Writing Workshop Series: Post #1 Writers' Notebooks


Throughout the month of July I will be sharing a series of posts about Writing Workshop in my classroom.  I've used writing workshop for all 14 years that I've taught, but it has changed in how it looks over the years.  Like my reading approach, my writing workshop doesn't follow one program, but instead is a mix of aspects from various programs to make what works for me and my students.  With that said, I LOVE teaching writing and I hope that some of what I share will be helpful to you and your classroom.

Today, the focus is on my writing workshop notebooks.  The first thing to understand is that I use a color-coded approach to helping the students visualize the different stages of writing.

Pink - Prewriting
Blue - Drafting
Green - Revising
Red - Editing
Purple - Publishing
Orange - Sharing

These colors are used on the writing stage posters that I display in my classroom.  (clapboard writing signs you can see in the pic below)
These color-coded writing signs are available in all themes at Teacher's Clubhouse.
These colors are also used in our Writer's Notebooks. Well, I have actually altered these notebooks (as of last year) and use folders now, but the concept is the same.

So, you can either use binders.
or folders

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The advantage of using binders is that they hold a LOT more and students can move their writing easily through the various stages.  Here's a look at how my binders were set up.

In the front of the binder I put a pencil pouch to hold our writing pens - a blue (for drafting), a red (for editing) and a green (for revising).
Next, I put a one-subject spiral notebook that holds our first drafts.  Using the notebook ensures that our first drafts stay in order so that we can see our writing progress throughout the year.  It also keeps them organized and neat.  Students use their blue pens to write their first drafts.  They skip lines as they do this so that they will have room to revise and edit their writing if they choose to publish it.
 Behind the notebook is a list of genre ideas for students to write and also starter prompts for those times when students are stuck on ideas to write about.
 Behind the prewriting sheet is a sample of graphic organizers.  These help students remember the importance of brainstorming and organizing their thoughts before beginning the first draft.  After this prewriting, students will be ready to begin their first draft.  All prewriting and first drafts are written using a blue pen.  If writing workshop ends while students are in prewriting or first draft stages, their work is left in the blue first draft notebook.
 Once first drafts are completed, students move on to a new first draft, or if they have five drafts, they may choose to take one of their drafts through the publishing process.  Students keep track of the stories they've written on a story record log kept in the back of the notebook.
 If a student chooses to publish a story, he/she tears the story from the notebook and begins to revise the writing.  The revising checklist is kept in a clear sleeve in the writer's notebook.  Students use a green pen to revise.
 After revising their work, students' writing should be more interesting.  If writing workshop ends while students are in the revision stage, their work goes into the green revise pocket.  After revising their work, students are ready to edit the piece for mistakes.  An editor's checklist is copied on cardstock for durability.  Editing rules are given to students as they are taught throughout the year.  This method also allows for differentiation, since I can provide students with rules that I notice they're ready for during conferencing.  Once an editing rule is glued onto the checklist, students date and number the rule.  From that date on, the student is responsible for making these corrections  independently in his/her writing.  Students use a red pen when editing.
After editing their work, students' writing should be written correctly and free of major mistakes.  If writing workshop ends while students are in the editing stage, their work is placed in the red edit pocket.
 After students have edited their own work, they sometimes have it peer-edited by a classmate.  The teacher is constantly conferencing with students about all of the stages during writing workshop, but I no longer edit all of their pieces for perfection.  I feel it is extremely important for STUDENTS to do the revising/editing.  I do not want their portfolios to show perfect pieces at the end of the year, I want them to show students' abilities and their growth of the writing process.
 Finally, students are ready to publish their work.  Students may choose to publish in a variety of ways.  All final drafts are written in pencil.  This allows students to fix any mistakes so that the final pieces are as error-free as possible.  The most popular form of publishing is student-made books or typed pieces.  If writing workshop ends while students are in the publishing stage their work is placed in the purple publish pocket of the writing notebook.
Students also have an orange pocket in their notebooks.  This pocket holds any references or resources students may have to use during writing workshop time.  These may include dictionaries, templates (how to write a friendly letter), thesauruses, etc.

