Christmas has once again come and gone and I await,with anticipation, the new year of 2012 and what it will bring.  Sitting and enjoying a steamy cup of coffee last night, I started reminiscing about growing up and  about my grandmother who lived with us. Granny had a habit of pouring her creamed coffee into her saucer to drink it which always seemed normal at our house. I hadn’t thought  much about it while it was happening, but now it is a special memory to me. Wondering if it was just a southern thing, I researched and found it had been prevalent for years  in many countries. Apparently it wasn’t always considered polite to those in the upper class though.  I realize now that I really need to take time to jot down all these little memories.

What an opportunity we can offer our students if we also allow them the chance to research and interview their families before they are gone. We will not only give them writing and researching opportunities, but we will give them a chance to build deeper relationships with those around them.  Students will have the chance to learn about family and to compare their findings to those of others around the world. What an interesting way to get them to write!!

Stage 2 of the writing process is the rough draft, also called the first draft or the sloppy copy.  I prefer sloppy copy because it reminds the students that once they revise and proofread their first draft, it will be a sloppy copy. Before beginning this rough framework, students must be given a chance to prewrite or make a plan for what they will be including. They need a true sense of the audience, the purpose for writing,  and how they want their paper organized.  They bring to the table their research, notes, outline, or whatever graphic organizer they have developed.

At this point, teachers and/or students need to develop a time frame for the writing.  Students should be made aware of any specific instructions such as length, number of paragraphs,  and whether or not they are expected to have a title on the paper.  Some teachers require students to skip lines when they write to allow for revisions. Some like students to write on both sides of the paper while others prefer one side.  Regardless, students need to know these specifics before beginning the sloppy copy.

Requiring students to write five paragraphs in a paper or essay does not ensure an interesting style or a paper that is organized.  Students need to know their papers should include a beginning, a middle, and an ending but that organization may come in many forms.  Formulaic writing is not the end-all (I will be writing about formulaic writing at a later date.) , and we should be cautious when teaching the five-paragraph essay without spending  much time on developing style, voice, and word choice.

With this in mind, let’s get busy and give our students the chance to write, write, write.

Prewriting is a very important part of the writing process, one of the most important steps, I believe.  Just as an architect develops a house plan, so does a writer develop his plan.  During  prewriting, one decides the purpose of the writing, what will be communicated, and the audience to whom it will  be directed.  The topic is also narrowed during this step to the appropriate length for the assignment.

The writer uses prewriting to decide how the piece will be organized and developed.  With the writing process being recursive, writers often return to the prewriting even after beginning the rough draft.

Prewriting comes with many faces.  Those include freewriting, keeping a journal, using a graphic organizer, making lists, discussing/brainstorming, mapping, and clustering.  As educators, we all have our favorite graphic organizer that can be used for prewriting.

Until students become fluid writers, we must require them to prewrite. Not all assignments will demand the same type of plan, but students need a plan nevertheless. Who builds a house without a blueprint?

Many times we will offer topics to our students, but choice of topics allows students to write about their interests.  On those occasions when students are allowed to choose, we sometimes have students who struggle with finding a topic so we need to offer them help.   All along the way, we can have students keep a list of topics in their writing notebook or portfolio, we can post a class list of suggested topics somewhere in the room, and we can take the time to brainstorm new topics before sending students off to find their own.  Talking to students about what they like is sometimes all it takes to spark an interest and to get them going with their prewriting.  So who selects topics?  Topics may be provided by the teacher or selected by the students, depending on the situation. Never let students sit and complain about not having something to write about when we can offer them the guidance they need.

The writing process is a structured way to teach students how to write.   Over time the process should become more fluid and recursive as students move back and forth between stages.  Students, if they are to improve, need to see writing instruction focused on the process rather than on the products all the time.  After I thoroughly teach the process and students have had ample time to practice each step, I post the steps and also have students carry a copy of them.  I think prewriting and revision are the keys to effective writing.

*Prewriting is the brainstorming stage. Graphic organizers are used to organize the topic and main ideas of the piece.

*Sloppy Copy/RoughDraft/First Draft

*Revision

*Proofreading

*Final Copy

*Publishing

I will be discussing each step of the process in future posts.   Even though the process here might look a bit different from others you  may have seen, it has worked very well for me over the years.

Recently, while traveling down the expressway, I marveled at the beauty of the autumn leaves that surrounded me on all sides.  The vibrant colors basically took away my breath as we rushed in and out of traffic. Muted oranges, rustic golds, burgundy reds, and blended browns were interwoven throughout the towering evergreens.  My initial thought was how lovely a painting this scene would make and then, as if by magic, I was back in my classroom teaching descriptive writing and seeing the students’ faces lighting up as they realized that they really could write.

I didn’t just assign a topic and leave it up to them to figure it all out on their own. We worked together on a plan that involved sitting outside in nature, sometimes in the spring and many times in autumn.  We observed. We took notes. We experimented with the language. We read descriptions by others. We sought out descriptive language in their library books.  We took time to get in touch with our senses as we proceeded to paint a picture with words for others.

We built confidence.  I was back in the day when we were free to teach students to have fun with the language.  We need to get there again, and it can happen.  We can teach those standards and still remain true to ourselves as educators.

As we begin this writing journey together, let’s keep something in mind:  never assume anything. When students arrive at our doors, we must start where they are no matter how ill-prepared we think they may be.  With Common Core Standards rolling out, it is imperative that we make some specific and deliberate changes in the way we teach composition or our students will continue to lag behind.

I’m regularly asked how often students should write. Based on my experience and the available research, they should write regularly, preferably every day.  Frequent, shorter writing experiences prove to be more beneficial than long, less frequent marathons.  Once students are taught the writing process, they must be given experience with using it. Of course, not all writing will involve the entire process, but students learn to write by actually practicing what they have been taught.  Would we teach swimming without allowing students access to water?  I think not.

Opportunities to write need to be an  integral part of lesson and unit plans, not just an after thought.  We must methodically plan writing events so that they become a natural part of our students’ day.  Implementing writing throughout the curriculum will allow more chance of seeing the added benefit of critical thinking.

How often should students write?  I say they should write as often as necessary to develop their skills. We don’t flinch when a football coach calls for daily practices to hone those skills so why all the fuss about practicing the skills that help our students become lifelong learners?

I am not a fan of canned programs, writing or otherwise, and believe in just solid teaching based on standards, hard work, and best practices.  The tips I include will be based on that, plus over thirty years of tried and true experience. We need to seize those teachable moments and get started somewhere.

Teaching composition is hard work. Now that we have established that fact, we can begin to make a difference by seeking out strategies to get it done in an exciting and wonderful way. Each of us as educators has got to take ownership and do something.  The Eagles have a song, “Do Something” that I have chosen recently as my writing anthem. It has absolutely nothing to do with writing or teaching but everything to do with attitude and starting somewhere. With current research suggesting-perhaps even shouting-that students can no longer write effectively, we have no choice except to seize the moment and begin somewhere to help our students get back on the “write” track.

If you are reading this, you more than likely want to help make this happen. With that in mind, WISE Writing will begin to offer some tips to help us all get started wherever we are-parent, teacher, administrator-and with time and effort, we will see improvement in the quality of student writing. Let’s agree to love and work with ALL our students  when they arrive at our doors. Let’s look for and EXPECT improvement.