The Classroom Story: Mail Call

What do you see in terms of strategies that we saw in class?

I can see:
High Expectations. The teacher believed in what they students could do. He believed in their opinions and points of view. He believed that together they could write a letter to make a difference, no matter what their level of English was, they still did it. They grew up together and they were challenged, but he saw things with positive eyes towards the situation and towards his students.

Social Interaction. The students worked together as a group in order to create ideas, they brainstorm and everyday they would write some new ideas on the board. They went from macro ideas into micro, and they chose the most important points they wanted the major to know. They chose three main points to write in the letter, but when one of the students suggested to add another point, everyone supported her and gave their own point of view about this new idea. The whole class agreed and they added a fourth point. They worked a lot to give meaning and understanding to the letter. The students went to the board and circle the main ideas and they also revised the draft. This was purely group work.

Teaching through content. The students were really motivated and interested in what they were doing. It was a real situation. Not only this was a real letter that the teacher was going to send, but it was also writing for a purpose: a traffic light. The students had a concern and the teacher took this opportunity to teach them grammar and writing. They also study salutation, body and closing of a letter.