• Is your instruction geared to helping your students become the next great American novelist?
• Is your primary goal to make sure that your students never leave a dangling participle or split an infinitive?
• Do you hope to develop a passion for writing?
• Is your goal to help develop the writing skills your students will need to be successful in middle school and high school?

All of this is much more likely if your students learn how get an assignment… break it down, organize their thoughts and then quickly start and finish the assignment. There should be very little hesitation from start to finish. These skilled and confident writers have the ability to write fast… and get the assignment done.

Every year I teach much more than what I just described, but first I get students ready for success by creating fluent writers who can… write fast.

Writing Fluency

According to studies (among them the National Reading Panel’s report on “Teaching Children to Read”) fluent readers tend to good readers. Fluency is one of the five important areas that bring about reading success. That makes sense. In fact, it also makes sense in writing. Fluent writers will likely be good writers. My experience is that fluent writers also make happy students! So much of school… involves writing.

Portfolios vs. a Timed Writing System for Monitoring Student Growth

Portfolios have many great benefits… and I am not against them in any way. However, portfolios do not show objective apples to apples comparisons. They are apples to oranges comparisons… and often apples to hamburgers comparisons.

First, and foremost, different amounts of time allowed produce different results. Kids know this when looking at portfolios. Somewhere in the back of their mind they know these are not apple to apples comparisons… so they are not really sure exactly how much they have progressed.

You may have heard the old musing that a monkey left in a room with a typewriter for eternity will eventually type out “Hamlet.” Let’s face it… eternity is a long time. Students don’t have an eternity to get an assignment done. Students also know it makes more sense to do good work quickly instead of spending an eternity trying to get one writing assignment perfect.

Furthermore, kids don’t want to spend all day on their homework. They don’t want to be the last one finished… every single day. Show students ways to become efficient writers… and they are happy.

The timed writing system I use is a high-octane portfolio system where students see real and objective growth. It’s a simple system that quickly lets students compare apples to apples.

The Timed Writing System: Principal Approved!

Using this system my bulletin board always shows excellent and objective student progress. It was so successful that my principal once suggested (or requested) that I put it back up when I had taken it down and was maintaining the timed writings in a portfolio as compared to being displayed.

The way I use the timed writing system has changed a little with the creation of the “Pattern Based Writing: Quick and Easy Essay” system. However, this timed writing system is very effective with or without “Pattern Based Writing.”

Before “Pattern Based Writing” the progress in the students’ writing was always steady and consistent. Over the course of a year, the progress was substantial, and admirable. It was a very accurate representation of the gradual, consistent progress that can be achieved with good writing instruction, and a lot of hard work!

Now, I get the results A LOT faster. Within a month most elementary and remedial middle school writers will be saying, “I can’t even read what I was writing before.”

Of course if your students aren’t making great progress in their writing… this timed writing system will reveal that as well. If this is the case… I would suggest you get “Pattern Based Writing: Quick and Easy Essay.”

The Timed Writing System Directions

1. Students do a 5-minute prewriting and a 20-minute essay.
2. Staple each student’s first timed writing to a piece of construction paper and post them on a bulletin board using pushpins so that they can easily be removed and updated. (Most years I have students illustrate a picture that goes side by side next to the writing on the same piece of construction paper.)
3. After a certain amount time, and after a certain amount of instruction, we do another timed writing. Staple the new writing to the front of the old. Students evaluate their progress and then the writing is returned to the bulletin board.

Simple Benefits

You may be surprised how simple the system is. You’re right, it is. I created this simple system very early in my teaching career. Teachers would ask, “Why are you timing the writing?” I can’t say I was aware of the term “writing fluency” but I did know that the students I taught MUST write faster in order to have success in school.

What I discovered was that when students see OBJECTIVE progress… progress they can see with their own eyes… without anyone having to point it out in a “manipulative” way… they begin to like writing more… and they are willing to invest more.

All teachers want their students to see growth. Quite simply, students become motivated when they see growth. However, “you telling them” is not the same as “them telling you.” Do you have a system where students gleefully proclaim the growth… without being prodded? If not, give this “Timed Writing System” a try! Also be sure to check out the complete writing program.

