Letters from Users

You were my English/Rainbow Class teacher when I was in the 6th grade (15-16 years ago!) I was surfing the internet this evening and came across your Rainbow Class page. I just wanted to write you a little email. 

When I started 6th grade English, I was nervous and scared. I thought I was doomed to be the kid who just didn't get it and who would never be able to write with confidence. 

When I think back, Rainbow class really gave me confidence that I could write. The class was fun and unintimidating. I credit Rainbow class and your teaching style with helping me to gain the inner confidence that I needed, and which has helped me numerous times since then. 

When I got into high school, I became very active in the school newspaper. I took AP English classes so I actually tested out of all entry level college English courses. I was the student my teachers counted on to be able to write well and help others. 

In law school, I was never anxious over essay-only final exams like many of my fellow students. I had the confidence that I could argue my answer clearly and succinctly. 

I've had numerous family members, friends, and colleagues comment on my writing through the years. I really would like to thank you for giving me a push in the right direction, giving me the building blocks to be a proficient writer, and instilling the confidence that I needed! 

I am so happy to see that there are so many other students who have the opportunity to learn in such a fun way. 

All the best, 

Former Student

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Dear Mary, 

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Dear Mrs. Schmal, 

My first years of teaching were at an international school in Bogota, Colombia. I taught 4th grade, and the majority of my students were native Spanish speakers. As you can imagine, this posed some unique challenges as a teacher. My students' English skills were all over the map and I needed to find a way to teach all subjects in English, emphasizing practice in speaking, listening, reading and writing. The most challenging (and least favorite) for the students was writing. 

"Rainbow Class" was first met with skepticism from my students, mostly because it had to do with writing, but as soon as they understood that they would be picking out a "pen name," their attitudes changed. That got the class off on the right foot. From there, they enjoyed the new challenges each lesson provided. There was enough structure in each lesson that the students were not frustrated to find an idea to write about. For example, having a picture to look at got them started, but still gave them room to be silly, serious, creative, whatever. 

The progression of the class also worked well with these students. These kids started out very insecure in their writing skills. Since the lessons started with simple projects, the kids were able to gain confidence before moving to writing paragraphs and reports. This was very key to the growth of many of my students as they had problems putting together proper sentences in the beginning of the year. The activities were also challenging enough for my more advanced students. They could push their skills farther in their projects, so all the students were experiencing personal success. 

One challenge I did have in my particular situation, was in the lesson dealing with seasons. In Colombia, we don't really have seasons, so we had to change that to holidays. It worked out fine. 

A definite highlight was the end of the year newspaper. By the end of the year, most of my students could write decent paragraphs. This was a major accomplishment for a bilingual elementary classroom! My exceptional writers were the newspaper editors, which was a great challenge for them. We brainstormed article topics as a class, and each student got an assignment that interested him/her. After a few weeks of work, their reward on the last day of school was a printed newspaper! I couldn't believe how thrilled they were to see their articles and read what their classmates wrote. I still have my copies! 

As a teacher, I have to say how much I loved the checklists for "grading" writing assignments. I hated correcting writing assignments previously because there was such a wide spectrum of things to correct, grammar, sentence structure, paragraph structure, content etc. Focusing on certain parts of the writing gave the students clear direction on what was expected of them. It let them experience success, even though there was still room for improvement, and it gave me clear objectives to focus on. 

I have since taught foreign language in high school. While "Rainbow Class" doesn't really fit into the structures of high school, I used many of the concepts & lessons to teach my students how to write in a foreign language. We did the exercises with photos, using modified checklists to help them evaluate their work. 

While living in Hawaii, I also used parts of "Rainbow Class." Once again, I was teaching 4th grade, this time on an Air Force Base. I would have preferred to use the full class weekly, but in Hawaii the school days are so short, and the amount of curriculum we are expected to cover during that time made it impossible. Instead, I integrated the lessons of "Rainbow Class" that dealt with paragraph writing, and the 5 C's into the existing Language Arts curriculum. These lessons, I felt, did a much better job of taking paragraph writing step by step and in a way the students could understand. Again, the skill levels of my students varied so widely that it was essential to start at the beginning. (The students here were from military families and had hopped around the globe attending various schools. The inconsistency in their education adds to the wide range in skills.) I also used the checklists for self-evaluation as this has proven to be a helpful tool for the students. 

I very much enjoyed teaching "Rainbow Class." Other teachers on my grade level also used it, with different levels of success. For it to be most effective, I feel the teacher must be sure to use it consistently. Pick a day/time of the week where you are least likely to have an interruption, assembly, or missed class. This keeps the momentum going and the kids plugged in. Also, I feel it's important that the teacher be as involved as the students. I did every writing assignment, and I know the students enjoyed hearing what "Tachikara White" had to say every week. (Tachikara is a brand name for volleyballs). As with any class, the more enthusiasm and energy the teacher puts in, the more the students get out of it. 

Thank you, 

Sarah Schroeder 

Teacher

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Mary, 

I would like to thank you for the fabulous writing curriculum that you developed, "Rainbow" and 

"Pot of Gold". When I was asked to teach 5th-8th Language Arts and Computer class at an elementary school, I was thrilled at the opportunity to teach children's literature and my love,­ Computers. 

However, I must admit that the thought of teaching children's Writing was quite a daunting task to me. What a blessing to me that the school at which I taught had your writing curriculum in place for the 5th-6th grade level. 

