Writerly Life

Assessing writers in the Writerly Life unit of study should focus on the process of writing rather than the final product. Teachers will be assessing students on an onging basis through writing conferences, and should be paying attention to how they are navigating the writing process. Is the student able to work on one idea over many days? Is there evidence of the student nurturing a seed idea with several notebook entries about one topic? Does the student’s writing show evidence of attempts at revision? One very important thing to pay attention to in the early days of launching writer’s workshop is the students’ use of their writing notebooks. Included below are several resources to support teachers in assessing student writing notebooks. These resources should be used as examples of how teachers might assess students, but must be adapted for each classroom and teachers’ expectations.