minnesota council of teachers of englishmcteresources.pbworks.com/w/file/fetch/78042479/2014 mcte...

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Minnesota Council of Teachers of English

The Minnesota Council of Teachers of English is the Minnesota-based professional

organization for teachers of English and language arts at the elementary, middle,

secondary, and post-secondary levels.

MCTE is committed to providing quality professional development opportunities for

English teachers in Minnesota. The organization also advocates for best practices in

English/language arts in the public and the legislature, and promotes professional

growth opportunities for college students pursuing a career in English education.

MCTE also provides opportunities for publication through the Minnesota English

Journal and the Student Writing Journal. Finally, MCTE provides a forum for member

communication through our newsletters and website.

To learn more about MCTE, visit www.mcte.org

This program and related conference materials are available at our conference wiki: http://mcteresources.pbworks.com

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Officers and Board Members as of January 1, 2014

Executive Board

President: Daryl Parks

President-Elect: Jennifer Kulm

Vice President: Sherri Larson

Past President: Andrew Burklund

Treasurer: Rachel Malchow Lloyd

Executive Secretary: Katie Kritzeck Anderson

Advisory Board

Assistant Executive Secretary: (VACANT)

Website Editor: Sandy Hayes

Newsletter Editor: Jodi Anderson Wolhaupter

Minnesota English Journal Editors: William Dyer & Scott Hall

Student Writing Journal Editor: Katie Kritzeck Anderson

Student Writing Chair: Audrey Thornborrow

English Education Chair: Jacqueline Arnold

College English Chair: (VACANT)

Two-Year College Chair: Jeff Stephenson

Secondary Section Chair: Jason Kaiser

Middle Level Section Chair: (VACANT)

Elementary Section Chair: Mike Borka

Department of Education Liaison: Charon Tierney

Membership Promotion Chair: Kathryn Campbell

Intellectual Freedom Chair: Jeremy Hoffman

Minnesota Writing Project Liaison: Jessica Dockter Tierney

Representative at Large: Daniel Muro Lamere

Representative at Large: (VACANT)

As we look to our hosting of the National Council of Teachers of English convention in 2015, we will need

help from our membership. Please attend our Member Social/Board Meeting Thursday afternoon (3:45

in the Harbor Room) to learn more about how to become involved in the work of MCTE.

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Have you “Liked” us on Facebook?

Check out the Minnesota Council of Teachers of English Facebook page and click “Like”!

This resource is a great place to collaborate with peers and keep

up-to-date on the latest MCTE information!

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MCTE Conference Schedule See schedule for room assignments.

Main Speakers, Breakfast, and Lunch will be in Lake Superior Ballroom.

Thursday, April 3

7:30-8:30 Registration – rolls, juice, and coffee provided

8:30 Welcome and introductions

8:40-10:45 Speaker: Dr. Ernest Morrell author, Critical Media Pedagogy: Teaching for Achievement in

City Schools and Linking Literacy and Popular Culture & NCTE President

10:45 Break (visit vendors tables; refreshments available)

11:00-11:50 Breakout Session 1

12:00-1:15 Lunch and Speaker: Jim Northrup author, Rez Salute, Walking the Rez Road, and Rez Road Follies


2:20 Break (visit vendors tables; refreshments available)


3:45-5:00 Member social & MCTE Annual Meeting – Harbor Room

Please join us to meet the MCTE board members and find out

how to become involved!

(Free appetizers, drinks available)

6:00 Dinner on your own

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Friday, April 4

7:30-8:30 Registration – rolls, juice, and coffee provided

8:30 Welcome and introductions

8:40-10:30 Speaker: Joyce Sutphen poet, House of Possibility and After Words & Minnesota Poet Laureate

10:30 Break (visit vendors table)


11:45-1:10 Lunch and Speaker: Geoff Herbach author, Stupid Fast YA Series: Stupid Fast, Nothing Special, and I’m With Stupid

1:15-2:00 Round Table Discussion: Regarding Common Core

with Charon Tierney, Minnesota Department of Education Liason

Thank you for attending this year’s MCTE Spring Conference!

Safe travels home!

