Strengths of the Reading and Writing Workshop

My very favorite way to teach reading and writing in grades K-8 is using a workshop approach.  Seriously, it makes my heart happy, and I count it as a major blessing in my life that the first school that employed me used it and sent me to countless trainings on it. 

Imagine with me, a room full of students stretched out on comfortable furniture or the floor with pillows, reading their hearts out.  You may hear the occasional gasp as a student experiences the shock of a favorite character learning something remarkable or unexpected.  When you announce that it’s time to finish reading and come back to the lesson area, usually a comfortable, carpeted space where students sit and face an easel with a chart tablet, groans emanate from around the room because these readers are so deeply engrossed in their books. 

Or imagine a writing workshop where students again choose where to sit, with clipboard and writing tools in hand, furiously scribbling their ideas before they lose them, writing page after page of engaging stories or articles.  It is a wonderful sight to see!

Strengths of the workshop model include individualized attention to each student, student choice and agency, and of course, academic growth.

There is definitely a learning curve involved, and this is not the model for every school, but it can be a huge win for students (and teachers!) if done well. 

In a nutshell, the workshop model requires 50-60 minutes each for both reading and writing:

• 5-15 minute minilesson- This is a lesson that is applicable to all students and is done through explicit teacher modeling.  For those familiar with the gradual release model, this is the “I do/We do.”  Students observe and occasionally offer ideas, but mostly watch the teacher model reading or writing proficiency in the skill being taught.
  • This may take place in the carpeted area mentioned above where the teacher makes anchor charts that hold the important thinking of the lesson
  • It may take place at the students’ desks/tables as the teacher models work under a document camera from the front of the room.

• 35-50 minute work time- During this “You do” time students work with a partner, in a small group, or most often independently, reading a book (possibly from the assigned genre) that is at her/his level or working on a draft of writing from the taught genre.
  • Student choice is an important component of this time. 
  • Every student works at her/his independent level on an item of personal choice, leading to high motivation. 
  • The most important component of this time is conferring with students which can be done 1:1 or in small groups.

• 5-10 minute closing- Here the teacher chooses a student’s work on the minilesson skill from the period and shares it with the class. Alternately, the student can read an excerpt from his/her writing to the class and receive feedback from peers.

Why the Workshop Model is Great for Christian Schools

• There are no textbooks to buy for reading or writing. Saving money is always a good thing!

• When done correctly, students make significant gains.

• Every lesson can include authentic biblical integration that occurs naturally and easily. You can teach students to comprehend passages from the Bible itself in this model.

• Teachers get to know their students as individuals with strengths and weaknesses and tailor their instruction to each child. The children feel loved by and connection with their teacher, and large strides can be made academically.  Win, win!

• In schools with more limited resources, targeted intervention can be implemented without the need for a specialized staff member (reading specialist). Struggling students can be helped in a budget-friendly way.

• Students get to choose books to read and topics to write about, so engagement instantly goes up. Reluctant readers can become avid readers, and students learn that they have an important voice and enjoy learning to express themselves through writing.

Tools for Workshop Success

• Classroom libraries are a non-negotiable for this model of instruction. Students need access to fantastic books across a wide variety of topics and levels! Fortunately, some states offer library funds to schools that could be used for this purpose. Garage sales are also great places to find books really cheap (think $.10-1.00 per book).  Parents will also happily donate books to the school when their kids are finished with them, and library used book sales can provide bags full of books for just a few dollars each.

• Professional development is crucial. Because there is no textbook or teacher’s edition for teachers to follow, teachers must become experts in their area by reading professional literature.  This way, lessons are crafted specifically for the class in front of them, and every lesson is meaningful.  To do this, teachers should become familiar with comprehension strategy instruction, writing strategy instruction, school or state standards, and benchmark work for their grade level(s).  Title 2 funds can be great for helping address this need.  This money can be used to send teachers to conferences and trainings or build up a professional development library.  Find some of my favorites for PD here.

• If teachers are not passionate about this work, the model can fail or provide only mediocre gains.

• Conferences with students MUST happen. Teachers will require training in this and must be accountable for individual students.  The more traditional method of instructing students then floating through the room offering suggestions or feedback will not work.  Nor should you see the teacher sitting at her/his desk during this class period.  The teacher should be with at least one student at all times.

