RESPONSE TO LITTLE HOUSE: DUE THURSDAY THE 19TH:
| little_house_response.doc |
LITTLE HOUSE LINKS:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Little_House_on_the_Prairie_episodes
http://www.tv.com/shows/little-house-on-the-prairie/little-house-on-the-prairie-pilot-movie-196140/
http://www.prairiefans.com
http://www.tv.com/shows/little-house-on-the-prairie/little-house-on-the-prairie-pilot-movie-196140/
http://www.prairiefans.com
USING ETHOS, PATHOS AND LOGOS IN OUR WRITING:
| ethos_pathos_logos_handout_and_lesson_plan_1.doc |
SOME TOPICS FIFTH GRADERS ARE PASSIONATE ABOUT:
Topics Fifth Graders Feel Strongly About:
· Bullying in schools
· Peer pressure
· Parent pressure to be successful
· National safety/security
· Divorce
· Cliques
· Racial groups in school
· Censorship
· Overpaid professional athletes
· Violent video games and/or television shows
· DO ANIMALS BELONG IN ZOOS?
· Inappropriate language in music and music videos
· Family members who smoke
· Over bearing parents who coach their kids in sporting events
· Dress codes in school
· Year round school
· Extended school day
· Homework
· Pollution
· Child/animal abuse
· Internet safety
· Global warming/protecting the environment
· Obesity in kids
· Steroids in athletics
· Lowering the voting age
· Technology Crimes
· Bad celebrity role models
· ECONOMY
· Universal health care
· Gun control
· Homelessness
· Money Spent on new sports stadiums
· Bullying in schools
· Peer pressure
· Parent pressure to be successful
· National safety/security
· Divorce
· Cliques
· Racial groups in school
· Censorship
· Overpaid professional athletes
· Violent video games and/or television shows
· DO ANIMALS BELONG IN ZOOS?
· Inappropriate language in music and music videos
· Family members who smoke
· Over bearing parents who coach their kids in sporting events
· Dress codes in school
· Year round school
· Extended school day
· Homework
· Pollution
· Child/animal abuse
· Internet safety
· Global warming/protecting the environment
· Obesity in kids
· Steroids in athletics
· Lowering the voting age
· Technology Crimes
· Bad celebrity role models
· ECONOMY
· Universal health care
· Gun control
· Homelessness
· Money Spent on new sports stadiums
WRITER'S CHECKLIST (INCLUDING EDITING):
| fifth-grade-writers-checklists.doc |
GRAPHIC ORGANIZER: MAIN IDEA AND KEY DETAILS--WHAT IS THIS MOSTLY ABOUT (MAIN IDEA-ANGLE)
| mainideaanddetails.pdf |
INFORMATIONAL WRITING RUBRIC:
| infowritingrubirc.pdf |
ELA WRITING RUBRIC:
'BIG BANG" ENDINGS IN INFORMATIONAL WRITING:
A conclusion for an informational piece synthesizes or puts the main ideas of the article together. A conclusion doesn't just summarize the main idea. It brings the main ideas together, draws conclusion and offers insight. It is usually at least one paragraph long. It may offer examples. So for instance, you may wish to conclude with a scene-anecdote-observation, draw a conclusion and then offer some insight into your new learning about your topic-angle. So:
- Develop a strong conclusion that brings together (synthesizes) the main ideas of the text.
- Offer any additional insight gained from writing your informational story.
TRANSITIONAL WORDS AND PHRASES:
Writers link different ideas with transitional words and phrases. These include "in the meantime," "in addition to," and "for example." There are also some compare and contrast words that include "though" and "but," chronological words like "then" and "next," cause and effect "since," "due to" and "therefore," problem and solution like "if...then."
Be sure to add transitional phrases to your articles.
Be sure to add transitional phrases to your articles.
DEVELOPING YOUR TOPIC WITH VISUALS:
Make sure to include text features such as illustrations, photographs (with captions), subheadings, captions and labels in your articles. A writer may also use different types of formatting, such as bold faced or italicized words.
