Organization Activities
#3 Get Specific About How To Begin (p. 116)
Write several leads and choose the best one. A lead should grab the reader’s attention and give some detail about what the piece will be about. It should make the reader curious and want to read more.
#8 Talk Before You Write (p. 120)
Tell the story you’re going to write about verbally to other then make a list of things you talked about for the framework. Go through and add more details and also eliminate details that are not needed in the writing.
#12 Practice Writing Killer Endings (p. 124)
Write several different ending thoughts and choose the best one. The ending should be interesting and fulfilling to the reader but not too long and filled with too much detail that the reader loses focus.
Voice Activities
#10 Go For Contrast (p. 150)
By demonstrating to students contrasting items such as rice and ice cream then trying to describe each, shows the differences in a lot of descriptions versus very little. Which would you rather have, plain rice or indulgent ice cream?
#11 Have Students Read Aloud (p. 152)
By having students read their work out loud, it helps them hear how it sounds and flows. When students read each other’s writings out loud as well, it helps them hear how their piece sounds. By hearing other student’s writings out loud, it encourages them to use their own voice to write by.
#16 Model The Power of Detail (p. 157)
Adding detail helps add voice as well. By using descriptive words, the reader can get a better sense of how the author is trying to portray the topic they are writing about.
Sentence Fluency
#3 Remind Students to Read Everything They Write Aloud
By reading their work aloud, students are able to hear how their work sounds. If it doesn’t flow and sounds choppy, they know the sentence needs to be revised. The sentence or several sentences should have a nice rhythm to them, making it flow nicely.
#5 Build a Sentence
By completing each part to a sentence individually, it allows to make fun transition between each part. Naming and describing the subject and telling how/where/why the event happened makes an informative sentence. After putting all of these things together and differentiating lengths of sentences creates a good story.
#11 Break The Rules (At The Right Moment)
Never say never. Sometimes, “breaking” the traditional rules of “never start a sentence with because or and” and using ellipses, when used at the appropriate time, and not all the time, can be the perfect touch to a sentence. By using differing beginnings and sentence structures, this allows for a smooth paper.
Enhancing Meaning and Voice with WORD CHOICE
#1 READ, READ READ
When students read, they expand their vocab without even trying. By reading different types of books, students can see different dialects used throughout history. By reading, students see how beautifully some sentences can be written, flowing along as if it were a song. This helps them to expand their own knowledge of common words and replacing them with words or phrases that can describe the situations even better.
#2 Read Short Passage Above Grade Level
By encouraging students to read above their own level, they are introduced to expanded sentences and vocabulary. This will hopefully spark interest in them to want to read and understand more and also incorporate those kinds of words and sentence structures in their own work.
#4 Make Sure Students Are Comfortable Using Resources
It is very important to make sure students not only use tools like a dictionary and thesaurus but that they understand how to use them to help benefit their writing. When coming across a word they don’t understand, using a dictionary to define the term allows them to understand the sentence and if they want to portray that same feeling in their writing, they can use a thesaurus to use a different word but with the same meaning.
Conventions
#1 Help Students Understand The Reasons Behind Conventions
By giving students completely unedited pieces of writing, they can obviously see how important editing/ revisions can be to a final piece. Showing different types of writing with and without proper punctuation and grammar will emphasize why it is needed.
#8 Remember the 72- Hour Rule
Students should be reminded to put away their writing for several days then re-read it. By doing this, it allows for fresh ideas to develop in the mind and stagnant ideas to wander away. Having a fresh outlook for editing a paper can be very efficient.
#11 Celebrate What Students do Correctly
By reiterating what students do right in their papers, we are encouraging them to use those same styles and practices again in the future. By giving students special, individualized comments are especially good “ego- boosters” for students who may struggle with writing.
Ideas
#4 Keep the Message Small and Focused (pg 85)
When writing about a topic, choose one that is broad enough to encompass different topics within but narrowed down enough so there is a clear point to the topic and it does not run off into other areas.
#5 Choose Details That Matter (pg 85)
When writing about a topic, not everything needs to be included. Choose certain details that grab the reader’s attention and delve deeper into them. When too many details are included, the writing is unorganized and doesn’t flow.
#11 Take 10 (pg91)
After writing a lead sentence, set a timer for 10 minutes and write as much information about the topic as you can. Skipping every other line is key for when you come back and reread the passage, fill in missing spaces and add on more details.
Spandel, V. (2013). Showcasing The Message With Organization. In Creating writers: 6 traits, process, workshop, and literature. Boston, Mass.: Allyn & Bacon.