Each day, I begin my ELA class with Reading Time. This is a time for students to access a range of texts. I use this time to conference with students, collect data on class patterns and trends with independent reading and to provide individualized support
It is very important for students to reflect on their writing: both product and process. It is for this reason that I have students actively think about the process they took to create their personal narrative. This helps them think about what they learned throughout this process, which will hopefully help them for the next writing piece. It also gives me an understanding of their thoughts about the process. I can see what worked and didn't work for them in terms of revision strategies, lessons, etc. I can adjust my teaching for the next writing piece if needed.
This class time is devoted to filling out the evaluation. Students tell me everything they can about the background history of the writing of the personal narrative. Some answers are brief and some get rather lengthy. The questions are general enough at times they students can really think about how this entire process connected to them.
The questions are as follows:
This is from handout is from Linda Rief's Seeking Diversity published by Heinemann, 1992. A great resource for middle school language arts teachers.
Here are some examples of the students reflection: Process Evaluation Examples. The Process Examples Explanation discusses some of the examples and the importance of using it.
During this time, I am also able to collect their final drafts. Here are two examples of final narratives: Final Draft Student Example and Final Draft Student Ex 2. This is the rubric I use to assess their final pieces: Personal Narrative Rubric Spreadsheet.