Now, I LOVED these binders.  I mean LOVED.  I made one class set and reused them for many years.  The colored pockets were simply pocket folders that I cut in half.  This means I could get two pockets from each folder.  I would simply use packing tape to close the cut side and then punched holes in them!  But, since I use tables in my classroom storage was a bit of an issue.  I wanted students to have easy access to their writing to work on throughout the day as work was finished up.  So, I switched to folders a couple of years ago.

The plus for folders is that they don't take up much space and are easy to store.  The down side is that there's not enough space to hold all of the colored folders, so students don't get to actually MOVE their work through the writing stages.  Here's how my folders look...
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I use poly-folders for durability and place a half-sheet label to the front.
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I place notebook paper in the folder for students to write on.  You will notice there is not room for the pencil pouch, so students just keep their colored-writing pens in their crayon pouch at their table, but they know that these are only to be used during writing time. ;)
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Students still have their red writing checklist.  I LOVE this checklist since I can pass out the rules once they're taught and it makes students accountable.   The numbers are important because as students edit their work, they prove it to me by writing the numbers of the rules they've completed at the tops of their papers.

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Students also still have the green revising checklist in their folders.  This works the same way as the editing checklist.  I love being able to pass these out as they're taught (or as each student is ready for them).

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Resources are stored in the back pocket.  My favorite resource to use with them is the "Trashcan Thesaurus."  This is used when students overuse words and we decided to throw them away.


thesaurus
Since I'll be using a desktop thesaurus on my mini-offices this year, I plan to use these as more of an individualized resource.

I hope that explains my writing notebooks a bit!  All of my resources are available at Teacher's Clubhouse, and if you have any questions just leave a comment.  I'll be blogging about more of my writing procedures and units next week!

 
All posts in this series:


And, I'll leave you with a sneak peek at one of my "Monday Made It" projects that is in the works!

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39 comments

  1. I LOVE the trash can theasaurus! I did a dead word funeral last year inspired by another blogger, but I can't remember who I saw it from, but I think I might like the trash can even more!!

    Ginger Snaps

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  2. I love your folders. I'm going to have to check it out on Teacher's Clubhouse. Thanks for sharing.
    Tracey
    Third Grade All Stars

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  3. I love your writing folders. I really need to improve my writing workshop.

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  4. Wow! Thank you so much for sharing how writer's workshop works in your classroom! I love to hear ideas on how to make writing better for my kiddos! I am excited to see your Monday made it it! It looks beautiful! Come visit me at my blog! I am a newbie!

    :)
    Blessings of Teaching

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  5. Thanks everyone! I LOVE to teach writing (almost as much as reading) :) and the notebooks really help keep everything organized!

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  6. Thanks for the visuals. :-)

    imgoingfirst@gmail.com

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  7. I have a question. Can you come setup my folders and teach writing for me?! I swear I change every year and am never happy! I am shocked your kiddos stay so organized. It shows how well you model and teach routines!
    Rachel

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  8. Sure, Rachel!! We can work out a trade and you can come train me in all that cool WBT stuff! ;)

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  9. I love the personal writing checklists... brilliant! My students' writing levels are always drastically different, so it would be great to differentiate and help them each build their own list. And I'm with Rachel... can I get in on the writing trade for some WBT?! Writing is my major focus this year... it's a subject I love, but probably my weakest teaching area! Thanks for the idea!

    Kate
    EduKate and Inspire
    Come stop by my 100 follower giveaway!

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  10. I love your trashcan thesaurus! You always have such great ideas! I am adding you to my blog roll. =)


    Heather
    Heather's Heart

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  11. Thank you! You've given me a lot to ponder. I, too, love physically moving the writing through the stages. Maybe I'll try a sample with those poly prong folders holding the different paper pockets. There's on sale this week at Target for 50 cents ... :)

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  12. LOVe your writing binders! I wish I was that organized. Amazing resource for your kids and yourself!

