English learners and struggling readers in grades 3-10 need informed, interactive and
systematic instruction across the curriculum that addresses their academic English language
and rhetorical voids. Rather than spending abundant class time silently journaling, completing
graphic organizers, or receiving misinformation from peer editors, neophyte writers need every
teacher to serve as the over-the-shoulder writing coach their parents cannot generally be. Dr.
Kinsella details cross-curricular writing instruction imperatives for educators serving English
learners and struggling readers, including a focused yet accessible analytic rubric for each
assignment, targeted lessons on academic language and rhetorical devices for specific writing
types, explicit analysis of an appropriate writing model, and brief, frequent doses of interactive,
teacher-meditated writing practice to build critical competencies for longer, independent
assignments. Participants leave with extensive digital and print practical resources to facilitate
immediate implementation and provide site-based support to colleagues.
Participants will learn effective ways to:
- Introduce and unpack a model paper exemplifying the critical elements of a writing type:
informative, opinion, argument - Provide a student-friendly analytical rubric that specifies the elements of the writing type
- Frontload rhetorical conventions and academic language for specific writing types
- Design academic interactions that guide students in applying vocabulary, syntax and
rhetorical devices they can deploy in subsequent written work - Structure teacher-mediated doses of scaffolded writing to build foundational
competencies for extended responses - Facilitate productive peer feedback sessions targeting appropriate rubric criteria
