Deciding on and Giving the Assignment

Step 1: Spend time on the computer clearly outlining the assignment. You may want to include a rubric detailing how the report will be graded and detailing what is expected. Give detailed directions on how you expect students’ sources to be cited and exactly how you will determine what you consider to be plagiarism. Be sure to discuss exactly what the report must cover along with the formal style that you may expect. Give each student a printed copy of this.

Researching Main Ideas and Sub-Topics

Step 2: Have students find sources of information for their subject. (Library, internet, encyclopedias, textbooks)

Step 3: Students now quickly skim and scan their resources getting a quick overview of their entire subject. Students need to learn the information as they research the material. Writing the report in their own words is hard to do if they don’t understand the material. (Teach students how to avoid plagiarism while they are young. Learning the material as students research helps students write their report in their own words.)

Step 4: Have students use a separate sheet of paper for each of their sources. At the top of each sheet of paper have students write the bibliography information for one source that they will be using.

Step 5: Students now skim and scan each source writing important big picture main ideas and main sub-topics which they feel they could build a report around. They should put a strong focus on headings, chapter titles, and table of contents. Have them write these ideas down in their own words by paraphrasing.

Outlining and Organizing

Step 6: Have students look over their sheets of paper that have all their big picture main ideas and sub-topics. Have them decide which main ideas and sub-topics they will want to build their report around. (Continue to urge students to learn the material.)

Step 7: Now students build a perfect puzzle of main ideas and sub-topics which will outline their report. In other words, they create an outline of what they want to focus on in their report. (It’s okay if they decide they need to change some of their main ideas and sub-topics as they continue to research their subject.) 

Researching for Facts

Step 8: Now students research and take notes. They can continue to use the same sheets of paper that they have their main ideas on, OR they can use an index card for each main idea or sub-topic. If you use an index card with the main ideas you need to be sure to mark which source you got your information from. Students do not write their notes in complete sentences. Have students write their notes in “Frankenstein Writing.” (Nile River – 4185 miles long – longest river in world) Sounds like Frankenstein, doesn’t it? Frankenstein writing is fast, and it makes sure students will later write their report in their own words.

Writing the Report

Step 9: Students follow their outline and use their notes to write their report. Students can research more if needed, but no using books when writing the report. Make sure students understand how to give credit to their sources of information. Students should also understand how to write a proper introduction, body, and conclusion for their report.

Step 10: Students create a bibliography page giving credit to all of their sources of information.

Proofreading and Editing

Step 11: For proofreading and editing, it’s best to give a short cooling off period so students will be able to look at all of their hard work objectively. If students hold off for 1-3 days, they will do a much better job.

Step 12: Students proofread and edit their report.

Step 13: Recopy for a fabulous report! (This may not always be a great use of time. However, sometimes it’s good for students to see a fantastic final copy on nice white paper.)

Sharing and Displaying

Step 14: Share! Students read their entire report to at least one other person. Also have an “Author’s Chair” where students can read a part of their report to the entire class. 

Step 15: Display! There are lots of ways to display reports. You can put them up on the bulletin board. You may want to put them in a binder to create a class book or have students create a cover for their own report and you have a classroom library! You may want to show them off when it’s time for back to school night, parent conferences, or open house. Consider all this before you send them home.  

Fantastic report! Great job!

• Do Use Passive Voice - You the author stay hidden. Focus on the facts and issues of the subject you are writing about. What do you think about those facts and issues? Not important. However, the facts and issues are important. The cause and effect of those facts and issues are important. You show others what you think is important by the facts and issues you include, as well as the topics you choose to write about. However, in your report writing… try to keep yourself hidden.

• Don’t Use Personal Pronouns – Rarely if ever, use “I, we, my, mine, our, ours, you, yours.”

• Do Use Third Person – He, she, his, hers, it, its, them, their

• Do Use Correct Academic and Technical Language – When you take notes and when you paraphrase, keep the correct technical words. You may want to define these technical words for your reader, but don’t substitute a lot of simple words for the correct academic and technical language. 

• Don’t Use Casual Language – Casual language includes both the words you use and the way you talk to your reader. Above in “Passive Voice” it says, “What do you think about those facts and issues? Not important.” That is casual. Casual can be fun and can be used to create and maintain interest, however use it very sparingly in report writing.

• Avoid Emotional Power Verbs. Be objective. Be Neutral.
Famous Quote: The Facts, just the facts, ma’am. (Dragnet)

Example:
Objective: The government acted quickly in order to remedy the situation.
Emotional Power Verbs: The government sprang into action in order to save-the-day.

