Transitions.

Yesterday, as I studied up on orthography and spelling instruction, I thought about all the new things I need to learn in making the transition from classroom teacher to instructional paraprofessional. The difference is greater than I anticipated. Working one to one or with a small group is all about individualization and spending time on the small parts that make up the whole, something that is very hard to do when faced with an entire classroom.

To tell the truth, I wasn't 100% sure what it meant to be a writing interventionist when I took this job. I thought it would be something like being a tutor, just helping students with specific pieces of writing. But I've discovered that it is really about helping students master the building blocks of good writing. For example, I'm studying up on orthography because I have a student who has real spelling issues that get in the way of effective communication. It's exciting for me to create a plan just for this student and be able to spend twenty minutes with her just on one skill, something I was never able to do as a classroom teacher.

As this year comes to a close, I look back and marvel at where I was this time last year, home with the kids and feeling anxious about becoming professionally irrelevant, and thinking about going back to work, but in a very abstract kind of way. And now here I am, with a job that is pretty much fits the picture of what I thought I'd want to do instead of returning to the classroom. As the year comes to a close, I continue to reflect on my transition and think about ways to grow into this new chapter of my professional life.

Happy holidays!

{Read more slices here!: http://twowritingteachers.wordpress.com/2014/12/23/write-share-give-its-sol-time-15/}

Epiphany.

Yesterday, I sat down to write a model paragraph for my writing intervention students. I couldn't think of anything to write but then I remembered that Friday night, I had kind of an epiphany. It wasn't life-affirming or groundbreaking, and it was probably knowledge that already existed somewhere deep in the recesses of my cave-like mind. But I digress.

Me and the kids were driving home from Shabbat services. It was cold and dark, but as I approached the light at Main Street, Town Hall rose up in front of me, with a Christmas tree ablaze in colored lights on the front lawn. All up and down Main Street, the trees were wrapped in white fairy lights, throwing light onto an otherwise dark Main Street. Storefront windows were trimmed in lights, adding to the festive air.

Having been raised Jewish, our house was never decorated in holiday lights. I enjoyed the neighbors' spectacle instead. And I always wondered, why does everyone love the holiday lights so much? Why is it so important to the season? They're nice to look at, sure and they make everything feel festive but where did the tradition come from?

Sitting there at the stop light, looking at the lights of Main Streets, it suddenly dawned on me. Of course! Holiday lights bring warmth and life to a season that is dark and cold. We hunker down, we hibernate, we gather around the hearth (so to speak). What an uplifting sight to go out and see your town lit up in a festive spirit. Now it all makes sense, and like I said, it probably always made sense but I never really thought about the emotional significance of holiday lights. I love coming home in the dark and being welcomed by my little white bungalow, surrounded by a vast country darkness,  trimmed in white lights.

{See more Slices here: http://twowritingteachers.wordpress.com/2014/12/16/write-share-give-its-sol-time-14/}

A (Real) Teacher

I wasn't sure what I was going to write about today because, if I'm being honest, I haven't been writing true "slices." But today, I think I have a slice for you. 

I said something that I shouldn't have said. 

The big buzz around the English Department this week is the upcoming NCTE convention in Washington DC. I spied the program on a teacher's desk and as I was flipping through it, I offhandedly remarked "Oh, I used to go every year when I was a real teacher." 

As the words left my mouth, I knew I wasn't being fair--to myself or to other instructional paraprofessionals. I mean, what is a "real" teacher? It's more than just degrees and certifications. Instructional paraprofessionals know their subject matter. They are skilled at helping kids turn the lightbulb on. They are tasked with the difficult challenge of working with kids who "don't get it." 

So, this is my lesson for today: own my professionalism. I am absolutely a "real" teacher. I have always been and always will be one. 

{See more Slices in the comments over at Two Writing Teachers.}

On Both Sides Now

 It is parent-teacher conference season and I had my middle child's pre-K conference yesterday morning. It is incredibly inspiring and awesome to witness emerging literacy through the lens of both parent and teacher. Seeing my four year old's emerging print skills is delightful and a great source of pride. When I see her S with the extra curve on top, her E drawn as a small circle, her upside-down Ls and the capital A way over on the other side of the paper, I see the wheels turning in her brain, her understanding of print concepts right on target developmentally, her pride in being able to spell her name. It thrills me to no end and makes me excited for the whole new world that will open up to her when she starts Kindergarten next fall.
My eldest is in first grade, and I've already seen how her writing has evolved from the end of last school year to now. She has mastered fine motor control over her handwriting, moving from large, awkwardly-printed letters to small, neatly-spaced letters in her words. She has mastered her sight words and take risks with more sophisticated vocabulary. I went to a publishing party in her class, and got to hear her read aloud a book she wrote about her summer vacation on the Cape, the story infused with humor and keen details.
For any parent, especially a parent that is also a teacher, witnessing this evolving and emerging literacy is incredible. It all seems to happen so naturally, when you're not watching, and belies the incredibly hard work of learning kids do, and the amazing job their teachers do.

From a book my daughter wrote in Kindergarten

{To read more SOLs, see the comments on this post}

Back in the Saddle Again.