Mark your calendars and plan on joining us for the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) Annual Convention

held in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on November 19 – 22, 2015!

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Conference Speakers

Dr. Ernest Morrell – Thursday Morning Speaker

DR. ERNEST MORRELL is professor of English Education and

Director of the Institute for Urban and Minority Education

(IUME) at Teachers College, Columbia University. Morrell is

also the president of the National Council of Teachers of

English (NCTE) and a Class of 2014 Fellow of the American

Educational Research Association (AERA). Morrell was an

award winning high school English teacher and coach in

Northern California, and he now works with teachers and

schools across the country to infuse multicultural literature,

youth popular culture, participatory research, and media

production into standards-based literacy curricula and after

school programs. Professor Morrell is the author of 75 articles

and book chapters, as well as six books including Critical Media

Pedagogy: Teaching for Achievement in City Schools and Linking Literacy and Popular Culture.

In his spare time he coaches youth sports and writes poems and plays. Morrell earned his

Ph.D. in Language, Literacy and Culture from the University of California at Berkeley where

he received the Outstanding Dissertation Award.

Thursday Lunch Speaker – Jim Northrup

“I WAS BORN ON THE REZ, live on the Rez, will probably die

on the Rez. T'was a lot that happened in between but it was

just details, and from those details I make my stories.” Jim

Northrup writes a monthly newspaper column, the Fond Du

Lac Follies which is published in The Circle, The Native

American Press, and the News from Indian Country. In his

writings, he describes life on the reservation with candor and

wry humor. Northrup has published several stories and

collections including: Rez Salute, Walking the Rez Road, and

Rez Road Follies. He was named Writer of the Year in

syndicated columns for 2001 by the Wordcraft Circle of

Native Writer's and Storytellers for his column. Walking the

Rez Road was awarded a Minnesota Book Award and a Northeast Minnesota Book Award.

Northrup and his family live the traditional life of the Anishinaabe in northern Minnesota.

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Joyce Sutphen – Friday Morning Speaker

JOYCE SUTPHEN grew up on a farm in Stearns County,

Minnesota, and she teaches literature and creative writing at

Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minnesota. Her first

collection of poems, Straight Out of View, won the Barnard

New Women Poets Prize; Coming Back to the Body was a

finalist for a Minnesota Book Award, and Naming the Stars

won a Minnesota Book Award in Poetry. In 2005, Red

Dragonfly Press published Fourteen Sonnets in a letterpress

edition. She is one of the co-editors of To Sing Along the

Way, an award winning anthology of Minnesota women

poets. Her fourth collection, First Words, was published in

2010; in 2012, House of Possibility, a letter press edition of

poems, was published by Accordion Press, and her latest collection, After Words, was

published in 2013. She is the second Minnesota Poet Laureate, succeeding Robert Bly.

Friday Lunch Speaker – Geoff Herbach

GEOFF HERBACH is the author of the Stupid Fast Young Adult series (Stupid Fast, Nothing Special, and I’m With Stupid). His books have won the Cybils Award for best YA Fiction and the Minnesota Book Award. They have been listed among the year's best by the American Library Association, the American Booksellers Association, The Junior Library Guild, Booklist, and many state library associations. In the past, he wrote the literary novel, The Miracle Letters of T. Rimberg, produced radio comedy shows and toured rock clubs telling weird stories. His newest YA title, Fat Boy vs. The Cheerleaders, arrives in May of 2014. Geoff teaches creative writing at Minnesota State, Mankato. He lives in a log cabin with a tall wife.

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Breakout Session Schedule

THURSDAY: Breakout Session 1 (11:00 – 11:50) Room Presenter(s) Title Audience Description

Lake Superior

Andrew

Burklund Rasmussen College

Going Digital:

Creating Online Content &

Curriculum

Middle, Secondary &

College

As technology increases in all aspects of education, there’s an increasing need for

educators to create robust digital curriculum. Participants will learn about one

teacher’s journey to go fully digital and be given a high-level overview of the process to go online. In addition to exploring the pros and cons of moving curriculum online, this

session will highlight online projects such as discussion forums, blogs, YouTube

demonstrations, digital citizenship lessons, and web-based student portfolios.

