom control and a bonus of not creating extra assignments for the teacher to grade. I will be watching the results with interest and crossed fingers.  

The insidious effects of our pop culture's marketing of violence without consequences, selling hyped teenage coming-of-age sexual adventures and lack of reasonable gun registration laws are all factors in the bully-bullied paradigm. Parents try hard to stem the tide of the images, devices and games available to their children, but being on-guard twenty-four hours a day is impossible.

I happen to be against classes and other sorts of in-school programs that propagandize an anti-bully theme and group-teach methods against being a victim. I don't like training students to be victims and I don't like giving bullies any precious class time that I can use doing some amazing lessons. However, I do offer two interesting one on one strategies that I gave to my sometimes bullied students.

Possible scenario - You, normally moving bullied student to separate area of classroom
You: So, what's going on - looks like you're having a rough day. . . (employ wait time and sit or kneel down - be relaxed and comfortable - have some material in your hand.  Appear as if you're going over extra credit.) I have some extra work if you'd like to take a look - this piece of theater is for the student on-lookers.  Even though you've taken student X out over to the side - the other students are always curious and eagle-eyed.)
Student X: Nothing, I'm okay.
You: Hey, no problem, I just noticed you had a broken pencil - I do have one in the bin over there if you need another one.
Student X: Yeah, I'll get one.
You: Good - something else, I thought I saw student Y break your pencil.  That's not okay, but can I tell you something - I had this kid that used to push me down when I played sandlot softball at your age. I was so angry and upset. (Wait time will be important here . . .  and may drive you crazy.)
Student X: You did? What did you do?
You: Well, I can't exactly go into that, but I'll tell you one thing I do today when I get angry - now this is a secret - I have an avatar - I am a raven. If I get angry - I see the raven in my mind and I just let what's happening go away  - I have another trick when people say stupid stuff or say bad things about the work I am doing. Usually, other people come up and tell me what these people have said about me behind my back.
Student X:  People say mean stuff about you - you're adult. Really? What else do you do? Does it work?
You:  Yes, I'm sad to say - adults are mean, too. My second trick, is kind of silly, but it helps - when people are getting to me or making me feel bad - I put the song: "Mustang Sally" in my head - so have an avatar and a song to help you shake off what other people are saying to take away your power. Then you won't be their puppet - you're in control. I know it isn't easy - when people break your things or maybe even physically hurt you, but this way - you know your own power and can walk away.
Now, here's the extra book report form and you can have this pass to go to the library and pick out a book - I'll expect the report in a week.

Synopsis: No-group think, don't let other students know you are counseling the bullied student if you can avoid it because you will be putting a target on the kid's back, give him or her an extra credit assignment and grade it. Helping the student to come up with a suitable avatar and song will be the trickiest part of this task - you may have to break this intervention into a couple of sessions, but stick with it . . . brain storm and then check and recheck with the student.  If  the two tricks aren't working, have him or her try different avatars or songs. The main idea is to steer this child out of victim-hood and give him or her future anger management techniques. The world is a mean place these days - we all need coping skills. So what's your avatar and golly gee, I think I can hear you humming your song . . . Good luck and bless you for tackling the best job in the world.

How to make your curriculum really relevant - connect it to job/life skills - not test scores, STEM, TECH or . . .

     Just received and read my VEA Journal today and found myself reflecting that except for a few new acronyms that the fuel firing of many of the writers of these articles was either harrumphing or touting solutions for topics that have been the targets of educators for a long, long time. So the question I want to pose is what do students really want to learn?  My students always told me they thought they were in school to get a job and since I was teaching language arts, I laughed because I wondered what listing being able to identify iambic pentameter or writing lovely similes would do for them on a job resume.
     The question still remains - what do students expect from the twelve plus years they spend in school? They (not to mention their parents) have every right to expect to walk out with skills that will help them get a job and not just any job -maybe uncover talents to launch a career. At least that's what I came to believe. So I looked at my objectives, followed the business sections of multiple media outlets and did some other research and learned what C.E.O.'s of major corporations wanted.
     What can language arts teachers change about the delivery of their curriculum to give their students a head start in the job market? Here's a brief list of what students can do: non-fiction - researched- based writing that is properly sourced; clear e-mail or memo style writing; learn and use leadership skills ( these can be taught when you are teaching character traits - lots of fun and can be done over and over again with different pieces of literature or media); the ability to work in a group and use time management skills to keep the group on task and productive; learn public speaking skills (teaching a unit on debate is really a home run if you can figure out how to match it up with your grade-level objectives - also, work with your social studies teacher to show some videos of some great speeches and analyze the persuasive techniques embedded in the speech), and create graphic presentations using persuasive language/ techniques.
     Here's a quick example that combines an assigned ninth-grade text with a project that hits on a lot of skills that companies want. Using Homer's, The Odyssey - divide the class into groups after reading the text and have them choose one of Odysseus's layovers before getting home to Penelope.  Have each group design and present a travel brochure ( a tri-fold) and brief Power Point enticing others to visit the place. This assignment was a treat with lots of revisiting the text. Also, use of figurative language occurred without me having to beat students over the head.
     And your touch of interesting research from WAPO OP-Ed section that caught my eye the other day:
For 2014 graduates, 10 topics for your continuing education   By Alyssa Rosenberg
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/act-four/wp/2014/05/30/for-2014-graduates-10-topics-for-your-continuing-education/

