The Ins and Outs of Unit 4

   In our core teacher training course, Teaching Writing: Structure and Style, Andrew Pudewa recommends introducing about one structural unit per month. (See page 227 of the TWSS2 Seminar Workbook under What might a year of writing look like? for more on adjusting the pace for different grade and ability levels.) If we started in September with Units 1 and 2, key word outlines and paragraphs, and plunged into Unit 3 stories in October, then by November we should be ready to launch into Unit 4: Summarizing a Reference. Building on the skills learned in the previous units, Unit 4 introduces students to the research process and lays the foundation for future units. Because it teaches students to summarize a single reference, it has a multitude of applications. They can use it to summarize a magazine article, a section of a textbook, or even a live lecture. Anything that you are studying in your other subjects can be used as a source for Unit 4 writing. How does it work? Start by choosing a source that isn’t too long. As Andrew explains, we want our student to â€Å"some-a-rize,† choosing only â€Å"some† but not all of the facts to put in the outline and retell in the composition. (See page 55 of the TWSS2  Seminar Workbook.) The longer the source, the harder the task. A couple of paragraphs on a single topic is usually just right. Thus, choose just part of a chapter of a book or a section of a magazine article. That will make the task much more doable. You can read the entire article or chapter together, but for the writing assignment just choose a small section. Unit 4 is all about topics. At first, you as the teacher will choose the topic by selecting a short source text that contains only one topic. This ensures that all the details chosen for the paragraph are topical. Later, you will increase the number of topics as student abilities grow. Once you have chosen the source, read it with your students and discuss it. Identify unusual words and define them. Discuss the passage completely to ensure students understand it. An added benefit is that by talking about it, students will have already developed some words and sentences related to the passage, which will make the note-taking and writing much easier. As you talk about the passage, discuss the topic of the source text. There is often a big subject with a smaller topic. The source may be about Harriet Tubman, but what about Harriet Tubman? Is it about her time as a slave? Her escape? Her decision to help others? The Underground Railroad? This discussion will not only determine the topic of the source text but also hone students’ comprehension and cognitive skills. When your students can handle a single topic, lengthen the source to include two or more topics that they can use to write more than one paragraph. Continue to help your students as much as they need; modeling is crucial to student success! Over time, your students will find writing a report from a single source to be a useful skill that will serve them well for life. To learn more about teaching this unit, check out the recording of Andrew’s recent Unit 4 webinar, or listen to it as a podcast.    Jill Pike is a homeschooling mother of eight and an IEW ® Accomplished Instructor. Serving as moderator of the IEWFamilies forum, she provides support to thousands of teachers and parents. She has authored many lesson plans offered by the Institute for Excellence in Writing, most recently adapting Anna Ingham's Blended Sound-Sight Program of Learning for home educators in the Primary Arts of Language. After graduating five children, Jill and her husband, Greg, continue to home educate their youngest three in Indiana.    Log in or register to post commentsJill Pikes blog Log in or register to post comments