In the real world of state standards and standardized tests, it can be a little difficult for a teacher to get their head around what Writer’s Workshop is. As long as I have been teaching there has been a continuing push towards making teachers more and more accountable for student achievement.

With Writer’s Workshop teachers are accountable… but they are also asked to take a leap of faith into the world of flexibility. The teachers are asked to believe that Writer’s Workshop is the best way to get the results that EVERYONE wants for the students they teach.

In this multipart series on Writer’s Workshop you will:
• Learn what Writer’s Workshop is
• Discover how you may already be using certain aspects of Writer’s Workshop
• Learn some tips for implementing Writer’s Workshop
• Learn how to avoid some of the stress and traps of implementing Writer’s Workshop

I am a teacher… and the realities of REAL teaching in actual classrooms will always be a part of everything you will read in this series.

What is Writer’s Workshop?

Here are “the parts” of Writer’s Workshop. We will examine each of the following parts and will explore the pros, the cons, the problem areas, and the areas of benefit for each stage of Writer’s Workshop.

1. Mini-lesson – Direct instruction lasting between 5-15 minutes.
2. Status of the Class – As students begin work on their individual writing project, the teacher quickly monitors the status of each student. Where are the students in their writing and how will they be spending their writing period? (2-3 minutes)
3. Writing and Conferencing – Students write and teachers either write or conference. The teachers can conference with individual students or small groups. Teachers are encourage to spend at least some workshop time actually writing themselves in order to model what authors do. (25- 40 minutes)
4. Sharing – There are a variety of ways to share. Author’s chair, peer editing, and reading to at least one other student are popular methods. (5-10 minutes)

Using the Writing Process in Writer’s Workshop

It is important to note that the entire Writer’s Workshop process incorporates the entire Writing Process. Here is a simple version of the writing process outlined for you:

1. Prewriting
2. Drafting
3. Revising
4. Proofreading
5. Publishing

The actual writing process is not a straight line and there are other models of the writing process which more accurately reflect the TRUE writing process. This five step model is “the classic version” and one which is easy for students to grasp. Essentially, this is what students will be implementing during Writer’s Workshop. 

Using the Six Traits of Effective Writing in Writer’s Workshop

Also worth mentioning is that a natural part or integration of Writer’s Workshop is the Six Traits of Effective Writing model.

The Six Traits of Effective Writing are:
1. Ideas
2. Organization
3. Voice
4. Word Choice
5. Sentence Fluency
6. Conventions

Let’s Use More and More and More Workshops!

 How important is Writer’s Workshop to creating fantastic writers? Proponents propose that it is indispensible to creating students who can truly write. But before we go hog-wild on Writer’s Workshop here are some more workshops where the proponents propose the dire necessity of the workshop.

• Reader’s Workshop – Your students will develop independence in reading and become lifelong readers outside of the classroom. Your students will conference with peers and teachers yet the focus is always on becoming independent learners. Reader’s Workshop often becomes the favorite part of a student’s day!

• Independent Work Time (IWT) – Students must have a time each day where they work productively in groups while the teacher meets the needs of individual children. Teachers also need a time where they can challenge advanced students and give support to struggling students… and the Independent Work Time Workshop is the method you should use!

• Math Workshop – Meet the needs of your children! Boring textbooks leave behind the students who can’t keep up while too much hands-on math ensures that all your students will fall behind. We have the perfect solution. It’s “Math Workshop!” We have uniquely found the right balance!

I think you will be able to find a “workshop theory” for every single subject and every single concept that a teacher might teach.

The Truth about Writer’s Workshop

The truth about Writer’s Workshop is that teachers have used workshop strategies for years and years without a lot of the rhetoric associated with “Writer’s Workshop.”

Many workshop strategies are used across the curriculum in order to:
• differentiate instruction
• scaffold instruction
• meet student’s needs

Sometimes people get carried away with “philosophies.” Can anyone say “out of touch administrators” or “professional development guru?” It seems a lot of decision makers have not been running a classroom for a long, long time…

Personally I use many aspects of Writer’s Workshop… and… I also know I have to use my time wisely!