     According to the article, students want to know practical life skills: budgeting; financial planning; reading contracts; emotional and stress management; time management; basic cooking and meal planning; negotiation; career planning; basic home and car repair and travel planning.  Please read the article for the details - my own thoughts on this are that my now 28-year-old daughter did learn a lot of these things at home because I knew that these practical things would make her life a lot easier in the long run.  Not that she listened to me during her high school years, but I made the effort not to preach, but be a good role model and she has blossomed and seems to have mastered these skills. I take no credit for her abilities in these areas because she is not only an old soul, but an fiercely independent person - but she was observant so I like to think that some of her knowledge came through casual interactions.
    Good luck thinking through what matters - you only have your students for a year. Figuring out what will help them beyond filling in some bubbles on a test is a big deal and since you have decided to be a teacher - most of you want what is best for your students. The good news is that you can give yourself permission to have fun.

Revised Writing Rubric Students can self score - teacher can then score and create dialogue

Writing Rubric is done - Rubric for visual aids and Oral presentations still to come

The Writing Rubric has been revised after a review of the Standards of Learning for Virginia.  It is fairly typical in terms of scoring writing samples so it should be helpful. I have reviewed the anchor papers for the Common Core and think this rubric will be useful in getting students up-to speed in getting high scores for their answers to the prompts.

I used this rubric for all writing assignments for my eighth and ninth grade students and because it was tailored to the scoring for the state tests and it was an exemplar of high standards - it worked to help students improve their writing skills throughout the year. The other rubrics are coming - this just took a little more time than I though it would because once again I was foiled by trying to cut and paste from Word.

Igniting Students’ Passion and Precision through Writing Letters to Editors

If you (parents, this includes you, too) are looking for a way to jolt middle and high school students out of apathy and into clarity, then try assigning (suggesting) writing a letter to the editor. Most programs of studies include objectives that would be met by this assignment. 

"Aim for brevity while avoiding jargon," Edsger Dijkstra, a Dutch scientist said. Letters to the Editor are limited to 200 to 250 words and so the sometimes overwhelming ire or the emotion that inspired the reader to sit at the computer and draft a first response to a despised or adored article doesn't go away. The next several hours spent editing, refining, researching and looking at other examples of successfully published letters are self-imposed. Getting it right means getting your letter published. (Op-ed's 300-350 words)

Properly channeled emotion and topic selection creates a need for students to use all the skills that teachers have taught them to employ. Students read newspapers or approved Internet-sourced newspapers for articles that make them angry or articles that they strongly wish to support.

Authentic topic choice, voice, ownership and the added bonus of relating reading and writing are created with this collaborative assignment. Students, teachers and parents need to be read in on this assignment because of the sensitive nature of some of the material that is covered by the press. It is compelling for a student to see his or her writing in print. When a student e-mails or snail mails his or her opinion piece, it is a moment of pride. If the letter is published, it is a home run.

Some suggestions:

1.  Work with your librarian to book computer lab time to surf safe sites - possibly even work with teachers from other departments to find out what topics are being taught that might be current topics in the newspaper - if STEM is a big part of your school's mission then, find out what's in the future for Google Cars or the latest round of authentic tests being given to screen employees applying for jobs. Do students think these cars are possible or a waste of time/money - I saw a recent article claiming  that there are safe ways to ride your pooch on your bike, really?

2. Students may want to collaborate on a few "trial" letters to get a feel for the genre - you'll be teaching the letter writing format. Luckily, you'll be hitting even more required objectives: citing sources; reading non-fiction; separating fact from opinion; using persuasion; sentence variety and precise vocabulary.

3. The submit function is on-line so you'll need to be VERY CAUTIOUS - I'd get a hard copy, score it with the (or a) rubric, be sure you have parental permission before you have a student submit the letter on-line.  

4.  Recently, The Washington Post published a letter from a high school student directed to Jay Matthews because of his ranking of local high schools and it was short, to the point and well-crafted.  I have had a letter published in WAPO.  I felt like I had gotten a huge award because most letters are rejected.  To keep my writing focused, I have a folder of unsent letters, but the discipline - so much fun to finally get the word count to 200.