• Classroom management must be strong and effective because teachers spend most of the block working with individual students. Effective procedures, routines, and student engagement must be established so the remainder of the class works diligently while the teacher meets with their peer.

• Phonics instruction can happen during conferences for older students who need a refresher, but for younger grades, phonics instruction might need to happen separately. Think of reading workshop as comprehension time whereas the phonics lesson is where decoding skills are taught. Of course, phonics instruction can follow a workshop model (minilesson, work time, closing).  The main thing is that it must be explicitly taught, often in addition to comprehension instruction.

• Grammar instruction should take place separately, too.  If the only grammar instruction that occurs takes place during the workshop, you may find your writers are weak with these conventions.  Grammar can be reinforced during writing conferences, but instruction should take place separately from the workshop if you want to do it really well.
• Beginning the work of the workshop is challenging, and there is a big learning curve for the teacher. At the beginning of the year when establishing the rituals and routines of the workshop, once the teacher gets students reading independently, s/he can use that time to read professional literature, modeling what a proficient reader does (stays in one place, engages with the text, etc.).  Even doing this every day for the first five minutes or so of the independent work time allows the teacher to continue to grow in proficiency of instruction.  It also saves the teacher time that would be spent doing this outside of the class period.

Biblical Integration of a Christian Worldview

Because this is a model of instruction and doesn’t speak to covering actual content, there isn’t really a way it can contradict Scripture. However, implementation can certainly be used to endorse a biblical worldview!

 Consider:

• You can teach comprehension strategies using any excerpt you’d like, whether from Christian literature or the Bible itself.

• You can create whatever comprehension prompts you’d like to use with students. Some ideas:
  • If _____ came to know Jesus, how might his/her behaviors change?
  • What Fruit of the Spirit did _____ demonstrate when s/he ______?
  • What biblical person is the protagonist most like?With which biblical person might s/he most like to be friends with?

• You can model writing about biblical topics or characters during writing workshop minilessons.

• You can encourage students to choose a biblical topic for informational or argumentative writing.

Research that Supports the Workshop Model

• Ivey and Broaddus found that “Researchers have… demonstrated a frequent mismatch between the needs and preferences of middle school readers and the instructional opportunities provided to them” (as cited in Little, McCoach, & Reis, 2014, p. 385). This is important because researchers have also identified a substantial link between student engagement and achievement in reading (Little, McCoach, & Reis, 2014).  Thus, it is important that middle school students are provided with choice through a literacy model such as the reading workshop.  Little, C. A., McCoach, D. B., & Reis, S. M. (2014).  The effects of differentiated reading instruction on student achievement in middle school.  Journal of Advanced Academics 25(4), 384-402. doi: 10.1177/1932202X14549250

• Porath (2014) found that it’s imperative that students have access to individualized instruction through reading conferences in which the teacher actively listens to the student, and in doing so learns the way the student thinks and processes information while reading. This helps the teacher identify the reader’s strengths and weaknesses and effectively move the student along the learning continuum towards ever-increasing proficiency.  Porath, S. (2014). Talk less, listen more: Conferring in the reader’s workshop.  The Reading Teacher, 67(8), 627-635. doi: 10.1002/trtr.1266

• Serravallo and Goldberg (2007) found that explicit strategy instruction paired with lots of time to practice independently is crucial to a student’s reading success. This is what the workshop model does in a nutshell. Serravallo, J. & Goldberg, G. (2007).  Conferring with readers: Supporting each student’s growth and independence.  Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

The Reading and Writing Workshop Model provides individualized attention, student choice and agency, and academic growth for students.

Want to Know More?

Check out these posts that give more information on successfully implementing a reading or writing workshop:

• Launching the Reading Workshop (coming soon)
• Launching the Writing Workshop (coming soon)
• Mastering the Minilesson (coming soon)
• Conferring with Readers (coming soon)
• Conferring with Writers
• Organizing Your Classroom Library (coming soon)
• The Closing- More than a Formality (coming soon)
• Celebrating Student Work (coming soon)
• Getting Parents Involved in Literacy Instruction (coming soon)
• Reading Skills vs. Reading Strategies: What’s the Difference? (coming soon)
• Professional Development for Teaching Literacy
• Anchor Charts- Why They should be throughout Your School (coming soon)
• The Writing Workshop- Not Just for Little Kids (coming soon)

Stay Connected!

Follow me on Facebook and join our collaboration group!