Eku Writing Project

EKU WRITING PROJECT

SUMMER INSTITUTE 2014

Demonstration Guidelines

You will see severalsuccessful Demonstrations from EKUWP Teacher Consultants during the Summer Institute.

1. Your Demonstration will be a collaborative effort, in pairs or small groups (3), finding authentic intersections for your thinking and classroom practice.

1. Plan for a demonstration to last 75 minutes.The Critical Conversations Conference will have 90 minute sessions; the last 15 minutes will be open for discussionof your demonstration.

1. Demonstrations share “best teaching practices” rather than a “best lesson” or a single strategy. Your group should be clear about what you want your audience to know that will improve their “practice” as teachers of writing. Letthe chapters we read from Best Practice: Bringing Standards to Life in America's Classrooms, (4th ed.) inform your explanation. Be confident enough to also introduce problems or challenges you still have with the practices and questions about how to improve or develop it further.

1. The demonstration should involve your audience in some aspect of writing process. A Demonstration is different than a presentation - you want your audience to be actively involved, not passively receiving (or not) your information. Regardless of the grade levels represented in your group, the demowill allow the audience to write and to learn something as writers and about literacy. Demonstrations are opportunities to model and practice writing processes, start new pieces, revise existing pieces, develop response skills, etc., the exact same kind of work that happens in effective classrooms every day.

1. Think of a demonstration as professional development for teachers. Teachers want useful practices that are based in sound theory and have been proven effective in your classrooms or from reputable sources. At the same time, be up front about the complexities inherent in the work: how do you interpret a similar practice differently for first-grade students and twelfth-grade students? Samples of student work can provide helpful models as well as documentation of the effectiveness of and challenges related to the practice. Be sure to remove names from all pieces.

1. Assume that technology (projector, laptop dock, document camera) will be available for your use. Depending on the Conference’s location, a computer lab may be available, though attendance may preclude that sort of audience involvement.

1. You see many afternoons dedicated to the development of this Demo work. Facilitators will be actively involved in planning and should be seen as a ready resource.

1. When your group thinks about the initial design of the Demo, begin by developing the following parts; each group member should be able to talk comfortably about each part:
2. TITLE
3. OBJECTIVE for the demonstration, (What do you want your audience to learn?)
4. THEORETICAL FOUNDATION(with cited resources – think of this as “whose shoulders we stand on”), (Why is this Demonstration good instructional practice?)
5. The inquiry question that led you to this Demonstration should be integrated with the Demo. (What practices lie underneath this Demo? How did your group arrive at your intersection? What continuing questions do you have about it?)
6. STEP-BY-STEP OUTLINE of demonstration activities,with timeline (What are you going to do?), and
7. STUDENT SAMPLES(names removed)to be used. (How do you know it works?)

INCLUDE A TITLE PAGE INCLUDING THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION.

Demonstration Title Page Template

Title of Demonstration

Your names and school information

EKUWP Affiliation

Example

Poetry is Nearly as Awesome as We Are

Jarred Winebarger

White Hall Elementary School

Tricia McKenny

Bourbon County High School

2014 EKU Writing Project

Critical Conversations Conference

ALSO INCLUDE YOUR OBJECTIVE SPECIFICALLY STATED AND DIRECTED TO YOUR AUDIENCE

(THINK LEARNING TARGET IN ITS IDEAL FORM).

ALSO INCLUDE A SPECIFIC STATEMENT OF YOUR RESOURCES, WITH TITLE AND AUTHOR