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Tuesday, October 6, 2009

Chapter 8; Word Processing to Improve Writing

This chapter stressed that by using word processing, younger students can greatly improve their writing. Younger students need time to learn the organizational patterns of writing. This is especially important now that state testing is increasing. It is also important that childrens' voices are not stifled and that it communicates well.

I thought it was very interesting reading about how schools are using computer software to help students organize their thoughts. The color coding of all of the components of a well written paragraph also struck me as a good idea. I can remember writing journal entries everyday in first through fourth grade. We also color coded our entries, but with highlighers. Word processors can make this process much easier and quicker. This is very helpful because it helps student realize where they can make improvements in their writing and whether it is organized well. It was also interesting to read about the text to table conversion. Students can convert their paragraphs to one-column tables where each sentence has its own cell. This seems like a very effective way for students to learn. Students can assess their writing even further and add more sentences whenever they feel necessary in a new column.

This reading really opened my eyes to new ways of using technology in the classroom. I had never even thought of using word processors as a way to improve the organizational skills of childrens' writing.

1 comment:

Kathleen Ellison said...

I agree with you, I think that using Word in the classroom is an incredible tool that should be utilized to it's greatest potential. It's a great way to get students engaged, and especially being an English teacher I can definitely picture using this in my own classroom. There are so many useful tools within Word that students can use to learn other techniques with their writing. It also serves as a great tool for helping each other with their writing. They can edit each other's papers at the computer. I really like your ideas about using Word in the classroom and I think they will all be very effective.