There is not enough time in the day for workshop after workshop and still teach the curriculum and meet state standards and prepare for the upcoming standardized test.

But… it’s great to know about all these theories and strategies so we can continue to grow as teachers!

Be sure to:
1. Check back for Part 2 of this series
2. Read “The Controversy over Writer’s Workshop in Elementary and Middle School”
3. Go to the homepage and discover “Pattern Based Writing: Quick and Easy Essay.”

The most important thing about a writing prompt is for the teacher to have a purpose for the writing prompt. Many teachers don’t think a lot about what their purpose is when they put up a writing prompt.

The thought process usually goes about as far as:

• I want them to write about something that they will have an interest in.
• I want them to write about something that will inspire them.
• I want them to write about something that they will think is fun.

A Little Extra Thought and You Will Get Writing that is More Thought Provoking (Both you and your students will think so!)

The reason teachers use lesson plans is because we want to make the most of our students time. We need to know what it is that we wish to accomplish with our lesson. We want to have a goal, or an objective. If we don’t know where we are going… we will be on the road to nowhere.

Using a writing prompt is no different. We can define our purpose and objectives in many different ways, and I’ll touch on a few.

The Wrong Way to Use a Writing Prompt (a.k.a. Quick! Think!)

Be honest… have you ever gone through this thought process?

“What am I going to have the kids write about? Quick! Think! Hmm… Okay… kids… what you are going to write about today is… hmm… okay… what it is… you are going to write about… umm… what did you… or what… no… describe a time when…”

The thinking that went into your creation of the writing prompt is likely to be reflected in the creation of the writing that the students do. If you don’t think it’s that important, they won’t think it’s that important. Even if they don’t observe exactly how you created the writing prompt, students have a sixth sense for what they perceive as “busy work.”

Here Are a Few Ways that You Can More Clearly Define Your Purpose, Goal, or Objective When You Give Students a Writing Prompt:

1. You Can Base Your Purpose on the Kind of Growth You Wish Your Students to Experience

• Write in a new and unique way. (In a way they have never written before.)
• Focus on, explore, or expand their creativity
• Break the mold of their previous writing and expand their horizons
• Focus on or experiment with structure
• Focus on or explore word usage
• Focus on or explore the imagination
• Focus on or explore their thoughts
• Focus on or explore their feelings
• Think about their own thinking along with how they learn
• Learn the subject material by writing (Writing across the curriculum)

2. You Can Base Your Purpose on Bloom’s Taxonomy

• You want them to know (facts, information)
• You want them to comprehend or understand (internalize)
• You want them to apply what they have learned or know (use the information)
• You want them to analyze information (what is the significance of this information)
• You want them to synthesis information (kind of like creating new information from old information)
• You want them to evaluate (Is this good/bad, true/false?)

3. You Can Base Your Purpose on Common Essay Structures

• You want them to compare and contrast something (compare and contrast essay)
• You want them to give information about something (informational essay)
• You want them to describe something (descriptive essay)
• You want them to evaluate something (evaluative essay)
• You want them to give the cause and effect of something (cause and effect essay)
• You want them to tell a personal story (personal narrative essay)
• You want them to tell a story that has a point of view (narrative essay)
• You want them to describe a process (process essay)
• You want them to follow a line of argumentative reasoning through to its logical conclusion (argumentative essay)
• You want them to persuade someone about something (persuasive essay)
• You want them to critique something (critical essay)

Check back to read these upcoming articles on “Writing Prompts.”

1. Easy, Fast, and Fantastic Ways to Create Writing Prompts that Will Engage Your Students
2. Teaching Writing Across the Curriculum: Remembering that a Writing Assignment in Any Subject is a Writing Prompt

In teaching elementary students how to write well, there is grammar and there is writing. Many teachers teach A LOT of grammar because when it comes to teaching writing they are at a loss.

What does it mean to teach writing? A useful model that can help elementary teachers is “The Six Traits of Writing” model. “The Six Traits of Writing” was developed in the 1980’s by several groups of researchers and teachers in order to bring about a more reliable method for analyzing and evaluating student writing.

