In 2011, the National Center for Education Statistics revealed that 54% of eighth-graders performed at the Basic level for the National Assessment of Educational Progress Writing Assessment. Basic indicates partial mastery of the prerequisite knowledge and skills that are fundamental for proficient work at each grade. It’s NAEP’s lowest achievement level.
Why the overwhelmingly poor performance? General opinion points to the cultural shift in social communications. With the proliferation of texting, Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, and using emojis in place of words, we have less opportunity to write in ways that encourage well-articulated thoughts and ideas.
There may be truth in opinion, but if a school is going to shift its writing program, it needs a results-driven program backed with research. That’s what Honeoye Falls-Lima Central School District found in the Lucy Calkins method to teach writing.
“We weren’t satisfied with the results we were getting in regards to writing,” says Janine Lupisella, principal of Manor Intermediate School. “We had a lot of reluctant writers. Implementing the Lucy Calkins method was a recommendation from a literacy consultant.”
Lucy Calkins is a literacy specialist and the founding director of the Columbia University’s Reading & Writing Project.
Calkins’ mission is to help young people become avid and skilled readers, writers and inquirers. That goal is accomplished, in part, through curriculum development.
The Lucy Calkins project makes connections to the core curriculum through a writing workshop model.
Every grade, kindergarten through fifth, has four units of writing: information, opinion, narrative and an additional unit that varies with the grade level—poetry, persuasive writing or an informational piece, for example.
Each day begins with a mini lesson that showcases a teacher’s writing effort—how the teacher made decisions, edited and revised his writing work. Then it is the students’ turn. They are encouraged to choose topics that are familiar to them.
Writing prompts help keep topics manageable and offer ideas to spark creativity. One prompt, for example, might ask a student to describe a “small moment.” This is a single moment in a student’s life, explained in great detail.
As students write, they edit and revise their own work, revisiting the piece until it is polished and perfected. It provides a more real-world approach to writing.
“Lucy Calkins mirrors the kind of writing you do in real life,” Lupisella says. “It’s more motivating and realistic.”
With more motivating and realistic forms of writing, students have discovered something they had been missing: ownership and choice in their work. This has led to improved language use, increased vocabulary, and a higher level of detail and vividness portrayed in their writing.
“Before the Lucy Calkins program our writing instruction was more prescriptive. Not as free-flowing,” Lupisella says.
According to Lupisella, because of the Lucy Calkins project, Manor Intermediate now has fewer reluctant readers and there students are more engaged.
Some students have turned their work into a Manor Intermediate School “published” book. Teachers also host events at the school, like authors’ tea parties where parents come in and hear students’ stories.
Implementing the program was not without its challenges. Lupisella says that teachers had to work exceptionally hard to change their approach to writing instruction. They had to learn new terms and lessons. And all of it had to be a collaborative effort for smooth transitions between grades.
Teachers had to figure out how to weave instruction on grammar, punctuation and the mechanics of writing into the workshops. Students in older grades lacked the earlier instruction and their lessons had to be modified.
Honeoye Falls-Lima CSD is entering its third year with the Lucy Calkins method. Although successful, it’s been an immersive, demanding experience. Teachers dove deeply into the scripted curriculum so they could integrate it their classroom and teach it in a deliberate, natural and enthusiastic manner.
“This is the year we’re hoping it feels really comfortable,” Lupisella says. “It’s been a lot of hard work but worth every ounce.”
