Transcript Ideas - ESU 6 Writing Wiki

Six Traits of Writing
for assessment and instruction
Jen Madison
Educational Service Unit No. 6
[email protected]
Bell-Ringer: RAFTS Writing
Write using the role, format, and topic of your choice.
– e.g., Write a paragraph explaining what you hope we discuss today.
– e.g., Write the script of a text message conversation with a colleague
explaining the most useful things you learned/applied from our August
session.
Role
Audience
Format
Topic
Strong
Verb
• Self
• Jen
• paragraph
• what you wish about
writing instruction in your
class
• explain
• Your
students
• poem
• letter
• text message
conversation
(script) with a
colleague
• what you need to consider
your time in this session
worthwhile
• the most useful things you
learned/applied from our
August session
R.A.F.T.S: a way to prompt

Role of the writer
–

Audience
–

helps writer organize ideas and employ format conventions for letters, interviews, story
problems, and other kinds of writing
Topic or subject
–

reminds writer he/she must communicate ideas to someone else: helps determine content
and style
Format of the material
–

helps writer decide on point of view and voice.
helps writer zero in on main idea and narrow the focus
Strong verb
–
directs writer to the writing purpose, e.g. create, defend, analyze, persuade, evaluate, etc.
Building R.A.F.T.S.

Decide on each component. For example:
–
–
–
–
–

Role:
Audience:
Format:
Topic:
Strong verb:
Plant
Sky
Letter
Why you need rain and sunshine
Explaining
More Examples:
– You are a vegetable plant in a garden. Write a letter to the sky
to explain why you need rain and sunshine.
– You are a semicolon. Write a journal entry to a student writer
beginning with “I wish you understood where I really belong.”
Goals

score papers analytically and provide feedback to writers
using 6-trait language

apply grade-appropriate strategies to teach and reinforce
the 6 traits of writing
Modeling and Examples

Write with your students!
–
–
–
–

Live writing
Think-aloud
Allow students to contribute to revision decisions
Exaggerated writing
Use appropriate literature
– Passages from known literature
– Make the text visual

Use student writing
– Stress strengths, specific skills/craft techniques
Find Someone Who…
1.
Find a colleague who can demonstrate understanding of an item.
2.
Have him/her demonstrate understanding and sign next to the
item; make notes of new information.
3.
Share your knowledge for an item and sign next to it on your
colleague’s sheet.
4.
Repeat with others in the room until your sheet is complete.
5.
Return to your seat and wait patiently for the next step.
(green handout)
THE 6+1 TRAITS
Ideas

The heart of the message
Organization

The internal structure of the piece
Voice

The feeling and conviction of the writer
Word Choice

The precise language chosen to convey meaning
Sentence Fluency

The rhythm and flow of the language
Conventions

The mechanical correctness
Presentation

How the writing looks on the page
Purpose of Traits

“an answer to the question: What makes writing work?”

consistent “writer’s language that opens the door to
revision” (a how to for revision)

a way to
–
–
–
–

organize and clarify good writing instruction
encourage consistent assessment
empower and motivate young writers
encourage thinking skills and self-monitoring
NOT meant to replace instruction of writing process!
(Spandel, Creating Writers, 2005, p. 1-2)
Holistic vs. Analytic Scoring
Holistic
Analytic

One overall score

Each trait scored separately

Intended to generalize overall
effect

Provides more detailed
feedback to guide instruction
and monitor progress

Cannot provide specific, needsbased feedback

Used for most classroom
practice and formative
assessment (during instruction
and practice)

Usually reserved for
summative assessment (after
instruction and practice)
Rubrics and Scoring Guides
a few ideas

A Developmental Continuum
for Early Writing

– Pre-K to K


– K-2
– Ruth Culham,
http://www.culhamwriting.com/lib
rary.html
K-2 Illustrated Beginning
Writer’s Rubric
– Pre-K to 2 (or until student
consistently scores 5 or 6)
– Education Northwest, 2010
6+1 Traits Condensed 5-Point
3-12 Writer’s Rubric (“OnePager”)
– 3-12
– Education Northwest, 2010
My First Scoring Guide
(Student-Friendly Scoring
Guide Primary)

