On the write track

Mike Sciacca

In the midst of a room full of excited, fidgety second-graders, the

weekend just four hours away, there sat Gabriela Garcia. She sat upright

in her seat, focused as she put her pencil to paper, her concentration

unwavering as she relied on her imagination to put her thoughts onto the

page.

The 8-year-old was one of 18 students in Suzanne Strobl’s classroom at

Oak View Elementary School taking part in a writer’s workshop, a segment

of class that also included reading.

Students were required to go through the writing process and develop a

story, complete with illustrations. Following individual conferences with

Strobl that reviewed the writings, Gabriela was called upon to read her

story to the rest of the class.

She did so ever so coyly. With strong encouragement from Strobl, she

shared her short story, entitled, “My Teacher,” as her classmates,

sitting with legs crossed at her feet, listened intently.

“I was nervous sharing with them but I did all right,” Gabriela said.

“Just doing the writing and drawing is best for me. They are my two

favorite subjects.”

The writing workshop, which Strobl started up in January, requires her

students to go through five steps as they work toward a finished product.

First, students must do a pre-writing exercise, which encourages them

to of what they want to write about, then they begin writing a first

draft. The next step is revising, which has the students think of ways to

possibly make their writing better. Then students edit their work using a

checklist that covers topics such as using their best handwriting, the

proper use of capital letters and periods, the drawing of pictures that

correctly reflect the story they are writing about and practicing reading

their own story.

Finally, the stories are ready for publishing. Students are allowed to

select their best work to be published. After writing words of

encouragement on the backside of their story books, Strobl placed them in

a basket for the purpose of allowing her students to read one another’s

stories.

“The kids really seem to enjoy this,” she said. “Some really like the

writing aspect, others really like to draw. Sharing their story gives

them a purpose to write and I give them the choice as to what they want

to write about.”

* MIKE SCIACCA is the education and sports reporter. He can be reached

at (714) 965-7171 or by e-mail at michael.sciacca@latimes.com.