Furthermore, this session will highlight the importance of transforming curriculum to

meet the changing needs of digital fluency in higher education.

Lyric Room I (Level 1)

Sandy Hayes Becker Middle

School

Charon Tierney MN Department of

Education

The Uncommon Core Standards

Elementary, Middle &

Secondary

Minnesota’s standards include unique

benchmarks in media production, media literacy, and student choice in reading and in

writing. We will illustrate some ways in which these standards support student skill, ethics, engagement, and creativity as well as bridge in-school and out-of-school literate practices. There will be time for audience

interaction.

Lake Erie

Catherine Ford

Simley High School

Christina Pierre White Bear Lake

High School

Ann Deiman-Thorton

Inver Hills Community College

Integrating Concurrent

Enrollment and the Common

Core

Secondary & College

Engage in dialogue with teachers and administrators who are involved with concurrent enrollment courses. In this

interactive presentation, learn about how teachers work towards implementing the common core into concurrent enrollment

classes and the role and perspective of administrators in this endeavor.

Lake Ontario

Scott Hall

Irondale High School & Anoka

Ramsey Community College

William Dyer

Minnesota State-Mankato

Minnesota English Journal:

ONLINE! General

The Minnesota English Journal is now ONLINE and INTERACTIVE! During this workshop, participants will learn about the new MEJ format, and interact with the articles and materials uploaded at our site. Bring an

internet ready device.

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Lake Superior

Sherri Larson

St. Michael-Albertville High

School

Discussing

Controversial Issues in the

Secondary Classroom

Middle & Secondary

Engaging middle and high school students in

meaningful classroom dialog can be difficult if teachers feel they need to avoid all potentially

controversial topics. This presentation will invite participants to share their own concerns

of censorship in the classroom. Rather than living in fear of critical phone calls and emails, we’ll discuss strategies to respectfully address important issues with students. Participants will leave with some simple lesson ideas to

invite and encourage honest dialog about topics that are very real to students—race, gender,

religion and politics included.


Emily Peterson Central High

School

Jesse Kwakenat Central High

School

The Omnivore’s

Dilemma for Young Readers:

Using High-Interest, Non-Fiction Text to

Engage Reluctant Readers

Middle & Secondary

This session will explore how to strengthen

cognitive engagement in struggling/reluctant readers through the use of high-interest, non-

fiction texts, specifically, The Omnivore’s Dilemma for Young Readers.

Lake Erie

Nancy Drescher Minnesota State -

Mankato

Anne O’Meara Minnesota State -

Mankato

Jacqueline Arnold

Minnesota State - Mankato

Writing Connections: Meeting CCSS,

Writing for the Academy,

Supporting all Learners

Middle, Secondary &

College

Jacqueline will review writing texts, present

strategies and share assignments for meeting the CCSS for writing. Anne will define five

“moves” of academic writing as outlined in Joseph Harris’s Rewriting (2006) and discuss

her students’ responses to practicing these moves. Nancy will discuss strategies, support

systems, and assignment modifications to meet the needs of ELL students in your classrooms –

in particular, some of the tools provided by WIDA Consortium.

Lake Ontario

Rachel Malchow

Lloyd Champlin Park

High School

Daniel Muro LaMere

Humboldt High School

Teaching Texts in a Post-

Colonial World Secondary

In this interactive session, two practicing

teachers share their experiences with and tools for teaching diverse literature in today's diverse classrooms. Texts discussed will include Shaun

Tan's The Arrival and Sherman Alexie's The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian. A

particular focus will be on adapting post-colonial theory for use with high school

students, and the ways in which teachers can meet and exceed the Common Core Standards

via critical literacy.

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Lake Superior

Susan L. Brooks Bethel

University

Just the Facts?

Finding and Exploring

Expository Texts that will Enhance, Not Replace, Your

Curriculum

Middle & Secondary

Do you sometimes feel that to bring expository texts into the classroom, you need to abandon

the engaging texts and activities that you already use? This session will provide

strategies for finding and incorporating expository texts that will enhance your

existing curriculum. Technology resource suggestions and handouts will be provided.


