A Closer Look: Learning more About Our Writers with Formative Assessment

In A Closer Look, Lynne Dorfman and Diane Dougherty provide the tools and strategies you need to use formative assessment in writing workshop. Through Lynne and Diane's ideas, you will be able to' establish an environment where students will internalize ways that they can assess their own writing and become independent writers. Lynne and Diane share methods for collecting and managing information, and show practical, simple, and concise ways to document student thinking. In the accompanying online videos, they demonstrate conferences with individual writers, small groups, and whole groups. Quick, easy-to-manage assessment methods emphasize that formative assessment does not have to take a long time to be worthwhile and effective. Vignettes from classroom teachers, principals, and authors add a variety of perspectives and classroom experiences on this important topic. A Closer Look shows that when students are in charge of their own writing process and set and reach their own goals, writing becomes a vibrant, energetic part of the day. '

Lynne Dorfman teaches graduate courses in reading and writing for struggling adolescents. She is a codirector of the Pennsylvania Writing and Literature Project and an independent educational consultant. Lynne is often a presenter at local, state, and national conferences and has coauthored three other Stenhouse books on mentor texts.

Diane Dougherty lives in Pennsylvania. She was a classroom teacher for thirty-two years and served as head of the English/Language Arts department in her school district. Currently she is a codirector and consultant for the Pennsylvania Writing and Literature Project at West Chester University.