So be sure to:
So be sure to:
- add formatting such as bold faced or italicized words and subheadings to clarify organization and emphasize key ideas.
- research and add relevant visuals to emphasize and clarify information.
- include original captions for photos, maps or illustrations to support your article
USING DOMAIN SPECIFIC VOCABULARY IN YOUR INFORMATIONAL PIECES:
Developing a Topic with Domain specific vocabulary. When developing a topic for an informative essay, we need to pay attention to precise language and domain specific vocabulary. Some readers may not be aware of certain scientific language and knowledge needed to fully understand and appreciate an essay without explanations or definitions of vocabulary specific to a particular subject. Replace general, vague terms such as people with precise, accurate words and phrases such as scientists. For example, “Ecology is studied all over the world today but when Rachel Carson was studying, only a few people knew how important it was.” To:
Ecology is the study of the relationships between living things and their environments. It is a branch of science that is studied all over the world today but when Rachel Carson was studying the oceans, only scientists and a few others knew how important this field of science was.
The writer of the informative essay added a definition and changed general vague words to precise accurate ones to make the sentence more specific.
Work on your articles. Be sure to:
· Include accurate, precise language instead of language that is too general or vague.
· Include domain specific vocabulary that is appropriate for the topic. Include a power word box, if you like.
· Include definitions and or explanations to help ther readers understand exactly what certain words mean.
· Try to use trusted websites that end in edu, gov or org. Only use relevant info from these sources.
Ecology is the study of the relationships between living things and their environments. It is a branch of science that is studied all over the world today but when Rachel Carson was studying the oceans, only scientists and a few others knew how important this field of science was.
The writer of the informative essay added a definition and changed general vague words to precise accurate ones to make the sentence more specific.
Work on your articles. Be sure to:
· Include accurate, precise language instead of language that is too general or vague.
· Include domain specific vocabulary that is appropriate for the topic. Include a power word box, if you like.
· Include definitions and or explanations to help ther readers understand exactly what certain words mean.
· Try to use trusted websites that end in edu, gov or org. Only use relevant info from these sources.
COLLECTING RELEVANT FACTS, DETAILS AND DESCRIPTIONS THAT RELATE TO THE MAIN IDEA:
How do we develop a topic with relevant facts and details?
A writer develops a topic by including relevant facts, details and examples that support the main idea. To create interest, a writer will also use figurative or descriptive language and vary sentence structure.
· What is the topic? What main idea or ideas relate to the topic?
· What facts, details and examples support the main idea?
· How does the language emphasize ideas and create interest?
Practice weaving facts, details and examples into your writing, Vary sentence structure and use figurative and descriptive language to make your writing both factual and interesting.
A writer develops a topic by including relevant facts, details and examples that support the main idea. To create interest, a writer will also use figurative or descriptive language and vary sentence structure.
· What is the topic? What main idea or ideas relate to the topic?
· What facts, details and examples support the main idea?
· How does the language emphasize ideas and create interest?
Practice weaving facts, details and examples into your writing, Vary sentence structure and use figurative and descriptive language to make your writing both factual and interesting.
POWER OF OBSERVATION:
THE PURPOSE OF AN INFORMATIVE TEXT IS TO INFORM READERS ABOUT A SPECIFIC TOPIC. A TOPIC IS A SUBJECT OF A TEXT OR WHAT IT IS ABOUT. THE ANGLE IS THE SPECIFIC FOCUS OR MAIN IDEA. YOU SHOULD BEGIN YOUR HUMANE ED FEATURES WITH AN OBSERVATION--AN INTERESTING DETAIL OR IMAGE RELATED TO THE TOPIC. CONSIDER IN ARTICLE WRITING:
BASED ON OUR MENTOR TEXTS AND RACHEL CARSON BOOK, THINK OF AN OBSERVATION TO ENGAGE READERS AND MAKE THEM WANT TO KNOW MORE ABOUT THE TOPIC. IN OTHER WORDS, START WITH A DESCRIPTIVE ANECDOTE OR SCENE RELATED TO THE MAIN IDEA. REMEMBER PURPOSE IS TO INFORM YOUR AUDIENCE OF KIDS--TEACH THEM SOMETHING NEW THAT IS IMPORTANT AND INTERESTING.