Dr. Cheryl Bostrom

Bethel University

Content Instruction for

English Language Learners


Secondary

Are you challenged with achieving outcome

goals for all of your students, including those who are non-native English speakers? Join us

as we discuss this challenge, and receive a copy of a Professional Learning Community

(PLC) initiative that creates a school environment in which English Learners (ELs)

can succeed.

Lake Erie

Jeff

Stephenson Anoka Technical

College

Teaching

Students to Argue and Counter-argue Using

Sources

Secondary & College

At its highest level, the Common Core’s

mission is to help prepare students for both a career and for college. Being able to avoid

plagiarism and incorporate borrowed information into a research paper or other

writing assignment is pivotal for college students’ success. Using the “I say/They say/I say” paragraphing model (adapted from Graff and Birkenstein’s They Say, I Say), this session will provide participants with an outline and an example of how to write paragraphs that establish the student’s own argument and address counterarguments incorporating

outside research. Time will be provided for participants to ask questions, modify or adapt

the handouts, and to develop assessment methods or grading rubrics for this activity.

Lake Ontario

Daryl Parks,

PhD Metropolitan

State University

Using Structured

Socratic Seminars

Middle, Secondary &

College

This highly engaging workshop will have you participate in a Socratic Seminar, a text-based discussion format that strengthens analysis,

inquiry, and speaking/listening skills. Following the seminar, we will reflect on its

careful structure, examine supporting handouts, and reflect on the potential of this approach in our classrooms. You’ll learn why my urban high school students used to plead for “one of those seminar things” on Fridays,

not a video. (NOTE: Our text will be Ray Bradbury’s “The Last Night of the World.” Feel free to read in advance, though not required!)

Don’t forget to join us for the Member Social and MCTE Meeting at

3:45 in the Harbor Room! Free appetizers, drinks available!

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FRIDAY: Breakout Session 4 (10:45 – 11:35) Room Presenter(s) Title Audience Description

Lake Superior

Kevin Sheridan John Glenn

Middle School

Betsy Dobbins John Glenn

Middle School

Close Reading

Instruction in a Reading

Workshop Structure to

Meet the Demands of the Common Core

Middle

This presentation will give participants

opportunities to: understand close reading and its connection to the CCSS more clearly, engage in a close reading

experience to see how this can look and sound with students in a reading

workshop structure, and learn ways to teach students how and when to read

closely.


Karla Smart-Morstad Concordia

College

Qualitative Classroom

Research: Story as Content and

Narration as Knowing

Middle, Secondary &

General

This presentation will empower teachers to see themselves as researchers in their

own classrooms. Qualitative research makes use of story as a way of knowing, as well as a mode of presenting content

(new knowledge). Understanding literary elements, as English teachers do, makes

for a perfect fit for designing, carrying out, and presenting descriptive, narrative

scholarship. Lecture with handouts and examples. Interactive presentation to

formulate research questions that lead to the use of story as investigative process

and story as new knowledge.

Lake Erie

Greg Heinecke Elk River Schools

Mary Alberts

Elk River Schools

Engaging

Students in Reading and

Writing Using Academic Language


Secondary

Participants will actively engage in

learning strategies that allow all students to gain an understanding of their reading

and be able to respond using academic language. Utilized strategies will include interacting with the text, writing a roving

paragraph, and speaking and listening through an inner-outer circle.

Lake Ontario

John Zdrazil West Central

Area Secondary

An Uncommonly

Good Homecoming Friday Lesson

Plan

Middle & Secondary

For those days on the school calendar

which guarantee classrooms full of high-energy, distracted, visiting-prone

students, here are a couple of evil teacher plots that just might harness and focus those kids and maybe even trick them

into talking about books and symbolism and other language artsy things.

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April 1, 2014

Daryl Parks, President


Katie Kritzeck Anderson, Executive Secretary


Dear Minnesota Council of Teachers of English:

I send greetings from the National Council of Teachers of English to you and to all those joining you at your

conference on April 3-4, 2014. NCTE applauds the efforts of the Minnesota Council of Teachers of English in

making this conference possible as well as each participant’s contribution to the event and the development of

this profession.

