Revision is an essential component within the writing process. It takes time, but often clears up the focus and meaning of a piece of writing while also working on the flow and organization. Many teachers have complicated revision even more with the ARMS and CUPS acronyms, red-blue pencils, cutesy Pinterest-inspired or TPT lesson plans, etc. What good does this do? Will these steps be remembered and followed when students leave the classroom? Why do teachers have to place their own spin on an already difficult process? How are we moving forward and connecting our classrooms to the digital spaces? Rather than complicate the matter, we can show students how to use various tools to integrate into their practice and writing process.
One of my graduate courses this semester, CEP 810 - Teaching for Understanding with Technology, provided me with the opportunity to seek out and tinker with a new technology that I have never used before and write a lesson plan integrating it into my curriculum. Hemingway Editor is an application ready for download, but it is also a website one can use for quick revisions. The website version would be utilized by students, as outlined in this lesson plan. The lesson plan allows students to play with their writing (a summative assignment in the Article of the Week [AoW] unit) using feedback from Hemingway Editor. Play, according to Douglas Thomas and John Seely Brown, is been an important part of the learning process and culture, especially with the rise in technology and the Internet. In their 2011 book, A New Culture of Learning, Thomas and Brown define play as a way for students to both generate a new understanding and be prepared for an ever changing world (91-99). The lesson plan also connects to Renee Hobbs's, message of her book, Digital and Media Literacy: Connecting Culture and Classroom (2011), and that is to have our practices include five fundamental communication competencies - access, analyze, create, reflect, and act. This component of the unit, revising with Hemingway Editor, gets students to think beyond their initial analysis and creation and move into a more flowing reflection and will, hopefully, lead to action in a later project. The screenshot above shows how a student's sample of writing appears in Hemingway Editor. I liked how the writing is assessed based on grade level, has a word counter, and provides immediate feedback with color coding.
I am looking forward to integrating Hemingway Editor into my lesson plan with students in the upcoming weeks. Have you ever used either the app or website? How did it workout for you and/or students? References: Hobbs, R. (2011). Digital and media literacy: Connecting culture and classroom. Thousand, Oaks, CA: Corwin/Sage. Thomas, D., & Brown, J. S. (2011). A new culture of learning: Cultivating the imagination for a world of constant change. Lexington, Ky: CreateSpace?.
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EducollecTIONsAs an educator and lifelong learner, I have a collection of "-tions" involved in my studies and practice as an educator. Archives
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