Student-Friendly Scoring Guide
Grades 3-5
– Ruth Culham,
http://www.culhamwriting.com/lib
rary.html
Process for Using Student-Friendly
Rubrics with Students
1.
Show & discuss reactions to 2 writing samples.
2.
Have students review rubric.
3.
Have students score one sample (on a particular trait).
4.
Have students discuss scores with partner.
5.
Facilitate whole-group discussion of scores.
6.
Repeat with next sample.
(bright yellow & light blue handouts)
What do you notice?
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
I can just see it. I feel like I’m in
that car.
I love the line “her eyes were as big
as her fists.”
He’s having a good time [most
readers assume the writer is male].
I know these people.
Lively!
I sympathize with Mom-- I hate mice
too!
I like the pickle jar-- I can even smell
the pickles.
Great images-- love Dad backing
into the tree and mom in her
nightgown.
You get every point of view- even
the mouse’s!
What do you notice?










Boring-- it put me right to
sleep.
Flat, empty.
Safe.
She was writing just to get it
done.
Mechanics are pretty good.
It doesn’t say anything.
The organization isn’t too bad.
What Redwoods? The title
doesn’t go with the paper.
She (he?) seems like a nice
kid- I want to like it.
It’s not that bad for fourth or
fifth grade-- I assume that’s
what it is right?
Process for Using Student-Friendly
Rubrics with Students
1.
Show & discuss reactions to 2 writing samples.
2.
Have students review rubric.
3.
Have students score one sample (on a particular trait).
4.
Have students discuss scores with partner.
5.
Facilitate whole-group discussion of scores.
6.
Repeat with next sample.
Exploring the Traits Through Student Writing
http://esu6writing.wikispaces.com/

Read the proficient level descriptions for the trait
– Note the words that best define the trait characteristics and
proficiency levels.

Read the writing thoroughly:
– Look for strengths
– Score traits
– Discuss reasons for your score(s)

Practice responding to the student:
– Recognize or model (provide an example) of a positive technique
– Name it, describe it, and say why it’s good.
(pink handout)
Using Rubrics

Did your groups frequently achieve consensus?

Which rubric did you use? How likely are you to use it?

More opportunities
–
–
–
–
–
–
Create with students
School-wide
Collect anchors/samples
Subject or genre specific
Student self-assessment submitted with writing
Some traits
 e.g., always ideas & conventions, randomly select one other
A note about grading…

Focus on feedback
– Recognizing improvements & strengths (to replicate)
– Providing appropriate instruction & challenges

Translating to grades…be careful!
– Be certain that the percentage you assign is appropriate for the
rubric rating!
3
4
3
3
5
3
= 21/30
= 21/6 (#of criteria)
= 70%
= 3.5 or 85%
YIKES!
MORE APPROPRIATE
Raw
Avg.
%
5
100
4
90
3
80
2
70
1
60
+ 1% for
each
additional .1
Ideas for Instruction
primary and intermediate
Make the traits explicit!
IDEAS: Look for the following…

Details

– Close-up details (e.g.,
– Regardless of delivery
veins in leaves, facial
expressions)
method

– Signs of movement
– Sensory details
Clarity
Accuracy
– Retelling

Original Thinking

Quality vs. Quantity
– Support of ideas
Ideas
Lesson Ideas

Write a Short Piece
– Invite students to list questions they would like
answered. Tell them you will will answer only 5, so
“choose carefully!”
– Discuss results: “How would it be different if…”

Be Observers
– Make lists
– Question/Classify: “Which are most interesting?
Most important?”

Take Out the Details
– Take the details out of a known story.
– “What’s missing? What makes the original better?
Ideas
Lesson Ideas

Zoom-In
– “What happens if you zoom it on just this
part? What does it look like? What is
important/interesting?”
– Essential Idea: Using specific details helps
the reader create an image. (Showing vs.
Telling)

Graphic Organizers
– Make expected content explicit
– Model transfer from organizer to writing

Snapshot
– “I want to see it, like a photo in an album.”
“Don’t say the old
lady screamed.
Bring her on and
let her scream.”
--Mark Twain
Teaching the trait of Ideas

Talk about where ideas come
from.