Ongoing learning opportunities for teachers are vital for improving the teaching and learning of the English

language arts at all grade levels. Research shows that all students can achieve at high levels when they are taught

by teachers who are continuing learners, especially when teachers learn and share in teams with their colleagues

across the disciplines. This conference provides a way for teachers to continue their own learning so they can

share new ideas with their colleagues and work together with them to better support the learning of their

students.

As the only nationwide professional organization of English and language arts teachers, NCTE works to make the

teaching of English language arts more rewarding and more effective for all by providing professional learning and

sharing opportunities through the National Center for Literacy Education and its Literacy in Learning Exchange;

through its professional learning programs; through its books, journals, and position statements; and through its

conventions and meetings. In addition NCTE works with policymakers at all levels to insure they are aware of good

teaching and learning practices and consider these in the policies they make. I invite your membership in this

important organization.

Sincerely,

Millie Davis

Senior Developer, Affiliate Groups and Public Outreach

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SWJ – Student Writing Journal

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS: 2013-2014 STUDENT WRITING JOURNAL Do you have a student who deserves recognition for their writing? The Student Writing Journal, produced by the Minnesota Council of Teachers of English, is a great place to highlight student’s writing online! The Student Writing Journal publishes writing by students in middle school and high school. We publish all types of writing from poetry and creative writing, to letters and articles. It doesn’t matter if the submitted writing was part of a school assignment or a student’s personal contribution. In addition, we are also interested in publishing teacher reflections on teaching writing or on an effective writing assignment with accompanying student examples. It is our sincere hope that in addition to celebrating the excellence of writing of Minnesota's students, the issue will provide teachers with models to use with their own students.

SUBMISSIONS ACCEPTED YEAR ROUND.

(Issues run on a school year term, so the 2013-2014 issue should come out by the Spring of 2015.)

A submission form signed by both the student and a legal guardian must

accompany all submissions (handout in folder).

All submissions will be published as long as they follow school guidelines for

appropriateness. The only editing done to submissions may be for length.

If you have questions, comments, or concerns about the next issue of SWJ, please

contact the current SWJ Editor, Katie Kritzeck Anderson, at [email protected].

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Minnesota English Journal Call for Submissions

Editors: Bill Dyer, Minnesota State University, Mankato Scott Hall, Irondale High School

MEJ, the online journal of the Minnesota Council of Teachers of English, publishes scholarly articles, personal narratives, opinion/position pieces on topical teaching issues, and pieces focused on pedagogical strategies of major interest to English and Language Arts teachers of all instructional levels. MEJ seeks to represent both quantitative and qualitative research—papers that are driven by classroom experiment, observation, description, anecdote, survey, interview(s), case study, and cross cultural comparison directly related to pedagogy, instructional research, content and curriculum, and literacy. MEJ will also value pieces that take positions on important current issues impacting those teaching as well as being taught in the classroom. MEJ’s audience consists of teachers from the elementary to the college level who want to learn more about effective teaching techniques, share their own classroom discoveries, and desire a platform for interacting with those who present their work. MEJ’s deadline for submitting articles for the 2014 issue will be a “ROLLING” one. We’ll be taking papers continuously throughout the year and publishing them regularly to refresh our content, given the dynamic and evolving magazine and blog-like nature of how we mean to proceed and represent submissions. Authors will be informed of the status of their submissions just as soon as we’ve read and commented on them, and we will actively interact with the authors throughout the editorial process. The journal will be published before April 1st, shortly before the MCTE Spring Conference will convene. The editors strongly encourage submissions be forwarded for consideration by September 1st in order to maintain the currency of MEJ’s content. A “comment” function will permit readers to actively engage with every piece we publish: (1) formal qualitative and/or quantitative research-driven articles, driven by theory, --survey-driven articles; case studies; classroom experiments; traditional scholarly articles on language, literacy, and literature; online or face-to-face pedagogy; bibliographical essays; etc. (2) researched and/or experiential “praxis” papers that run ten pages or more (3) short, informal pedagogical pieces, driven by personal experience in the classroom --“teaching tips,” or experiential pieces that come directly from a teacher’s (not always) successful attempts to address a specific classroom challenge; narratives by new teachers adjusting to their new classroom circumstances; effective methods for using technology in the classroom; methods for responding to student work; collaborative learning and how to manage it; requiring more student writing and how to manage the workload; matters of classroom assessment; interviews/conversations with mentor teachers, writers, or exemplary teaching professionals; management of classroom discussion; assembling teaching units that stimulate and succeed; efforts at enabling students to teach each other; creative projects of substance; effective strategies for helping students to use the internet responsibly and productively; etc. (4) opinion/position essays on issues of concern to those working in the profession, --writing across the curriculum; censorship; the role of testing in the educational process; the need for all teachers, at all levels, to continue to write in their disciplines and areas of interest; working in, with, and for the multi-cultural classroom; creative ways for public school teachers and college instructors to work in the same classroom and enrich the student experience in the process; making peer teacher evaluation a reciprocally constructive process; recognizing the teaching of English as the most important teaching endeavor; issues of educational policy; etc.

