Course: Teaching Opinion Writing to Kindergarten Students

Instructor: Amanda Zito

(770) 894-9570

ajzito@valdosta.edu

Description: The purpose of this course is to provide kindergarten teachers with ideas, strategies, and resources for opinion writing to facilitate within their classroom.

Objectives: 1. Students will effectively learn ideas and strategies for teaching opinion writing

2. Students will effectively learn how to use specific resources for teaching opinion writing

3. Students will model their understanding for teaching opinion writing by presenting a lesson plan for

the following Common Core Standard: ELACCKW1: Use a combination of drawing, dictating, and writing to

compose opinion pieces in which they tell a reader the topic or narrative they are writing about and state an opinion or preference about the topic of the book (e.g., My favorite book is)
4. Students will demonstrate collaborative learning through reflection and feedback to and from peers

Georgia Professional Standard: ELACCKW1: Use a combination of drawing, dictating, and writing to compose opinion pieces in which they tell a reader the topic or narrative they are writing about and state an opinion or preference about the topic of the book (e.g., My favorite book is)

Course Activities: A number of course activities are inherent in completion of the processes and products described in the workshop evaluation described below. These activities include: Reflection, Online Discussions, Books ideas, Material Ideas, Resources, and Lesson Planning/Implementation

Course Assignments:

1. Reflection: The instructor will provide an article about teaching writing to young children. The students are responsible for reading the article and posting a reflection about what they read.

2. Online Discussions: The student will be required to post comments about two other student's reflections.

3. Book Ideas: The students will be responsible for finding a variety of children's text which can used to teach opinion writing and they will read these text and post ideas on how to use them.

4. Material Ideas: The students will be responsible for finding a variety of children's material which can used to teach opinion writing and they post ideas on how to use them.

5. Resources: The students will be responsible for researching different resources which can be helpful to teaching opinion writing and they will post ideas on how to use them.

6. Lesson Plan/Implementation: The student will design a lesson plan for opinion writing using books, materials, and resources discussed during the workshop. The student will then implement the lesson plan and write a review on the overall success of the lesson and any changes and any changes that could be made.

Course Evaluation: Each assignment will have a rubric to follow. The assignments are worth points, broken down below, and the workshop totals 240 points.

1. Reflections: 10 points for each article

2. Online Discussions: 5 points each article (2 articles=10 points total)

3. Book Ideas: 10 points for each book idea (2 books=20 points total)

4. Material Ideas: 10 points for each materials idea (2 material ideas=20 points total)

5. Resources: 10 points for each resource (2 resources=20 points total)

6. Lesson Plan/Implementation: 75 points (50 points for lesson, 25 points for implementation review)

Instructor and Student Interaction Expectations: Educators are expected to complete all assignments by the due date, maintain a regular and frequent presence in the online course, regularly check updates for online course, pay careful attention to detail in following instructions, be helpful to peers, and act in a professional and responsible manner.

Relevant Resources: 1. http://www.meaning-matters.org/apps/blog/show/13688444

2. http://twowritingteachers.wordpress.com/2012/03/26/opinion-writing-in-kindergarten/

3. gomaisa.org/.../Kindergarten-Opinion-Writing-Letter-Unit-Lessons (document)

Academic Honesty Policies and Procedures: is available on the website at www.valdosta.edu/academic/academichonestatVSU