Model differences between
generalities and good details.

Read aloud from books with
striking detail or strong imagery.

Use questions to expand and
clarify a main idea.
ORGANIZATION: What to look for…

Sense of (Logical) Sequencing

Ability to Group Like Details

Sense of Beginning and Ending

Use of Transitions

Controlled Pacing
Organization
Lesson Ideas

The End?
– Omit the ending to a piece. Ask students to make up
their own.

Classify & Sequencing
– Provide opportunities to classify and put items in an
order. Discuss!

Provide models / frames.
– When they can independently follow the frame,
challenge them to spice it up!
VOICE: Look for the following…

Emotion / Passion

Enthusiasm for Writing

Individuality
Voice in Informational writing
“If we were randomly inserted into the Cosmos, the
chance that we would find ourselves on or near a
planet would be less than one in a billion trillion
33, a one followed by 33 zeroes). In
trillion (10“The
Cosmos is a very big place.”
everyday life such odds are called compelling. Worlds
are precious [1980, p. 5].”



Confident
Knowledge-driven
Inspiring
Voice

Lesson Ideas
Write voice IN or OUT
– Take the voice out of a passage and have students put their own in.

Bored vs. Excited?
– What do these look like? (Students demonstrate kinesthetically.)
– “I want to see an ‘excited’ face in my mind when I read your writing.”
– Show them two sample paragraphs using the same facts. Which was
written by an “excited” writer? How can you tell?

Read aloud from works that have strong voice.

Help students identify an audience.
Word Choice: What to look for

awareness of language

awareness of different ways to say things

love of favorite words

memorable words/phrases

accurate / appropriate use of words
Word Choice

Study connotation (subtleties of word variation)
– Put related words on a continuum
– said, whispered, barked, exclaimed, shouted, screamed,
commented murmured, declared, mentioned, hollered
– Apply movement to variations of verbs & discuss differences

Trash overused words & display interesting, lively, or
content appropriate words
– Use wall displays, bulletin boards, etc.

Brainstorm alternatives
– “I’m tired of the word good. Help me out. What else could
I say?”
Lesson Ideas
Sentence Fluency: What to look for

rhythm

sentence sense

varied sentence beginnings and lengths
Sentence Fluency

Lesson
Ideas
Read fluent passages out loud
– “Do you like the way this sounds?
– “How many different ways does this writer begin sentences?”
– “Describe the lengths of the sentences. What effect does this create?”

Mentor Sentences
– Collect powerful sentences to use as models of specific techniques
– (prepositional phrases…a strong way to add detail) “Over bushes,
under trees, between fence posts, through the tangled hedge she
swoops untouched” (Davies, 2004, p. 12).

Sentence Building Game
– For a given topic, provide a sentence beginning for students to
complete.
– (Cats) “In the morning…; Once, my cat…; My cat is…; Because my cat
is silly, he/she…”
Sentence Fluency Chart
# of words
first 3 words
Analyze the mode, genre,
author’s style:

How long are sentences?

How do sentences begin?

What is the verb?

What kind of sentences
are used?
Your students should ask…
(beginning writers)
Did I leave spaces between words?
 Does my writing go from left to right?
 Did I use a title?
 Did I leave margins on the sides? At the bottom?
 Did I use capital letters? Why?
 Did I use periods? How about question marks?
 Did I do my best on spelling?
 Could another person read this?

Conventions: What to look for

awareness of writing conventions

willingness to experiment

patience to take a second look
Your students should ask…
(beginning writers)
Did I leave spaces between words?
 Does my writing go from left to right?
 Did I use a title?
 Did I leave margins on the sides? At the bottom?
 Did I use capital letters? Why?
 Did I use periods? How about question marks?
 Did I do my best on spelling?
 Could another person read this?

Conventions
Lesson Ideas

Start small (and use the word “editing”).
– Name, spacing, etc.