- WHAT OBSERVATION DOES THE TEXT BEGIN WITH?
- HOW DOES THIS OPENING RELATE TO A TOPIC?
- DOES THIS OBSERVATION ENCOURAGE A READER TO CONTINUE READING?
BASED ON OUR MENTOR TEXTS AND RACHEL CARSON BOOK, THINK OF AN OBSERVATION TO ENGAGE READERS AND MAKE THEM WANT TO KNOW MORE ABOUT THE TOPIC. IN OTHER WORDS, START WITH A DESCRIPTIVE ANECDOTE OR SCENE RELATED TO THE MAIN IDEA. REMEMBER PURPOSE IS TO INFORM YOUR AUDIENCE OF KIDS--TEACH THEM SOMETHING NEW THAT IS IMPORTANT AND INTERESTING.
WATER BOTTLE ARTICLE: http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/kids/stories/spacescience/water-bottle-pollution/
RATTLER TATTLER MENTOR TEXT: http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1995-08-01/features/9508010020_1_rattlers-rattlesnakes-swallow
TRUE COST OF FASHION: http://browndigital.bpc.com/publication/?i=165747#{"page":8,"issue_id":165747,"view":"archiveBrowser"}
- http://browndigital.bpc.com/publication/?i=165747#{"page":0,"issue_id":165747}
- As a reader:
- WHAT IS THE WATERMELON?
- WHAT IS THE SEED-ANGLE?
- Why do some retailers manufacture clothes in Bangladesh? Do Americans benefit from this? Why or why not?
- Student Katie Rowe says higher clothing prices might hurt sales. What facts from this article support or contradict her opinion?
- How might having higher US clothing prices help or hurt developing nations? Keeping those pros and cons in mind, should clothing retailers raise prices? Why or why not?
Review: Features of Feature-Informational Articles:
Feature article noticings::
Each part follows the other over one to two pages
- titles
- subtitles
- illustrations
- diagrams
- pictures
- captions
- charts
- maps
- facts
- definitions
- Speaking to the reader “you”
- quotes from experts, famous people, and people affected by the subject
- statistics
- use of punctuation: parentheses, bullets, dash
- words in bold
- leads
- fun facts
- endings/ conclusions
- Vocabulary: anecdote - short, entertaining account of something happening
- vignette - a short, delicate literary sketch
- quote - exact words spoken by someone and set off by quotation marks
- flashback - recalling something that has happened in the past
- tables - an arrangement of related facts, figures, values, etc. usually in rows and columns
- charts - a group of facts about something set up in the form of a diagram
- graph - a diagram (curve - broken line - series of bars)
- snapshots - written description of how something looks
- sketches - drawings
- foreshadowing - hints of what is to happen in the future
- Various Ways to Include
- Details in an Article:
- Anecdotes Examples/Non-examples
- Vignettes Tables/Graphs/Charts
- Descriptions Facts
- Comparison Contrast
- Snapshots Pictures/Drawings
- Reasons Quotations
- Flashback Foreshadowing
There are a few standard times to make a new paragraph:
- When you start in on a new topic
- When you skip to a new time
- When you skip to a new place
- When a new person begins to speak
- When you want to produce a dramatic effect
LINK TO CORRECT USE OF DIALOGUE http://www.writerlylife.com/2010/09/how-to-use-dialogue-correctly/#.Uqn3Oo7A4UU
REVISION STRATEGIES:
Why Do We Revise?
Link: You have worked so hard on your writing and today we are going to look at how we can take our own sad songs (or happy tunes) and make them better!
Teach: Why do we revise? We must ask ourselves several questions as we go through these stages?
Reflect and respond to these questions to your work. On Wednesday, we will then exchange second drafts with a partner. Using post its and the peer conferencing sheet, your partner will make suggestions.
