Developing ELL Writing through Metacognition

1. Developing ELL Writing through Metacognition Presented by Rob Robertson

2. Session Objective • Session participants will learn the components of instructional modeling and how to apply metacognition to an instructional model by watching and critiquing its effectiveness.

3. What is Metacognition? • Metacognition refers to the higher order thinking that students engage in as they process their learning. • It is also commonly defined as “thinking about thinking” where we make our subconscious processes conscious.

4. Instructional Modeling • Effective instructional modeling includes three phases: • Telling • Showing • Metacognition

5. Instructional Modeling • Telling • As teachers we commonly tell our students what they are going to learn. This is often based off our lesson plan objectives. • We often describe a process of how the lesson will roll out and connect it back to a larger theme or explain the lesson ties into other skills and lessons they are learning.

6. Instructional Modeling • Showing • Teachers often define modeling a lesson as “showing” or “demonstrating” what students need to do. • This often looks like the teacher going through the steps of the process herself to clearly model for students how to do it.

7. Instructional Modeling • Metacognition • When teachers add a metacognitive step to the telling and showing of an instructional model, they do a think aloud and model their thought process as they go through the steps. • By explicitly modeling their thought process, students are often able to internalize the lesson more deeply and understand the cognitive processes that you go through to learn the lesson.

8. How it works • Choose the standard(s) that you will cover: • Write your objective – (making sure that it is measurable) • Develop your model by telling, showing and using metacognition • Deliver your lesson • Collect your evidence (student work that you will measure)

9. Choose Your Standard(s) • Choose the standard(s) that you will cover: • Standard 1: The student will express his or her thinking and ideas in a variety of writing genres. • LI-7: writing one or more persuasive paragraphs, with instructional support, that state a clear position with supporting details using persuasive vocabulary/strategies. (e.g., loaded/emotional words, exaggeration, euphemisms, bandwagon, peer pressure, repetition, etc.).

10. Write Your Objective • The students will write a persuasive paragraph with a topic sentence and 8-10 supporting sentences using at least 5 words from the persuasive words list. • Writing Prompt: Write to your principal persuading her to allow snack machines in the cafeteria.

11. Create Your Model • Tell – the objective • Show – a sample or two of what a persuasive paragraph looks like and the persuasive word list • Metacognition – Model the process that you would go through as a student writing this assignment

12. Persuasive Vocabulary Words In Support Against Accurate Advantage Always/Never Best Certain Confident Convenient Definitely Effective Emphasize Expect Interesting Magnificent Most Most Important Popular Profitable Should Strongly Recommend Superb Superior Tremendous Truly Trustworthy Worthwhile Aggravate Agony Atrocious Confusing Cruel Damaging Disadvantages Displeased Dreadful Harmful Harsh Horrible Inconsiderate Inferior Irritate Offend Outrageousness Ordeal Provoke Repulsive Severe Shameful Shocking Terrible Unreliable Unstable Source: www.education.umd.edu In Support of

13. Persuasive Paragraph Example • I am going to PERSUADE my neighbors to buy tickets to the school fair. The school fair is coming soon and tickets are now on sale. We are only selling a limited number of tickets, so you will want to move fast and get your tickets while they are still available. This will be an event you will not want to miss! First off, the school fair is a great value when compared with other forms of entertainment. Also, when you buy tickets, you help our school, and when you help the school, it helps the entire community. There is even more exciting news; every ticket you purchase enters you in a drawing in which you can win fabulous prizes. Don’t forget, you are going to have tons of fun! There are lots of great rides, fun games, and many other attractions. Spend time with your family and friends at the school fair. Buy your tickets now! Source: patternbasedwriting.com

14. Watch and Write • Watch as I model for you the metacognitive process • Write down everything that I say and do as I model the metacognitive process • Read what you wrote and determine what went well in that process and what could have been done better to make the model more effective

15. Share Out • share what you felt went well in that metacognitive model and what could have been done differently or better to make the metacognition more beneficial for students. • At your tables • With a partner from a different table • As a whole group

16. Thank you!