Teach & model (I do it. We do it. You do it.)
–
–
–
–

Editing marks
Editing with text that’s not their own
Editing their own before publishing with scaffolding
Process for spelling a word (i.e., spell it the way it sounds, look
it up, ask someone else)
Scavenger Hunts
– “Who can find a…”
– “Why did the author use this?”

Explain importance of conventions/editing.
Ideas for Instruction
intermediate & secondary
Make the traits explicit!
IDEAS: Look for the following…

Clarity and Focus of the Content

Rich and Vivid Details

Clear Sense of Purpose

Accuracy

Fresh and Original Thinking

Quality not Quantity
“Too many scoring systems reward
students for including merely more
arguments or examples; quantity is not
quality, and we teach a bad lesson by
such scoring practices.”
-Grant Wiggins
Ideas
Lesson Ideas

Zoom-In
– “What happens if you zoom it on just this
part? What does it look like? What is
important/interesting?”
– Essential Idea: Using specific details helps
the reader create an image. (Showing vs.
Telling)

Graphic Organizers
– Make expected content explicit
– Model transfer from organizer to writing

Snapshot
– Descriptive Mode: “I want to see it, like a
photo in an album.”
“Don’t say the old
lady screamed.
Bring her on and
let her scream.”
--Mark Twain
Teaching the trait of Ideas

Talk about where ideas come
from.

Model differences between
generalities and good details.

Read aloud from text that uses
striking detail or strong imagery.

Use questions to expand and
clarify a main idea.
ORGANIZATION: What to look for…

Enticing Lead Sentence
– The first sentence and introduction should be engaging.

Thoughtful Transitions
– One paragraph should set the scene for the next paragraph.

Logical Sequencing
– There is a systematic approach to exploring topic.

Controlled Pacing
– Details are provided in the right amounts.

Satisfying Conclusion
– The piece should have meaningful ending.
Organization

Study Logical Order
Lesson
Ideas
– Separate sentences/paragraphs from a writing
– Ask student to put them in order and identify the key phrases

Compare Leads or Endings
– Find different examples in children’s books, content text, your
own (not so great) examples, brainstorm examples with
students.
– Which do you like best? Why? Why do you think the writer
started this way?

Host a “Leads Awards Ceremony.”

Teach transition and signal words appropriate for the
mode.
The shark’s jaw is located back beneath his long snout, but this does
not prevent him from biting directly into the flesh. When he opens the
jaw, the lower jawbone is thrust forward while the snout is drawn back
and up, until it makes almost a right angle with the axis of his body. At
this moment, the moth is located forward of the head and no longer
beneath it. It resembles a large wolftrap, equipped with innumerable
sharp and gleaming teeth. The shark plants this mechanism in the
body of his victim and uses the weight of his own body in a series of
frenzied convulsions, transforming the teeth of the jawbones into saws.
The force of this sawing effect is such that it requires no more than an
instant for the shark to tear off a splendid morsel of flesh. When the
shark swims off, he has left a deep and perfectly outline hole in the
body of his victim. It is terrifying and nauseating to watch.
(from Jacques-Yves Cousteu, The Shark: Splendid Savage of the Sea, p. 37)
VOICE: Look for the following…

Expression of individuality

Reader wants to keep reading

Commitment to the topic

Suits the audience

Fits the purpose
Voice

Creative Writing
– Feelings
– Enthusiasm
– Individuality
– Passion

Informational,
Technical, Research
Writing
– Perspective
– Level of Formality
– Level of Objectivity
Voice is often
the reason I
read!
Voice in Informational writing
“If we were randomly inserted into the Cosmos, the
chance that we would find ourselves on or near a
planet would be less than one in a billion trillion
33, a one followed by 33 zeroes). In
trillion (10“The
Cosmos is a very big place.”
everyday life such odds are called compelling. Worlds
are precious [1980, p. 5].”



Confident
Knowledge-driven
Inspiring
Voice

Lesson Ideas
Write voice IN or OUT
– Take the voice out of a passage and have students put their own in.

