Reader response to "Mechanically Inclined" chapters 3 & 3 (Jeff Anderson

    

Anderson begins by talking about the writers notebook that he requires each student to keep, and how he goes about setting them up. I embrace this idea and appreciate all of the great things he does with his notebooks, but think that I personally (in theory, not in practice) will pick and choose the parts that I choose to use with my students.

I am a big advocate of having a notebook requirement for your class. This can be a great tool for learning as it is a central location for brainstorming, practicing, tracking progress, etc. I am not sure if all of Anderson's sections are necessary. I do like the idea of a word and phrase palette- I feel that is something I do mentally in my college writing, but this would be so much more helpful to having in writing where I could access it!

Working with his students, Anderson comes up with an Editor's Checklist. I know that things like this are much more meaningful to the students is they take part in their creation, so that is great. I feel like he made editing in to a pretty painless process with his "express-lane edits", and I would like to be able to use that in my classroom.

The fourth chapter is about using visual lists on the walls of your classroom. At first I liked this idea but thought I could never use it- I like my walls to be filled with pre-printed, perfectly written posters. After reading the chapter however, I realized that when I take a test, I can personally visualize the handwriting of my notes (the color, the position on the page, anything I wrote out weird, etc.). This leads me to completely believe Anderson when he says that when the lists are taken off the walls for testing, the students can still look up to the wall and visualize what it said, helping them out a great deal. I am now on board with wall charts.

Reader response to "Mechanically Inclined" chapters 1 & 2 (Jeff Anderson)

I was reassured to hear that a successful English teacher, now writing a book about grammar and mechanics, was a self-proclaimed "nongrammarian". As I am a pretty avid reader and a fairly good writer, I do not know the definitions to some of the most basic of grammar and mechanics terms. This book seems to be speaking to me personally.

I appreciate the fact that Jeff Anderson introduces himself and his situation, it's something I can readily relate to. This leaves me coming in to the book with a much more open mind. As I'm reading, I see that Anderson says what I've been thinking all along- We know we should not "drill and kill" grammar and mechanics, we should teach them in context - but how do we do that?

Anderson talks about focusing on the most important points- the points that give our students the power to write effectively. He refers to Connors and Lunsford's list of the 20 most common errors found in college students' writing- then modifies it a bit to work for his  middle schoolers. This gives focus to the cause.

An additional point that I really liked is that he aims to "have kids crafting their writing with correct mechanics and grammar without even realizing they are learning them". I have always believed that leading students to discover ideas on their own is the most rewarding, and usually most effective way to teach. This is accomplished through using mentor text to "show, not tell". Here are some mentor texts used by another teaching professional/ blogger, Amy Illingsworth.


At this point, Anderson has me hooked. I am really hoping to be able to use his ideas in my own teaching. We seem to share some foundational beliefs and through his introduction, I know he is speaking from his own experience and is not suggesting an approach that requires unrealistic time and effort.