Drew describes how he scaffolds into writing with his students, then Jen asked a few questions for more details. It’s a good exchange with good details from Drew, so I am reprinting those comments (in edited form) here as a blog post for ease of reference. I am still not clear on how the thesis writing works so feel free to expand on that Drew. Jen if all your questions aren’t answered pls. clarify that in a comment below. I will catalogue this under writing:
Ben,
Over the course of the past three years every time we have finished one of Ray’s novels, I made the students write an analysis of the story that we spent the semester reading. Since the story is 100% comprehensible and we have already analyzed all parts of the story in class, this is totally doable, in my opinion. It’s forced output, but once you see what I have to show my department chair, my principals and anyone else who wants to see, it’s worth it.
After we finish the novels we discuss theme, plot and characterization all in L2. Their homework is to write a thesis statement. The next day in class I do 1-on-1s with each student and their thesis statement while the rest of the class scours the books for any quotes they might want to include in their essays. 4 paragraphs, at least 2 citations from the text (written on a note card).
This sounds tough and the kids freak out a bit. But it is a perfectly scaffolded assignment that lasts for an entire semester. When the students got their grades today they were all shocked at how well they all did. Since the novels use the same 500 words they had a great vocabulary base to use.
They get a rubric grade for Analysis (3.0 Student draws inferences from the text and creates and supports a thesis); Fluency (3.0 student produces language understood by a sympathetic native speaker) ; Vocabulary (3.0 Student shows accurate and appropriate use of vocabulary in alignment with the curriculum); and Completion (3.0 student addresses all parts of the prompt with some extension).
I wanted to share one of the best and one of the worst (but still good). I will use 100% of their language. These are this season’s batch of Finals from Spanish II after reading “Mi Propio Auto.”
Sample 1
Turner y Ray tiene una novela y se llama Mí propio auto. La novela tiene una persona y se llama Ben. Ben está un hombre. Ben está rico y tiene muchos lujos en su vida. Ben tiene una novia y se llama Mindy. Los autas [autores?] usan Mindy por el cambío de Ben antes de que El Salvador y después El Salvador.
Ben tiene una novia y se llama Mindy y Ben piense Mindy está bonita de todas chicas en el mundo. Brevemente antes de sal de San Jose, Mindy se dice «No tienes que decir me fabulosa. Yo sé» (14-15). Mindy principalmente piense de ella. Ben piense a Mindy piense para ben más de ella. Ben no sabe Mindy.
Después de el verano de Ben y Mindy, ellos veo un día. Ben está feliz porque Ben ve a Mindy. Mindy habla mucho de ella verano. En primer lugar, Ben quiere de habla de él verano. Pero Mindy habla mucho. Después de todo, Mindy habla nada y pregunte «¿Dónde está el carro, el carro nuevo?» (55). Ben no piense de el carro. Ben no le importa de el carro pero es importante de Mindy. Mindy no le importa Ben. Mindy piense de el carra más que a Ben.
Finalmente, Ben no le gusta a Mindy. Ben le gusta a Anabel. En fin, no recibé una carro nuevo. Ben tiene una miente differente, Ben escribir a Anabel y Ben está muy feliz con él vida. Ben cambío en El Salvador.
Grade: Analysis 3.0; Fluency 2.0; Vocabulary 2.0; Completion 3.0
Sample 2
La mayor parte del tiempo, muchas personas en el mundo nunca se da cuentan de que es mas importante que dinero. Raramente, estadounidenses no se da cuentan de que felicidad es con amor y familia. Personas como Ben Sulivan en la novela “Mi propio auto,” son como eso. Ben cambió cuando el fue a vivir en El Salvador porque se da cuenta de que no necesita lujos y cosas caras para ser contenta y también se da cuenta de quienes son verdaderos.
Al principio, Ben es muy materialista y solo importa por coches y Mindy. Cuando el fue a vivir el país pobre de El Salvador, ve muchas familias con amor y amigos amables. Aunque los salvadoreños son muy pobres, tienen que necesitan. Ray y Ray muestran que sobre todo los salvadoreños son feliz con que tienen y no quieren mas. En la novela, Anabel le dice, “No tenemos que vivir en una casa grande. Ben, somos ricas sin esas cosas” (42). Eso muestra que los salvadoreños son contento porque son ricas con felicidad y amor. En fin Ben se da cuenta de que Anbel tiene razón sobre el concepto de felicidad.
