Writing Process

Writing is hard for many of us because it is so personal and it takes a great deal of effort and thought to communicate in written form. Teaching children how to write in a variety of forms (Expository, Narrative) often starts with a prompt. That is when the teacher provides the students with a little background and then asks the child to write about one of their life experiences. Here is how I like to break down the writing process for my students.

Day 1 (Pre- write) Decide what I want to write about. Make this a small blip in time. Let's use going to Disneyland as an example. Going to Disneyland is too huge of a topic to write about all that happened and still give enough detail to interest your readers. Think of one little part of the trip that stands out and write about it. Usually I try to think of something that is about 5 minutes in real time. Like what it felt like standing in line for a ride, or when the gal handed me the frozen banana treat....
If you keep it small, it is much more manageable.

Day 2 (Drafting) I like to use the 4 square writing model. This is when I decide on 3 things I want to make sure I talk about in my writing. This is where sensory writing comes in. Each square can talk about how I was feeling, what I was smelling, what is sounded like, what was running through my mind..... I write very short phrases in each section. Sometimes even a single word works. I need just enough to help me remember what I wanted to include in my writing.

Day 3 (More Drafting) Now that I have a plan, I start writing sentences that explain the simple phrases in my 4 square. The more I can "Paint a picture" for my audience, the better they will understand me. I try to use a lot of descriptive words as I write. The more my readers "see", "hear", "taste", "feel"... the more they are going to understand what I am writing about.

Day 4 (Revise) I have my story done....I think. Now it is time to share it with a friend and read it aloud or have them read it. If they have comments or questions, this is when I want to know so I can clarify my writing. This part is fun because I usually feel really good about my writing on this day and will receive very helpful information from my friend that I share it with.

Day 5 (Publishing) Now it is time to re-write my draft so that it will be easy for my audience to read and enjoy it.

For those of you looking for ways to help your child with the writing process, I hope this helps.

Cindy

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