Independent: Students reflect and respond to their work and we review peer conferencing sheet. Share: suggestions. Distribute and discuss narrative rubric/self-assessment due with final draft on Friday, November 9th.
Part two: More Revising: Cracking Open Words/Creating Your Own Thesaurus
Link: Writers want to crack open words in order to get to beautiful, hidden crystal. Words like fun, nice, pretty, wonderful and scary are generic, tired and overused words. They don’t say anything specific. They don’t paint a picture in the reader’s mind. We want to wake up these tired words. We can crack open sentences to change the tone. We can add concrete description in order to bring the writing alive. In each case, cracking open the known reveals the unknown. And, in most cases, it leads to something better, more exciting, more useful, more colorful, more surprising. Often in our manuscripts—especially early drafts—we may have non-descriptive words, phrases, and sentences that need to be cracked open and elaborated to really get to the good part. Consider these rather boring sentences:
· It was a pretty morning.
· He was a good boy.
· The food was good.
These are all telling sentences and we know that good writing shows and does not tell. And even though they tell, they sure don't tell much. The reader is left with questions and uncertainty because of a lack of details. When we crack open words and phrases we're trying to get to theshow of the sentence. The process is easy. When you find a word, phrase, or sentence that tells, stop; envision the person, place, or thing; and give words to what you see in your mind. Then use the words that describe what you envision as you rewrite. Let me show you some examples and let you practice a couple of examples, too.
Word/Phrase/Sentence
What I Envision
Cracked Open Rewrite
It was a pretty morning.
· Sun/clouds
· Palms/sway
The palms swayed as the sun rose in the cloudy sky.
He was a good boy.
· Trevor
· A boy scout
· Trustworthy
Trevor was as good as a boy scout (and just as trusthworthy).
Teach: fun (adjective). Amusing, merry, enjoyable, lively, pleasant, diverting, festive, delightful
Fun (noun). Ball, blast, enjoyment, escapade, frolic, high jinks, merriment, recreation, romp, treat, merrymaking, horseplay, game, festivity, delight, entertainment
Thing: object, material, item, tool, utensil
Smile: beam, grin, laugh, smirk, glow
Walk: hike, stroll, step, stride, plod, stomp, glide, gallop, trudge, trample
Independent:
Also, try keeping a list of words you over use and find alternatives. Use a thesaurus and your imagination.
Ex: nice—sweet, friendly, appealing, kind, gracious, caring, empathic, docile, delightful, delicious
Beautiful- handsome, lovely, graceful, exquisite, elegant, delicate, radiant, charming, beaming
Revisit writing--
· find tired, over used words/phrases
· words with no images
· vague
· overly used they have lost meaning
· obvious words
· clichés
Replace with:
· specific, picture painting language that provides strong images
· use sensory imagery and details to describe stretched moments
· use a thesaurus to use a more unusual, different word
· words that have special/personal meaning
· may evoke memory in your mind and leave a mark/memory in the reader’s mind
Demonstrate with: “It was a nice day.” (Read sample from Georgia Heard’s Revision Toolbox.
“It was kind of dark.”
NOW TRY ON YOUR OWN!!! SHARE!!!
EVEN MORE REVISING: DIALOGUE
Revision strategies: Adding Details/Dialogue
Link: Today we will continue revising by using these two strategies: adding details and dialogue.
Teach: Listen to first paragraph vs. the second:
The cat fell off the roof.
The little kitten was shivering. The ice storm caught it by surprise. It had climbed up onto the slate roof. It was hard to get a footing and it slid right off.
Details: Slowing down action. Think about it in a certain way. Details of the shivering kitten. We can see it unfold in front of us. Think about a time or day. What was the weather like? Describe sounds, smells. Describe what things looked like and who was there. Sensory imagery is important. Do what you can to bring your reader into the story. Try adding details to a paragraph of a previously written piece of add something you are in the middle or just starting.