En el novela, “Mi propio auto,” Ben tambíen cambió cuando se da cuenta de quienes son verdaderas. Cuando regresa a los Estados Unidos, Mindy se dice, “Ben, llamame cuando tengas tu carro nuevo. Quiero ver lo” (54). Eso cita muestro que MIndy no le importa el. Mindy solo importa sobre cosas caras como zapatos y ropas y coche de Ben. Mindy nunca le pregunta nada de su verano en El Salvador. Por esta razón Ben se da cuenta de que Mindy no es una amiga verdadera.
En síntesis, Ben se da cuenta de el importante en la vida. No necesita mucho dinero y lujos en los Estados Unidos para ser contenta en vida. Solo necesita que el tiene. Puede ser muy felíz sin lujos. Principalmente, se da cuenta de quienes son verdaderos.
Grade: Analysis 4.0; Fluency 4.0; Vocabulary 4.0; Completion 4.0
When I first started teaching I never would have thought that this kind of language could come out of Spanish II kids. My old Spanish II kids wrote a paragraph using 10 verbs in the preterite and 5 in the imperfect about something insignificant.
Just imagine what is going to happen when they get to Spanish III and then AP Spanish. The language is messy but totally comprehensible. I don’t waste time adding accents or fixing syntax or suggesting new vocabulary. I read and make comments like good point, nice conclusion, bitchen thesis (maybe not that one). With more and more reading and CI the language will fix itself.
I’m so pumped that kids did so well on their final exams it looks and sounds like a daunting assignment and the kids totally rocked it.
Jen’s Reply:
Wow Drew! This is fantastic! Does this assignment surprise the kids, in terms of “Whoa, I didn’t realize I could write an essay in Spanish!” I imagine they must feel pretty proud.
I am interested in your writing process…the scaffolding that gets them to this point. Are you doing freewrites all along the way? You mention that you took the whole semester for this novel…so how much time per day do you spend on it and how do you keep the interest going? What does your reading process look like? I had a really hard time earlier this fall and had to bail out of novels in 2 classes because the kids started complaining daily. Probably this had more to do with my newness and insecurity than with the particular act of reading. Anyway, I ended up writing up a summary (haha… spark notes of a TPRS novel !!!) for the last few chapters so we could move on.
Since this was a final exam, did they do all the writing in class? How much time was given? Sorry for all these questions. I am so intrigued by this.
I can sense so clearly from the students ‘writing their “feel” for the language. There is a real comfort level that comes across, along with each student’s voice! Truly remarkable, Drew! Thank you again for sharing this.
Drew’s Reply:
We read during the semester when I have yearbook deadlines. I usually don’t feel like planning anything when I’m staying late so I pull out the books the next day. No set plan except to be done with the book two weeks before the exam. Sometimes we will do a Chapter over the course of a Tuesday/Thursday reading period. In a 17 week semester there is a lot of time to find a day here or there to read. The kids aren’t really into the books but as teacher I like them because they bring a little bit of unity between 2 or more teachers teaching multiple sections of the same class. The kids groan when I take the books out but I think sometimes they need to see that school doesn’t always have to be fun. From the 1st time we read I informed them that this stuff will show up on their essay at the end of the book.
In terms of scaffolding the novel. With Mi Propio Auto (My Own car) I PQA “tendría vergüenza” (I’d be embarassed), “(usted) ya tiene su propio auto” ([do] you have your own car), “si tuviera” (if you had). We circle statements like Do you have your own car? If you had a mini-van would you be embarrassed? What would you have that would not make you embarrassed?
In Chapter 2 you could PQA “quiere que sea/tenga/haya” (wants him/her to be/have/wants there to be) to describe a perfect partner or gift.
In Chapter 3 you could PQA disasters.
Chapter 7 is about lujos/nececidades. Chapter 8 is about the definition of civilization. The chapters open up a wealth of PQAable material that is more interesting than the novels themselves (which is key). This sort of CI helps build teach the vocabulary for the chapter ahead time and helps to communicate the ideas that they will use in their essays.
Actors and actresses help. I try to make the kids hate Mindy and love Anabel in the novel. That love interest really appeals to their hormones.
Since my department wants to give 4 parts to the final we do the writing the Wednesday before, we did 2 days of reading Thursday and Friday and the oral exams during the 2-hour exam block. They had Monday for in-class recap of the novel, Monday night homework was thesis writing, and on Tuesday I let the kids pull quotes from the book and make thesis statements. I said I’m aiding with thesis statements on the document camera, if you want to watch, watch, if not, just don’t bug everyone else. People watched.
I think it’s helpful to view students’ work. I enjoy seeing what others’ students do and knowing how we assess them. What do others consider “proficient” and why? I hope this information turns out to be helpful for you, Jen.