MEJ encourage pieces of all lengths, from a couple of paragraphs to thirty pages. Citation of sources (primary or secondary) should be done in accordance with the MLA Handbook for Writers for Research Papers, 7th edition. Contact Bill Dyer at [email protected] and Scott Hall at [email protected].

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NCTE AFFILIATE AWARDS Nomination Procedures

MCTE is proud to recognize members of our affiliate through the formal nomination and

recognition of two teachers who demonstrate excellence in the area of English Education. Award

winners must be or become MCTE members to be selected; NCTE membership, if not already in

place, is also recommended.

Nominations for the two awards are due to our local affiliate by April 25, 2014. The selection will

be made by the Awards Selection Committee of the current MCTE board. The award winners will be

announced at our next Spring Conference.

Below are the details for each of the two awards, as described on the NCTE website. More

information as well as the formal nomination forms are available at the NCTE website:

www.ncte.org/affiliates/awards.

How to nominate either oneself or a colleague: For Teacher of Excellence: Complete the

nomination form, complete a personal

recommendation to the MCTE board’s selection

committee, secure a résumé from the nominee,

and include two additional formal letters of

support as noted. These items become a part of

the recognition folder given at the convention.

Send these five documents via email as PDF or

word attachment(s) to [email protected]

by April 25.

For Developing Leadership: Complete the

nomination form and enclose a personal letter

of recommendation to the board. The recipient

must be in his/her first 5 years of teaching. Send

these two documents via email as PDF or word

attachment(s) to [email protected] by

April 25.

Note: to be selected, the nominee must be or

become an MCTE member ($30 or attendance at

fall or spring conference, which nominators may

choose to cover to ensure eligibility).

Teacher of Excellence Award Criteria: Each

affiliate is at liberty to select a person...in the

manner of its choice. An affiliate’s governing

board might acknowledge someone who has

previously won an award within the affiliate, or

the affiliate might advertise for applications for

nominations before choosing a winner.

Honoree Supporting Data: The affiliate contact

person is responsible for submitting the

honoree's résumé and signed letters of support

from at least TWO different constituencies –

principal, supervisor, chairperson, peer, parent,

or student – about contributions in the

classroom and excellent practices exhibited by

the recipient.

Leadership Development Award Eligibility: Any early career teacher (1-5 years experience) who has never attended an NCTE Annual Convention and who has demonstrated a capacity for professional leadership as well as a willingness to join and participate in the affiliate during the upcoming academic year.

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Upcoming MCTE and NCTE Opportunities

2014-2015

April 25: Deadline for nominations for the NCTE Teacher of Excellence and Developing Leader awards. Email nomination paperwork to [email protected]

April 30 Deadline for the Norman Mailer Student and Teacher Writing Awards Check out http://www.ncte.org/awards/student/nmwa for details. April 30 Submissions due for MCTE Newsletter June 15 Deadline for NCTE Donald H. Graves Writing Award (K-6 Teachers) See www.ncte.org/awards/graves for ore details. July 2 Deadline for NCTE Student Literary Magazine Contest

See www.ncte.org/awards/student/PRESLM for details.

