Last Monday my new Preps arrived at school excited and hoping they would go home reading and writing. I have to explain that it takes time, they’ll learn and I’ll teach them. I start right there and then.
Our first Language Experience sentence is: I am at school. It’s amazing how much they already know about letters and words. We look at books, find sentences, discover spaces and full stops. The first writing strategy I use is Shared Writing. Their knowledge of the group is pooled together, someone will know a sound, and another child will know how to write the letter. It’s wonderful to see their enthusiasm for learning and excitement!
Our first sentence is written on sentence strips and placed in the sentence board and on the velcro board. We read our sentence, sound words and the children illustrated the sentence on a sheet they take home to read to their parents.
The strategies used this week were Shared Writing, PrepD Student Led Interactive Writing, Modelled Writing, Read Aloud, Read to a Partner and Re-order the Text. Week 1 was very busy.
Cheers Nina
Nina Davis: Teaching & Learning in Australia 
Hi Nina my name is Jenny Te Amo I am a newly registered teacher in New Zealand and I have come across your amazing website. I have just started in a new entrance class and it has been great. I have got some lovely ideas from my fellow teachers but feel a little lost at times with my writing program. I really like your interactive writing ideas and after reading your blogs have thought of how I could do things differently too. My children have very little letter and sound knowledge so I have started with just getting them to write their name and work with simple drawings and scribe their stories with them writing below them. Do you have a set of strategies that have worked for you in your daily and weekly writing program that you could suggest. I find I do lots of oral language first before we get into writing and this tends to make me rush through my writing session.
Any suggestions would be great,
thanks
jenny –
Hi Sue,
Great to hear from you! Love to know what you’re doing this year. I’ve taken on a Leading Teacher role and will be leading the Literacy PLT among other things. Another busy year…
Last year’s group were wonderful and this year is looking fantastic. They are so ready to learn. I have lots of siblings this year and they are so confident in the playground. I’ve also got plenty of inquiry play in my program.
Hope your new Preps are settling well.
Cheers Nina
Hi Nina,
Welcome to another year of Preps. There is something very special about the Prep group and the way they just love to get going with their learning.
What a wonderful sentence too! Says it all. For some of our students they have watched from a distance as their older siblings have entered school and now it is their turn…finally at school to share the fun. ‘I am at school!’
Glad to see you have begun the new year with same enthusiasm and excitement. Thanks for sharing, your work is so inspirational for new teachers.Good luck for the year and I look forward to following the journey you take with Prep 2012.