I, too, plan to use Noden's book, Image Grammar, which I am now reading as
well as your book, Connie, Teaching Grammar in Context. Let's keep this
topic on the list, if you would, so all can benefit. And Gretchen, thanks
for your suggestion of Rief's book, Seeking Diversity, which I am also
reading. So much to absorb and plan, so little time, even though it is
summer! Anyone else feel that way? And how does one deal with curriculum
demands when trying to implement workshop? I feel caught in the middle of
old expectations and new ideas....
Thanks,
Joanne
sandhu!cyberis.net
----- Original Message -----
From: Connie Weaver <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Sunday, July 23, 2000 1:48 PM
Subject: Re: Connie Weaver's minilessons
> This message is for Gretchen. I apologize if I've already sent it, but I
found
> it in my drafts folder.
>
> Connie Weaver
>
> Gretchen, your immediately previous post brought tears to my eyes.
Clearly you
> are a WONDERFUL teacher; I only wish that I, and my son, had had teachers
like
> you!
>
> It's uncanny how much your experiences in teaching writing parallel my own
at the
> college level--especially in teaching developmental writing classes, but
also in
> teaching teachers-to-be and even practicing teachers. No matter how
effectively
> I think I'm teaching grammar and editing (through individual conferences
too), I
> succeed better in all the other aspects of teaching writing!
>
> I will cut and paste below the mini-lessons I've been using in my
undergrad/grad
> course Grammar for Teachers. I've required the students to work in groups
to
> teach the mini-lessons themselves. This has helped a great deal in that
most
> everyone has learned one set of concepts well! But one set is hardly
enough.
> Because my class meets only once a week for 3 1/2 hours, there are too
many
> mini-lessons in one class session. Furthermore, since the students are
eager to
> demonstrate their new knowledge, the mini-lessons tend to be longer than I
want.
> (Someday I will have the courage just to cut them off.) Last semester,
one
> cluster of students was particularly resistant to the repeated teaching of
> mini-lessons, and I can't say I blame them. They claimed they liked my
own
> teaching of certain aspects of grammar better, but in truth, I don't think
I
> could/would sustain my best teaching throughout all those concepts. (True
> confession again.)
>
> Beginning in the fall, however, I'm going to try something different. I'm
going
> to use Harry Noden's Image Grammar for one strand of the course. I think
I'll
> still have mini-lessons on some aspects of editing, but I'm not sure what
I'll do
> about the practice of having everyone participate in teaching some kind of
> mini-lesson. There's a possibility that we might have an "electronic
classroom"
> for English Education by this fall, though I'm not holding my breath on
that
> one. But if we do have laptop computers hooked up with a display
computer/screen
> in the classroom, and hooked up to the Internet as well, then the teaching
of
> mini-lessons can be enlivened still more, and we can even use the CD
accompanying
> Harry Noden's book to access photos and other things, as well as to access
> various Web sites dealing with grammar. Will all of this enhance
learning? I'd
> like to think so, but I don't know.
>
> The references to TGIC in the list below are references to my Teaching
Grammar in
> Context. I also have the bookstore order one of Diana Hacker's handbooks
for
> writers, plus books of readings for my students. This year I'm going to
try a
> "Professional Book Club" approach as yet another strand of the course.
Students
> will choose from among about a half a dozen books, then meet in groups
weekly to
> discuss what they've read in the books.
>
> I hope my posting the following sequence of mini-lessons on the listserv
will
> encourage others to share their own sequences of lessons, as Jeff too has
> recently done. (The advice on resources is for my students, and I confer
with
> the groups, too, to suggest other resources.)
>
> Gretchen, wouldn't it be fun for the two of us to keep in touch this fall
as we
> teach with Harry Noden's book?
>
> Connie
>
> Grammar minilessons
>
> 1 Understanding subject-verb agreement (see TGIC Appendix, pp. 198-199) [I
will
> already have taught subjects and verbs, or rather an introduction to them;
like
> others, I use a slot-and-filler approach mostly]
> 2 Understanding S-V agreement when a prepositional phrase modifies
> the subject (see TGIC Appendix, pp. 199-200)
> 3 Understanding other S-V agreement situations (See Hacker, pp. 121-127)
>
>
> 4 Connecting independent clauses (see TGIC Appendix, pp. 200-201)
> 5 Understanding independent and dependent clauses and the concept
> of fragment (see TGIC Appendix, pp. 201-203)
> [Locate the relevant pages in Hacker or in another book, and study]
>
> 6 Eliminating run-ons and comma splices (see TGIC Appendix, pp. 203-204)
> 7 Making limited use of comma splices (see TGIC Appendix, pp. 204-205)
> 8 Phrases versus clauses (see TGIC Appendix, p. 205)
> 9 More on fragments (see TGIC Appendix, pp. 205-207)
> In the Appendix, there is also an alternative sequence of lessons,
> on pp. 207-209; see also the relevant pages in Hacker
>
> 10 Introducing participial phrases (see TGIC Appendix, pp. 214-217)
> 11 Using participial phrases as free modifiers (see TGIC pp. 217-218)
> 12 Creating participial phrases and absolutes through sentence-combining
> (see TGIC Appendix, pp. 218-221)
> 13 Appreciating and using absolutes (see TGIC Appendix, p. 221)
>
> 14 Moving a medial modifier (see TGIC Appendix, p. 223)
> 15 Given/new information (see TGIC Appendix, p. 223-224)
> 16 Using the passive (TGIC Appendix, p. 227)
> 17 Using WH-word or It-transforms (TGIC Appendix, pp. 224-225)
> 18 Using It and there transforms (TGIC Appendix, pp. 226-227)
> Also, please look at the lessons on pp. 241-242 of the Appendix
>
> 19 Connecting clauses with conjunctive adverbs (see TGIC Appendix, pp.
> 209-211)
> 20 Comparing 3 kinds of connectors (see TGIC Appendix, pp. 211-213)
>
> 21 Using the colon (see TGIC Appendix, pp. 237-239) & using dashes (see
> Hacker)
> 22 Punctuating restrictive and nonrestrictive clauses (see TGIC Appendix,
pp.
> 239-241)
>
> 23 How to punctuate quotes and how to include and punctuate references to
> sources
> 24 How to do bibliography items and bibliographies
>
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