October 20 National Day on Writing October MCTE Fall Workshop – Check back for Presenter information!

Visit www.mcte.org and click on Fall Workshop for more details. November 20-23 NCTE Annual Convention, Washington, D.C.

See www.ncte.org/annual for details. February 13 Deadline for names submission to NCTE Student Achievement Awards in

Writing Contest (for 11th graders) See www.ncte.org/awards/student/aa for details.

February 13 Deadline for names submission to NCTE Promising Young Writers

Contest (for 8th graders) See www.ncte.org/awards/student/pyw for details.

April MCTE Spring Conference – Check back for more information! Visit www.mcte.org and click on Spring Conference for more details.

Plus, don’t forget to submit your students’ writing to the MCTE Student Journal and your articles to the Minnesota English Journal!

http://www.ncte.org/awards/student/nmwa

http://www.mcte.org/

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MCTE Collaborative Partnerships Please ask your legislators to continue to fund the arts and humanities.

Minnesota Writing Project

The Minnesota Writing Project (MSP), housed within the Center for Writing at the University of Minnesota—Twin Cities, is the local site of the National Writing Project. For the past eighteen years, MWP has been offering summer institutes, creating teacher-support networks, establishing partnerships with schools and districts, and working closely with the University to solidify support of the PreK-12 schools and improve writing at all levels. Believing that teachers can empower other teachers, members of the Project provide an environment in which teachers can learn from one another and then share that learning with others in their departments, schools, and districts. MWP Goals

To establish and sustain a network of teachers who write, teach, and learn with other teachers

To support teachers as writers and researchers To develop and disseminate best practices in the teaching of 21st century

literacies To assist districts and schools in meeting their literacy needs through

professional development To promote cultural, racial, and ethnic diversity within MWP To strengthen collaboration between the University of Minnesota and

Minnesota’s school districts and teachers To nurture connection with the National Writing Project and its Special Focus

networks For more information, please visit www.mwp.cla.umn.edu.

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RESOURCES FOR MIDDLE AND HIGH

SCHOOL TEACHERS!

READY OR NOT WRITING

The mission of the Ready or Not Writing Program is to increase chances for post-secondary writing success by increasing college-ready writing proficiency in high school. To achieve its mission, the Ready or Not Writing Program assesses and identifies levels of college readiness, alerts high school students of their writing tendencies, recommends strategies and resources for improvement and fosters communication among and between high school teachers, high school students, and college English instructors. Through the use of Ready or Not Writing, students have an increased chance for success in college.

"I think the rubric rating helped a lot. It allowed me to look over my essays, analyze what I did, and improve on

my writing." - Ready or Not Writing High School Student

STEP WRITE UP

Step Write Up invites 8th graders to submit a portfolio of their writing to high school language arts teachers who provide constructive feedback and support. Step Write Up readers also provide rubric ratings in five writing domains based on the "step" rubric aligned with the Common Core standards. The program's mission is to better prepare 8th graders for 9th grade writing tasks by fostering open and frequent communication among 8th graders, their teachers, and high school readers.

"I loved this resource…. I would love to be able to use this resource multiple times within a school year."

- Step Write Up 8th Grade Teacher

READY OR NOT READING

Ready or Not Reading provides personal feedback that helps high school students prepare for college-level reading. College and University reading educators provide teachers and students with targeted (personal) feedback on the student's comprehension of college subject area readings and with reading resources to help students improve. Students learn how well they use reading strategies and vocabulary knowledge in college-level English/language arts, history, mathematics, and science. Teachers receive data on student reading performance as well as strategies for using reading to improve student achievement in content areas.

Visit http://www.centerforcollegereadiness.org/ for more information or to sign up your school!!

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We look forward to seeing you again soon!

This program and related conference materials are available at our conference wiki: http://mcteresources.pbworks.com.

Plus, don’t forget to visit www.mcte.org to learn more about the

Minnesota Council of Teachers of English and how to become involved.

minnesota council of teachers of englishmcteresources.pbworks.com/w/file/fetch/78042479/2014 mcte...

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