    ✿Lynn
    Inside this Book

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  13. Thank you for stopping by my blog! I am such a newbie and just started looking at blogs for the first time 2 weeks ago!! My...it is overwhelming! I LOVE your writing folders idea. My mind is swimming with so many new ideas that I barely know where to begin. Thank you for being such an inspiration and I will be back often:) Oh, and Diana at CBD is A.MA.ZING!!
    ~Holly
    Fourth Grade Flipper

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  14. Awesome Blog! I am now following you!
    Laura
    www.laurasopenhouse.blogspot.com

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  15. You have some great ideas, but I'm not a fan of the Trashcan Thesaurus (or dead word funeral, which another commenter mentioned). A personal thesaurus would be a helpful reminder for students to consider a broader selection of words. But I think it's a mistake to make certain common words verboten rather than teaching kids how to use them appropriately. I think teachers should "throw away" made-up English rules like "don't use like" or "never use said." JMHO!

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    1. I teach Second grade and have been teaching for 30 years. I buy my students individual thesaurus's each year from Dollar Tree and at the end of the year....give it to them as a gift. We have "Trashcan Words" too but my students also know that there are some times when you have to "Recycle" those words. My students keep "journals" but their journals are a place to write down words (abc), rules for writing and also Math concepts or anything else they deem imortant. Many of my students keep and use these journals throughout elementary school and a few have told me that they added to the journals and still use them in 9th grade. The upper grade teacher have also mentioned students bringing their journals to class and how helpful they have been. Dear Anonymous...just remember to teach "Recycling" too. :0) Deborah J.

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  16. Thanks for posting "Anonymous"! The children certainly understand why a word is "thrown away"...it's not just randomly selected. If they OVERuse the word in their writing, this is just a fun way of getting them to expand their vocabulary. At this age, they continue to go back to the words they are most comfortable with, but this reminds them not to rely on those overused words. It may not be for everyone though! :)

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  17. I made these last year in my classroom and they are so cute! I have pictures on my blog of them! :) Cute cute!
    Sarah
    Kindergarten Korner

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  18. Thanks so much for sharing! I was not in love with how I organized our writing time last year, and I think your binders are just the thing I need! I also love the idea of revising/editing checklists! One question about your revising checklist/rules page- will this be in your Teachers Clubhouse store? I noticed the general checklist, but like the more individualed approach you have shown toward the bottom of your post. Thanks again for sharing!

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  19. Thanks, Allison! I just realized that the revising rules/list are not on TC yet. I will get them posted there! The individualized editing rules and checklist are there...just look for the grade level of rules you want - http://www.teachersclubhouse.com/writing.htm#process

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  20. Oooh I love your ideas on here. I cannot wait to read more about how you organize writing. Currently I have been reading "No More, I'm Done" by Jennifer Jacobson, and she has given me a lot of great ideas for how to improve my writing this year. How to organize it all is still up in the air, but this post gave me some things to think about! Thank you so much for starting this writing series! :)

    Amanda
    Reaching for the TOP!

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  21. I love the trash can thesaurus!
    Your posts are amazing, as always, Amanda! I learn so much every time I visit!
    Linda

    AroundtheKampfire

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  22. I need to bookmark this post! Hopefully I can get my second graders to do this too! Every year I try a new writing notebook and I feel like "I don't like this one" so since I LOVE your fabulous ideas I am going to try you out!
    I'll head over to Teacher Notebook after my vacation, hopefully I'll have some left in the "kitty"
    ~Natalie

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  23. I know Teacher's Clubhouse...not Notebook!

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  24. Awww, thanks, Linda! Your post just made my heart smile. Especially coming from someone who has a blog as fantastic as yours!

    Natalie,
    I hope this set up will help keep your kiddos organized!

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  25. I stumbled across your writing program on Pinterest about a month ago and am thrilled to see more details on your blog. I am so excited to try this! My school agreed to purchase the binders and I wrote a grant for the rest of the writing supplies. I hope it's funded, fingers crossed! Either way, I'm going to make this work. I am actually looking forward to teaching writing this year!

