Writing prompts should be used as a TOOL to help students learn to write better. Writing prompts help students learn how to: • Write to a prompt • Follow directions • Stay on topic However, students also need to learn how to: • Think for themselves AND • Get their work done independently Over-relying on writing prompts for students “who [...]
Transform your child into a truly confident author using “Pattern Based Writing: Quick and Easy Essay! Should you help your child with writing? YES. The Office of Educational Research and Improvement (OERI) suggests that you help your child with writing. OERI believes you, a parent, can make a big difference. You can use helping strategies [...]
You and your students have worked hard on writing all year… and now it’s time to make sure it gets all the credit it deserves. Sometimes mandated writing rubrics can have harsh consequences… because sometimes fantastic writing misses the mark when it comes to the rubric. The goal here is to not only to improve [...]
Often student writing is not held to the same high standard that student work is in many of the other subjects. Here are a few reasons why: 1. Writing is an art. There is not an “easy answer key” for the writing teacher. 2. The way writing is taught can often [...]
Research based report writing deals extensively with the organization of information and ideas. That’s a VERY, VERY important part of what “Pattern Based Writing: Quick and Easy Essay” teaches! After using “Pattern Based Writing: Quick and Easy Essay” your students will easily be ready for these “Fifteen Steps to Fantastic Research Reports!” (I’ve outlined the [...]
A Paragraph Beautifully Defined A paragraph is a collection of sentences with unity of purpose. A paragraph handles and exhausts a distinct topic. Alexander Bain – 1871 This description of a paragraph is about as good as it gets! Alexander Bain is also credited as having been the first person to have formally [...]
Controversy in the World of Writer’s Workshop Teaching writing… in the world of teaching… is “controversial.” So few teachers really feel they know how to teach “writing” well. Everyone feels they teach “grammar” just fine, but writing… This feeling of uncertainty creates defensiveness and high emotions. But even in the world of teaching writing… just [...]
Six Reasons You May Want to Use a Writing Prompt When Teaching Children Writing 1. Challenge students’ thinking and writing skills 2. Create interest in writing and inspire creativity 3. Get reluctant writers writing 4. Help students develop the habit of writing every day 5. Practice for writing assessments 6. You are giving a classroom assignment that involves writing Kinds of [...]
(If your children or students are struggling with paragraphs… be sure to read “Teaching Children Paragraph Writing is Hard!) The Different Kinds of Paragraphs 1. How-to Paragraph (Process Paragraph) – First, Next, Then, Finally 2. Compare and Contrast Paragraph – Eggplant is both good…and bad! 3. Descriptive Paragraph – It was a dark and stormy night, yet the [...]
What is a paragraph and how do you teach children to write a paragraph? “A paragraph is a group of sentences about one main idea or topic. A paragraph usually contains between 5-8 sentences about that one main idea or topic. All of your sentences in the paragraph must be about that one main idea [...]