Using Dialogue
Link: You have worked so hard on your writing and today we are going to look at how we can take our own sad songs (or happy tunes) and make them better!
Teach: Why do we revise? We must ask ourselves several questions as we go through these stages?
- What is the message or big idea of this piece?
- Where do I get the message across?
- What are the best parts? Be specific. Find best lines or sections.
- Where is it confusing?
- How can it be changed?
- What is the structure of this piece? (EX: One idea—multi scenes, stretched moment, etc).
- Is it the best structure or can something else work better?
Reflect and respond to these questions to your work. On Wednesday, we will then exchange second drafts with a partner. Using post its and the peer conferencing sheet, your partner will make suggestions.
Independent: Students reflect and respond to their work and we review peer conferencing sheet. Share: suggestions. Distribute and discuss narrative rubric/self-assessment due with final draft on Friday, November 9th.
Part two: More Revising: Cracking Open Words/Creating Your Own Thesaurus
Link: Writers want to crack open words in order to get to beautiful, hidden crystal. Words like fun, nice, pretty, wonderful and scary are generic, tired and overused words. They don’t say anything specific. They don’t paint a picture in the reader’s mind. We want to wake up these tired words. We can crack open sentences to change the tone. We can add concrete description in order to bring the writing alive. In each case, cracking open the known reveals the unknown. And, in most cases, it leads to something better, more exciting, more useful, more colorful, more surprising. Often in our manuscripts—especially early drafts—we may have non-descriptive words, phrases, and sentences that need to be cracked open and elaborated to really get to the good part. Consider these rather boring sentences:
· It was a pretty morning.
· He was a good boy.
· The food was good.
These are all telling sentences and we know that good writing shows and does not tell. And even though they tell, they sure don't tell much. The reader is left with questions and uncertainty because of a lack of details. When we crack open words and phrases we're trying to get to theshow of the sentence. The process is easy. When you find a word, phrase, or sentence that tells, stop; envision the person, place, or thing; and give words to what you see in your mind. Then use the words that describe what you envision as you rewrite. Let me show you some examples and let you practice a couple of examples, too.
Word/Phrase/Sentence
What I Envision
Cracked Open Rewrite
It was a pretty morning.
· Sun/clouds
· Palms/sway
The palms swayed as the sun rose in the cloudy sky.
He was a good boy.
· Trevor
· A boy scout
· Trustworthy
Trevor was as good as a boy scout (and just as trusthworthy).
Teach: fun (adjective). Amusing, merry, enjoyable, lively, pleasant, diverting, festive, delightful
Fun (noun). Ball, blast, enjoyment, escapade, frolic, high jinks, merriment, recreation, romp, treat, merrymaking, horseplay, game, festivity, delight, entertainment
Thing: object, material, item, tool, utensil
Smile: beam, grin, laugh, smirk, glow
Walk: hike, stroll, step, stride, plod, stomp, glide, gallop, trudge, trample
Independent:
- Crack open at least one sentence. Use a post it to create interesting one.
- Begin your own personal thesaurus (word treasury) by finding at least two tired over used phrases/words and begin listing alternative words/phrases. (You may use a thesaurus).
- Try re-visiting your own pieces and cracking open sentences and words that are overused and fixing them.
- Begin collecting your own word treasury and keeping in your notebooks:
- Words you love the sound of
- Don’t know the meaning of but would like to find out
- Words you have seen in books that look interesting
- Words that give a strong image
- Words that evoke a memory
- Words you love to say out loud
- Words that have special meaning
Also, try keeping a list of words you over use and find alternatives. Use a thesaurus and your imagination.
Ex: nice—sweet, friendly, appealing, kind, gracious, caring, empathic, docile, delightful, delicious
Beautiful- handsome, lovely, graceful, exquisite, elegant, delicate, radiant, charming, beaming
Revisit writing--
· find tired, over used words/phrases
· words with no images
· vague
· overly used they have lost meaning
· obvious words
· clichés
Replace with:
· specific, picture painting language that provides strong images
· use sensory imagery and details to describe stretched moments
· use a thesaurus to use a more unusual, different word
· words that have special/personal meaning
· may evoke memory in your mind and leave a mark/memory in the reader’s mind
Demonstrate with: “It was a nice day.” (Read sample from Georgia Heard’s Revision Toolbox.
