inquiry project

so i'm participating in the Heart of Texas Writing Institute this summer--it's a 4 week intensive class @ UT and is part of the National Writing Project. in some ways it's kind of "crazy" to start a writing class the Monday following our last day of school. i literally got NO BREAK.

but i feel empowered in this setting. i am reminded again why, many times, i have spent well over an hour picking out a journal sometimes to come away empty-handed. i am reminded why i enjoy the product that comes from agonizing over word choice. i am reminded that i have a lot of work to do with my writing.

but it is also a good thing, because not only does this class seek to help me become a better writer, it seeks to enable me to do the same with my students. to help them see their lives and their writing through the lense of a writer--they DO have something vital and worthwhile to say.


all this being said, we have 3 major assignments--aside from all the reading and writing we are already doing.
the first is an inquiry project--

• what from my teaching concerns me or bothers me when it comes to writing?
  

the thing is, that is such a difficult question to answer. not because i am the best teacher in the world. trust me, i know i'm not. but really, because sometimes it's hard to admit one's own deficits... and when i contemplate and write them down, i'm not sure that these deficits are ones that easily lend themselves to research... which, by the way, is the 2nd major assignment--to research a topic and analyze student work.

ideas i've come up with are:

• autism and personal narrative writing (per our curriculum)
• crafting better conclusions
• various strategies for working/dealing with a variety of learners as writers
• helping students find their voice more readily in their writing
• quality peer conferences
• the variety of time needed to complete a process paper
• grading of writing
• just because you're done, doesn't mean the piece is completed
• quality revisions
• continuing the notebook throughout the school year
• dealing with "how long does it have to be" questions without completely avoiding them
• my own deficit thinking in regards to different writers in the classroom

as you can see, the topics are many....

and so i am left with the question--which one?


(oh, and btw-- the 3rd assignment is a personal piece... of whatever we want. THAT i can do.)