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  26. I love the idea of these notebooks and since you teach 2nd and your kiddos can do it then mine certainly are going to try!!! I went to TC but didn't see the checklists that you showed in your photos. I really love the accountability they give the kids plus the reference guide they become! Will you post them? pretty please!!

    rene'
    A Passion For Primary

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  27. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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  28. Great organizational idea...I'm going to try this! Thanks for sharing - wonderful!
    Diane
    schoolhousetreasures

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  29. Thanks so much for sharing these wonderful ideas. I love the trash can thesaurus. I'm new to blogging and hadn't heard of Teacher's Clubhouse. I will definitely check it out. I'm your newest follower, and would love to have you stop by my blog.

    Can't wait to read more posts from you!

    Kathy

    http://kathyscoordinatedclass.blogspot.com

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  30. Hi. I am totally excited about using this in my classroom this year. I can't THANK YOU enough for sharing this. Question though about the clapboard signs ~ the ones I purchased from the clubhouse have the prewriting in blue whereas the one pictured on your wall is pink ~ is it possible to get it in pink? I'm busy putting binders together for my kiddos and would love for it all to be color coded.

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  31. Totally agree with your suggestion... Very nice post and good information here... Thanks for posting that....

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  32. Love this setup! My question is how do you teach the students the steps through the writing process? Did they learn this in 1st grade? I'm scared to just dive in without them knowing the steps:0 Thank you!!

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  33. Hi Sami,
    I teach them the steps during our first writing unit (sentences/paragraphs). They take their first paragraphs through each step with me as a guided experience and they catch on quickly!

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  34. I'm a mom of a dyslexic and want to work on her writing which has always been very frustrating for her. She is in 3rd and had IEW last year. She has an amazing vocabulary and imagination but is very visual and needs some good graphic organizers to help her start and stay on track. I went to your site and soooooo many great tools. Do you have a suggestion of which would be best?
    Thanks for sharing your love of learning and teaching

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  35. Hi, I am a new teacher. I teach grade 1 & 2 (2013-2014 will be my second year teach them) I am just wondering how you break up all of your writing throughout the year. I see that you do how-to writing, persuasive, friendly letter, descriptive....etc. I assume you do mini-lessons throughout the year for their writing? On a different note, I was also wondering about literature circles and author studies. How do you go about setting them up and organizing it? I did a literature circle this past year and found that my students did not have enough time to read the chapter, answer questions, and then discuss their literature circle jobs. If you have any advice since you have been at it for a long time I would greatly appreciate it!! Thank you!

    Jessica

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  36. Thank you very much for including several pictures in this post. I'm getting ready to start my fourth year teaching and I'll be looping with my class to third grade this year. Last year they wrote in pencil and I hated it because I couldn't tell if they were actually trying to revise/edit or skipping that process. I'm hesitant to dive in with pens because I envision them scribbling out large sections of their writing when they make a mistake. I think with practice and expectations set, that could be worked out, but I'm thinking about mistakes they make as they are drafting that they notice. For example, last year I had several b/d reversals. If kids notice this as they are drafting, do you have them cross out the whole word and write it below or just cross out the letter? I feel like this is such a trivial question, but I'm already out of my comfort zone using pens in the first place.

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  37. Mrs. Aldred says right that Thank you very much for including several pictures in this post. I'm getting ready to start my fourth year teaching and I'll be looping with my class to third grade this year. Last year they wrote in pencil and I hated it because I couldn't tell if they were actually trying to revise/edit or skipping that process. I'm hesitant to dive in with pens because I envision them scribbling out large sections of their writing when they make a mistake. I think with practice and expectations set, that could be worked out, but I'm thinking about mistakes they make as they are drafting that they notice. For example, last year I had several b/d reversals. If kids notice this as they are drafting, do you have them cross out the whole word and write it below or just cross out the letter? I feel like this is such a trivial question, but I'm already out of my comfort zone using pens in the first place. Get More

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  38. Totally agree with your suggestion... Very nice post and good information here... Thanks for posting that....
    dramas ming

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