“It was kind of dark.”
NOW TRY ON YOUR OWN!!! SHARE!!!
EVEN MORE REVISING: DIALOGUE
Revision strategies: Adding Details/Dialogue
Link: Today we will continue revising by using these two strategies: adding details and dialogue.
Teach: Listen to first paragraph vs. the second:
The cat fell off the roof.
The little kitten was shivering. The ice storm caught it by surprise. It had climbed up onto the slate roof. It was hard to get a footing and it slid right off.
Details: Slowing down action. Think about it in a certain way. Details of the shivering kitten. We can see it unfold in front of us. Think about a time or day. What was the weather like? Describe sounds, smells. Describe what things looked like and who was there. Sensory imagery is important. Do what you can to bring your reader into the story. Try adding details to a paragraph of a previously written piece of add something you are in the middle or just starting.
Using Dialogue
- Dialogue is used to recreate conversation
- It tells us how people treat each other
- Reveals the personality of the characters by the way they talk
- Creates immediacy
- Dialogue uses real expressions as close to the truth as possible
- Try finding a place in your story to add dialogue to enhance the big idea or show your characters’ personalities
- Find places where you have too much dialogue
- Stop the conversation
- Describe the setting/scenery.
- Tell us more about the problem/conflict
- Describe the characters with more details
- Go inside the character’s head and describe what the main character is thinking/feeling and why!
- Return to the conversation when you think you have provided enough background information/details!
LEADS AND ENDINGS:
DIFFERENT KINDS OF LEADS:
Endings:
- The Grabber Lead: Writer begins with an element of surprise. Lead seizes reader’s attention and makes one think anything can happen. (EX: Shrek, the Picture Book). Or it may begin by simply asking the reader a question.
- Dramatic Lead: Starts with a scene and gives reader “sneaky pleasure” of eavesdropping on a conversation. (EX: On My Honor).
- Introducing the Narrator: Establishes and gets reader comfortable with who is telling the story. (EX: Changes in Latitude, Fig Pudding).
- The Moody Lead: Begins with a description of a place that sets the mood for what follows. It is like background music you hear at the beginning of a movie. (EX: Tuck Everlasting, Twilight Comes Twice).
- Sound Effects: Using onomotopeia to start your story.
- Misleading Lead: Writer deliberately sets you up for something other than what unfolds.(EX: “The camping trip started on a perfect October day, the skies emerald blue with just a hint of a chill in the air. Don’t you just know trouble will follow?”
- Beginning at the end: Writer reveals the ending before unfolding the story. (EX: “We sat in the intensive care unit while I kept thinking of my father, fighting for his life inside. The day had started peacefully).”
Endings:
- HUMOROUS ENDING: Catches the reader off guard by tickling their funny bone instead of their intellect. (EX: Babies leak, Fig Pudding).
- CIRCULAR ENDING: Ties together the beginning and end. Some authors use it to return to the actual beginning of the writing. You can also take a detail or incident from the beginning and return to it at the end. (EX: House on Mango Street, If You Give a Mouse a Cookie).
- SURRPRISE ENDING: Leaves reader with a “Whoa! What’s Going on?” feeling of being surprised, startled and shocked at the end of the story. (Must be carefully planned. The seed for a surprise ending has to be planted early on in the story).
- EMOTIONAL ENDING: A powerful writing tool that packs an emotional punch. Makes you think deeply, care and even cry. May be food for thought for your reader. (EX: from Charlotte’s Web, “ It’s a rare thing to find someone who is both a good friend and a good writer. Charlotte was both. In A Taste of Blackberries, the main character deals with his best friend’s death by going back to the blackberry patch where his friend died after getting stung by a bee, picking some blackberries and presenting them to his friend’s mother).