"Where do I even start? What can I teach these young minds about Writing? I am not creative, how can I teach my students to be creative?" These are questions that repeated in my head over and over as I thought about my new position as Language Arts and Computer teacher. Your curriculum addressed all of these fears and questions. 

There are many things that made teaching Rainbow and Pot of Gold an enjoyment. The first thing that comes to mind is how easy they are to use. The teacher's manual is very well laid out, organized and gives great examples to demonstrate key points of the writing process. This saved me the time consuming task of creating effective applicable examples. 

I also loved that the creativity of "Creative Writing" is built right into your program making it a breeze for anyone to teach, even for those ofus who consider ourselves "uncreative". The variety of fun and engaging writing tasks taught the students the fundamentals of the writing process with ease. By the end of class, all students looked forward to creating their own colorful writing piece. The rainbow theme based programs made it easy to find accessories to compliment the class, which was motivating and enjoyed by the students. 

You might be interested to know that I did have some exceptional students involved with both Rainbow and Pot of Gold. One of my students was a 5th grade boy with Down's syndrome. Another student of mine was a very advanced 6th grade writer. Both of these students were still able to participate in the class by slightly altering the writing assignment. This gave both students a sense of inclusion in our fun class. Your curriculum was easily adaptable for both the special needs student and the advanced student. 

And finally, what I feel is the most important is the excitement that Rainbow and Pot of Gold brought to the students. To my students, "Rainbow" and "Pot of Gold" class were as anticipated as recess. Wow! How impressive to inspire such young minds to write! Thank you for the hard work you have done to make Writing fun for everyone- the teacher and the student. 

Sincerely,

Teacher

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Mrs. Schmal, 

"I am happy to tell you how I enjoy using Rainbow Class. I first heard about Rainbow Class at a literacy conference about 10 years ago. Mary Schmal explained the course and I began using it the next semester. For most of the last 10 years I have used it as my creative writing curriculum. 

One thing I really like is the evaluation procedure. The children know they're working to reach the top of the rainbow-a red- and they know exactly how to do it. The evaluation sheets that first they fill out as the writer and then the evaluator checks over, make it very easy for both the teacher and the students to know just what is expected in that lesson. Another part of the lessons that I and the students like are the trust building exercises. I always do them on the board while the children do theirs so we all share our ideas and experiences. I feel those exercises lead them to feel comfortable with what they want to write. 

The different writing experiences are also a fun way to teach writing and to let the children feel successful as writers. One of my favorites early in the year is the "My Life as a ... " ( an inanimate object). The children love doing this assignment and hearing each other's stories. Of course having the children create color names for themselves to use for all their Rainbow Class assignments is a fun way for them to have a pen name. I have each person design a name tag on an index card showing their color name. Those cards are pinned on the Rainbow Class bulletin board along with the most current writing assignment. 

This year I have that bulletin board in the hall and the whole school is enjoying the writing (and I hear former students talking about when they had Rainbow Class.) A very important reason for recommending Rainbow Class is comments I've heard from parents. Parents of current students really appreciate knowing exactly what is expected for an assignment. Parents of high school students who had Rainbow Class in 5th grade have told me that that is when their child really started to be a good writer and learned how to write and enjoyed it. Rainbow Class will remain as part of my curriculum as long as I teach." 

Teacher

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Dear Mary, 

"Composition class, yuck! When I was faced with my first composition class in college, I was not too excited. All that I remember learning from that class was that transitional statements are an important part of any piece of writing. My writing experiences all revolved around reports and essays. Thankfully, here at St. John's, I have recently stepped into a teaching position that allows me to encourage creativity and teach the writing process in a creative setting. 

As I introduced the idea of the Rainbow creative writing series to the students and their parents at home visits, I received numerous words of approval and excitement. I can tell that the Rainbow and Pot of Gold creative writing curriculums have been used here at St. John's Lutheran School for a number of years. The more recent decision to create a teaching position for a composition and English teacher continues to show that St. John's desires to focus even more on teaching the students how to write. During the first portion of my first school year here, I have repeatedly been impressed with the level of writing and creative thinking in the students. The use of the Rainbow and Pot of Gold curriculum and the emphasis on writing has been very beneficial for students. They often exclaim that they have more to write and cannot fit their piece within the upper limit of the length that has been assigned. The few times I have forgotten to set a limit showed me why it is important. Students continue to write as many as six pages. The students just continued to write pages of material! 

These curriculums also make life easier for those who have to work a little harder to be creative. For the teacher, the examples and suggestions help the teacher model the lesson. The teacher's guide also explains the objectives and how they will be achieved in the lesson. For the students, the practice book and the exercises lead the students to be at ease with each other as they share their ideas. The rubrics help guide students to include important aspects of writing in various activities, while making grading easier for the teacher. One thing that would make these curriculums even easier would be to have the material back in the form of a workbook. The students lose some of the "color" of the series because the material is run off in black and white. 

Composition class, yuck! Thankfully those have not been the words that my students have said. The Rainbow series and the emphasis on writing at St. John's has led to a feeling of excitement when it is time for class. These curriculums have been beneficial to the students and to me, as a new composition teacher, by making creativity and writing exciting. I cannot wait to have the student workbooks back in print so they can see more of the color of the text. 

Sincerely, 

Teacher