The term “voice” is used in the “Six Traits of Effective Writing” model. We want students to know that they are learning to write with voice and not that we are taking away their voice. Students who love to write sometimes feel they are losing their voice when they learn that they must use formal language in report writing.

Some Get It… Some Don’t Want To! 

Many students naturally understand the correct voice, tone, and style for report writing. They have read a lot of this kind of writing and they understand the style. They more easily see the difference between styles of writing and can easily imitate them. For some, it is the writing voice they naturally hear in their head when they write.

Other students hear a different voice in their head when they write. It’s a more colloquial voice and they don’t want to change it.  They don’t want to write in “that boring style.” Some of these students don’t really understand “formal voice” and some seem to rebel against “formal voice.”

Direct Instruction in Formal Voice for Report Writing: Three is the Magic Number for Comparison

Teaching report writing voice with a comparison of two is a mistake. There is not just:

There is a range to formality and three is the magic number for comparison. We can take a lesson from storytelling (and character development) that when you want to show comparison, three is the magic number.

Notice in these three fairy tales, comparison is a prominent theme:

• Goldilocks and the Three Bears
• The Three Little Pigs
• Three Billy Goats Gruff

The list goes on and on…

Ideas for Teaching Formal Voice through Comparison and Using the Rule of Three

It’s becoming easier and easier to find three different samples on a particular subject designed for three different audiences and which contain three different voices. It is a little bit of work, but well worth it when teaching “voice” in writing. (Many of the ideas below are kid created and you don’t have to do a thing.)

• Have students write about an experience or describe something from three different age perspectives. This works even if they just write a sentence or a paragraph from these three different age perspectives. It doesn’t have to be a long piece of writing for students to engage in using different voices.

• Read about a historical figure or event from three different sources designed for three different audiences. (Ex. Encyclopedia, text book, student generated from the internet.)

• Show three different news sources reporting the same news story. These days there are quite a few news sources to choose from and they range from stoic to downright wacky at times.

• Use three different video learning sources with different styles and/or designed for different audiences. Examples: 
          1. A documentary.
          2. A kid’s educational video series (Standard Deviants etc.)
          3. A cartoon type or one of those nutty science guys. (Beckman’s World etc.)

More Ideas for Teaching Formal Voice in Report Writing

Have students:

• Find a model (or models) for a voice they want to communicate in their report writing. (A television news anchorperson etc.) Have them write a paragraph describing what they observe in the voice, tone, and style of that person. Have them read their paragraph in their newfound voice.

• Role play in small groups reading samples of writing using a voice they want to have in their report writing.

• Have an imaginary panel of advisors hanging over their shoulder advising them as they write and edit. This panel of advisors will all have British accents and encourage writing in the utmost formal manner.

• Teachers, can you do a proper British accent? If so, kids identify with this as being formal and fun!

The benefits of mastering prewriting skills for elementary and middle school students are really quite profound. By learning effective prewriting techniques students can develop the skill of being able to see the big picture before they start an assignment or project of any kind.

When students have truly mastered prewriting they will have developed the habits and the skills of being able to think ahead, as well as being able to find the beginning, middle and ending of all their assignments. This greatly improves their writing and their class work across all subjects. That is powerful!

Prewriting Is a Map for Students: It is a Map that They Create

Prewriting is an excellent map! It helps keep students from getting lost. It also helps students to easily get back on track if they do get lost. It is a map that will greatly improve your students’ writing.

However, looking at a map it is not the same thing as being there. Your students’ writing may turn out to be somewhat different than what their prewriting shows.

Once students begin the actual writing they:
• May not use their prewriting as much as you thought they would
• May use their prewriting in a way that is different than you thought they would

Students may use their prewriting to:
• Check in with and monitor their ideas. They may do this in order to verify and validate that they like the direction they are headed.
• Check and see which important ideas they have not used. Their prewriting is like their personal bank account of good ideas.
• Monitor the direction they are headed and to monitor how their entire essay will connect together.

“Pattern Based Writing: Quick and Easy Essay” contains a unique and powerful prewriting system that teaches students how to improve their writing before they even start writing…

What this means for students is:
• Less editing… and students like that idea!
• Finishing work faster… and students like that idea!
• Creating first drafts that are so good that not even their teacher can believe it is a first draft… and everyone likes that idea!

Be sure to click above for your free guide to writing and to check out the “Pattern Based Writing: Quick and Easy Essay” homepage!