- REMEMBER: DON’T MAKE YOUR ENDINGS DO TOO MUCH. BUT TRY TO GIVE THE READER SOMETHING SPECIAL IN THE END: A MEMORABLE QUOTE, STATEMENT OR IDEA THT WILL LINGER IN THE MIND. MAKE A DEEP IMPRESSION!
PEER CONFERENCES:
| peer_conferences.doc |
MEMOIR SELF-ASSESSMENT TO GUIDE YOUR PUBLISHED PIECES (memoir rubric is in rubric section of website):
| memoir_self_assessment_check_list2.doc |
MENTOR TEXTS FOR PERSONIFICATION: SOUNDS OF SILENCE & ON THE ROAD
| soundsofsilence.doc |
| ontheroad.doc |
EXTENDED METAPHOR ACTIVITY--PUBLISH YOUR OWN EXTENDED METAPHOR WITH IMAGES AND CORRECT FORMAT BY MONDAY, OCTOBER 21
| extendedmetaphoractivity.doc |
MENTOR TEXT: ELEVEN. PRINT AND PUT A COPY IN YOUR MENTOR TEXT FOLDERS.
MENTOR TEXT: HE REMEMBERS
| he_remembers.doc |
MENTOR TEXT: WHEN I WAS YOUNG IN THE MOUNTAINS:
WHAT IS A WRITER'S NOTEBOOK?
| writersnotebook.doc |
RULES OF WRITING WORKSHOP:
1. Save everything; it’s all a part of the history of the piece of writing, and you never you know when you might want to use it.
2. Date and label everything you write to help you keep track of what you’ve done (e.g., notes, draft #1, brainstorming).
3. When a piece of writing is finished, clip everything together, including the drafts, notes, lists, editing checklist, and peer conferencing form, and file it in your permanent writing folder.
4. Record every piece of writing you finish on the form in your permanent writing folder.
5. Write on one sides of the paper only and always skip lines or type double-spaced. Both will make revision, polishing, and editing easier and more productive for you.
6. Draft your prose writing in sentences and paragraphs. Draft your poems in lines and stanzas. Don’t go back into a mess of text and try to create order. Format as you go. Refer to your proofreading list.
7. Gets into the habit of punctuating and spelling as conventionally as you can while you’re composing; this is what writers do.
8. Get into the habit of beginning each workshop by reading what you’ve already written. Establish where you are in the piece and pick up the momentum.
9. Understand that writing is thinking. Do nothing to distract other writers or me. Don’t put your words into our brains as we’re struggling to find our own.
10. When you confer with me or with partners, use a soft voice as I use when I talk to you: whisper.
11. When you need to confer with peers, use a conference area and record responses on a peer conference form so the writer has a reminder of what happened.
12. Write as well and as much as you can!
2. Date and label everything you write to help you keep track of what you’ve done (e.g., notes, draft #1, brainstorming).
3. When a piece of writing is finished, clip everything together, including the drafts, notes, lists, editing checklist, and peer conferencing form, and file it in your permanent writing folder.
4. Record every piece of writing you finish on the form in your permanent writing folder.
5. Write on one sides of the paper only and always skip lines or type double-spaced. Both will make revision, polishing, and editing easier and more productive for you.
6. Draft your prose writing in sentences and paragraphs. Draft your poems in lines and stanzas. Don’t go back into a mess of text and try to create order. Format as you go. Refer to your proofreading list.
7. Gets into the habit of punctuating and spelling as conventionally as you can while you’re composing; this is what writers do.
8. Get into the habit of beginning each workshop by reading what you’ve already written. Establish where you are in the piece and pick up the momentum.
9. Understand that writing is thinking. Do nothing to distract other writers or me. Don’t put your words into our brains as we’re struggling to find our own.
10. When you confer with me or with partners, use a soft voice as I use when I talk to you: whisper.
11. When you need to confer with peers, use a conference area and record responses on a peer conference form so the writer has a reminder of what happened.
12. Write as well and as much as you can!