Starting With the End in Mind: The Six Traits of Writing

“The Six Traits of Writing” model describes what good writers do. Like many breakthrough methods of instruction, this model was created by working backwards. The starting point was examining samples of excellent writing and then determining what made them excellent. The outcome of this project was these six common traits.

Overview of the Six Traits of Writing

• Trait #1 Ideas – The message along with the main theme and details.
• Trait #2 Organization – The internal connecting structure.
• Trait #3 Voice – The unique expression of common words and ideas.
• Trait #4 Word Choice – Using the right words to express ideas clearly, concisely, and creatively.
• Trait #5 Sentence Fluency – Connecting strings of sentences with rhythm and flow.
• Trait #6 Conventions – Grammar, spelling, punctuation, and everything else us nitpickers love to pick over.

The Six Trait Writing Model in Elementary School Writing

Understanding the Six Traits model can be very valuable for teachers. This model can be an excellent guide and reference in planning instruction and in evaluating student writing. The truth is that most writing taught in elementary school falls under at least one of the six traits. In other words, the Six Traits model puts a name and structure to what we are already teaching.

“The Six Traits” is Not All There is To Elementary Writing

The truth is there are many aspect of elementary school writing that are not addressed in the above six traits. Let’s look at some “vocabulary words” that the elementary school writing teacher must know:

Poetry, report writing, writing a friendly letter, writing with a purpose, writing to inform, writing to persuade, writing to explain, narrative writing, first person narrative, expository writing, compare and contrast writing, creative writing, journal writing, process writing, descriptive writing, the writing process, revising, prewriting, writing a summary, research papers, editing, proofreading, fantasy writing, genres of writing, vocabulary, writing lists, writing short answers, writing a newspaper article, writing a business letter, literary response, writing a critique or review…

In other words…

The Six Trait Model is Big Picture Thinking for the Teacher

It’s true that the teacher will want to be giving lessons on the above six traits. The teacher will also want to keep these traits in mind as they conference with students and evaluate student writing. However, we should also keep in mind that there is more to teaching writing than just these six traits.

The truth is, for many elementary writers, voice is not nearly as important as simply being able to create writing which will get them good grades and allow them to complete their work in a reasonable amount of time. Too many elementary students struggle with simply getting the job done. In fact, too many middle school students struggle with simply getting the job done.

In elementary school, some traits are more important that other traits!

It’s likely that you know a lot more AND a lot less about patterns than you think you do!

In the movie A Beautiful Mind, there is a scene where Russell Crowe’s character looks up at the night sky and illustrates all the beautiful patterns he can see. How great it would be to see the world that way! What a gift!

The truth is we all have a beautiful mind! This is what author Malcolm Gladwell’s premise is in his bestselling book Blink- The Power of Thinking without Thinking. Gladwell brought to light exactly how our first impressions and our intuitions are actually our amazing and natural gift of being able to decode and process patterns.

Here are a couple examples that demonstrate how our mind uses patterns in learning. They are very much in line with what Malcolm Gladwell talks about in his book.

Patterns in Children’s Learning and Education

Have you ever watched children who are new to a social situation simply stand on the sidelines observing before making their foray into the group? Consciously or unconsciously… they are likely trying to figure out what is going on. What are the rules and what is the hierarchy? If they see a certain interaction once, it may be random, but if they see it a few times, and it forms a pattern, the child will be able to determine what the social norms are.

Patterns in Student Test Taking

One test-taking strategy that teachers have taught students for generations confirms the theories which Malcolm Gladwell explores in his book. This test-taking strategy is, “Don’t change your original answer unless you are positive that it is wrong.” Basically, first guesses are often connected to micro-patterns that our brain instantly decoded. This is why we teach students to trust their initial instinct unless they are sure otherwise. (i.e. Don’t go back and change answers unless you are positive your old answer is wrong and your new answer is right.)

Exploring pattern across the curriculum can truly breathe new life into old curriculum! Be sure to check out Malcolm Gladwell’s book. It may change the way you think!