Yup, back in the saddle again. When I left teaching in 2008, I was ready for a break from the classroom and to concentrate on my growing family. I still felt a pull to education and teaching, so I started my little tutoring business, and wondered what my teaching career would look like down the line.
I envisioned myself working closely with students and teachers in some capacity, maybe as a coach. Last year, I decided it was time to get my Connecticut teaching license, in order to be able to take advantage of any opportunities that might come my way.
One of those opportunities was a position in a neighboring town as a writing paraprofessional. I wasn't 100% sure what such a role would entail but I had a good idea, plus it was only 20 hours a week. I knew I had to try, so I just went for it.
Getting the call to come in for an interview was a thrill, and getting hired the same day was even more of a thrill. I gave myself a week to get my affairs in order, figure out childcare and get my head in the game.
And here I am, about a month into my new job, and really loving it. I'm experiencing a level of autonomy and independence I never had as a classroom teacher, and I spend a good chunk of my day doing what I love best-- developing materials, coming up with lesson ideas, working with individual and small groups of students, and talking to teachers about how to help kids become confident writers.
It feels good to be here.

See the comments in this post for other SOL posts! 

National Day on Writing #WriteMyCommunity

Today is NCTE's 6th Annual National Day on Writing, and this year's theme is Community. I will return here throughout the day to update the page with links and ideas for writing about community. NCTE invites you to tweet links to your writing using #WriteMyCommunity. You can find me on Twitter at @nbcavillones.  (This post contains affiliate links.)

Need a place to start? Check out 10 Ways to Explore and Express What Makes Your Community Unique from The Learning Network at The New York Times: http://learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/10/02/10-ways-to-explore-and-express-what-makes-your-community-unique/

From The Teachers College Reading and Writing Project: Creating a Sense of Community in the 6-8 Writing Workshop

• Storytelling: Share vignettes from your own life, and encourage students to do the same. Do a collaborative re-telling of a shared experience
• Read Aloud: Using texts that foster a sense of community, read aloud to your students to show them that their stories are literature, too. Some recommendations: Popularity by Adam Bagdasarian and Ezekiel Johnson by Walter Dean Myers. 
• Share Artifacts: Invite students to bring in artifacts of their reading and writing lives and share the histories. 
• Establish Values: Foster a sense of mutual respect and support by stressing its importance verbally and modeling positive behaviors. 

Some ideas for getting technical with the National Day on Writing, curated by +Kevin Hodgson: Curated Collection of CLMOOC Tools

An idea from my own vault, that can be used with any grade! Unfurl a long sheet of art paper, either white or kraft and tape to the floor in the hallway (if you are allowed). Hand out crayons and colored pencils, and invite students to draw their neighborhood, depicting the local shops, parks, homes and other buildings they walk past everyday. Students that live on the same block may want to team up. Encourage students to add sidewalks, cars and people. Alternatively, if you are short on space, you can hang smaller sections on the walls around your room and group students by neighborhood/block. 

Colleges Want YOU: Advice Round-Up for College Admissions

Source: http://glbtintherooms.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/OwnSelf.jpg

This advice from MIT Admissions applies to every student, not just those that have their sights set on MIT:

"Choose your activities because they really delight, intrigue and challenge you, not because you think they'll look impressive on your application. Go out of your way to find projects, activities and experiences that stimulate your creativity and leadership, that connect you with peers and adults who bring out your best, that please you so much you don't mind the work involved. Some students find room for many activities; others prefer to concentrate on just a few. Either way, the test for any extracurricular should be whether it makes you happy - whether it feels right for you."

Things admissions officers wish students knew before beginning the application process, including this nugget from an officer at Antioch:

"I wish more students applying to college understood just how important “right-fit” is. Do we want to see people who were successful in high school and had a bunch of extracurricular activates? Yes, absolutely. But you can make an even better case for admission by showing us that you are going to be able to be highly successful and benefit most from the uniqueness of our institution.
Do your research. Don’t only make the case that you’re great, make the case that you’re a great match great for us."

More advice from admissions officers. I like this one from Smith College:

“Admission officers talk about the importance of rigor in a student's high-school program. When students ask, should I take an AP course and get a lower grade or take a lower level course and get an A, the cliché answer is: Students should take the AP course and get an A. Not very helpful! What we should be talking about is appropriate rigor. That is, if the student can take the AP course and get an A or B, then that's appropriate. If the student will get a C or lower, then she should reconsider. Grades of Cs ‘pop’ on a transcript to selective colleges since we don't see them often. That doesn't mean that one C on a transcript will mean a student won't get into college. What is does mean is that students shouldn't over-challenge themselves.”

As someone who went from a 70 average in her freshman and sophomore years of high school to graduating with high honors, I wholeheartedly agree with this advice, found on the Forbes website: 

“If you believe your current GPA is not a good representation of how well you can really do, start improving now. It’s almost certainly not too late. Colleges will look closely at your junior year performance, and many will even take the first semester of your senior year into account. They’ll particularly pay attention to a trend of improvement. Don’t give up. Show them that you are a late bloomer and getting better with age. Even if you’ve only got one semester left to show colleges what you’re capable of doing, show them! Start now.”