Mr. Rennie's Class

  Every Writing Workshop session worth the paper the students write on, includes a silent write. The ultimate is a half hour of concerted, focused, independent silent writing. We have yet to reach that yet but today we proved that it can be done in the lab. We just had to widen our definition of silent to include the tapping of keyboards. The kids went to the lab after a mini-lesson on descriptive details. They settled in quickly and wrote for a solid 25 minutes. I stopped them at that point to share with a partner.

  They all did an awesome job. I've heard from some colleagues that the lab wasn't a conducive environment for this creative task. I think however, that when you are into what you are writing, the recording method shouldn't be an impediment. In fact the computer may be the tool which for some, is actually a motivator. For many who might otherwise not produce the computer makes the task easier and more appealing. We have students with past output issues who participated fully and emerged with the satisfaction of having produced a solid piece of writing. Some students actually worked on more than one piece, the true actualization of a workshop mentality. They finished one and simply opened a previous document. I have been thinking about and experimenting with writing and using the lab for years but the commitment we've made this term to moving the workshop into the lab is long anticipated. In the past we would use the lab as a place to do a final copy but this year we have done mini-lessons, drafts and sharing in the lab. I only hope the students feel as satisfied with their work as I do. I have been lucky to try out these new approaches with such a cooperative and willing group of writers.