Bored vs. Excited?
– What do these look like? (Students demonstrate kinesthetically.)
– “I want to see an ‘excited’ face in my mind when I read your writing.”
– Show them two sample paragraphs using the same facts. Which was
written by an “excited” writer? How can you tell?

Read aloud from works that have strong voice.

Help students identify an audience.
Word Choice: What to look for

memorable words and phrases

accurate use of words

appropriate choices for the purpose and
audience

not inflated or overused
Word Choice

Study connotation (subtleties of word variation)
– Put related words on a continuum
– said, whispered, barked, exclaimed, shouted, screamed,
commented murmured, declared, mentioned, hollered
– Apply movement to variations of verbs & discuss differences

Trash overused words & display interesting, lively, or
content appropriate words
– Use wall displays, bulletin boards, etc.

Show students examples of writing in your content and
together analyze words.
– Identify specific nouns and strong, active verbs
– Identify powerful, meaningful words
– Rate level of formality and objectivity
Lesson Ideas
Sentence Fluency: What to look for

Rhythm and flow

Varied sentence structure
– Length
– Beginnings

Reading ease…not just punctuation
Sentence Fluency

Read fluent passages out loud
Lesson
Ideas
– “Do you like the way this sounds?
– “How many different ways does this writer begin sentences?”
– “Describe the lengths of the sentences. What effect does this create?”

Mentor Sentences
– Collect powerful sentences to use as models of specific techniques
– (prepositional phrases…a strong way to add detail) “Over bushes,
under trees, between fence posts, through the tangled hedge she
swoops untouched” (Davies, 2004, p. 12).

Chart expert and student writing fluency
– Analyze a passage for sentence lengths, beginning variety, and other
characteristics.
Sentence Fluency Chart
# of words
first 3 words
Analyze the mode, genre,
author’s style:

How long are sentences?

How do sentences begin?

What kind of verbs are
prevalent?

What kind of sentences
are used?

What is the purpose of
each sentence?
They weren’t always so desperately insularized. Ursus arctos horibilis, the
subspecies of brown bear know familiarly as the grizzly, one inhabited
most of western North America. From Alaska down into the highlands of
central Mexico, from the beaches of California eastward across the Great
Plains, it was the commanding presence. Indians of the western tribes
feared it, revered it, mythologized it, sometimes hunted it ceremonially;
most other predators stayed the hell out of its reach. It fattened itself on
bison in the Dakotas, on caribou in Canada, on cattle offal left to rot by the
early ranchers in California, and on salmon in the rivers of Oregon. It
relished meat, but it was an omnivore, flexible and resourceful in its
feeding behavior. It fed opportunistically on vegetable foods; berries and
pine nuts when they were available, nutritious tubers, forbs, even grasses.
It also ate ants, termites, rodents, moths, and God knows what else.
Eventually, in some locations, it would develop a taste for human garbage.
(from David Quamenn, “Island of the Bears”)
Conventions: What to look for

application of (taught) writing conventions

willingness to experiment

patience to take a second look
Your students should ask…
(more mature writers)
Have I used fragments or run-ons only for a conscious
effect?
 Do I have agreement (subject-verb, pronounantecedent, etc.)
 Does my punctuation accurately guide the reader?
 Have I used the correct spellings for homophones?

– Their/there/they’re

Is the format appropriate? (Does it meet the
expectations of the audience?)

Have I cited sources appropriately?
Conventions
Lesson Ideas

Teach (I do it. We do it. You do it.) editing marks

Model instead of correcting

Demystify Students: display, explain, and provide
alternatives to your pet peeves

Focused Peer Editing
– “Circle all of the second-person words (i.e. you, your).
Help your partner find two alternatives for each.”
What do you think?

Great Lesson Ideas – Primary English Writing Activities
– http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1HpWQm7nqIU

Feedback
– What is good about this teacher’s writing strategy?
– What suggestions might we give this teacher?
Strategies for Better Instruction

TEACH the language to speak and think like writers.

MODEL specific craft techniques.
– Name it. Describe it. Explain why it’s good.

READ, SCORE, and JUSTIFY scores on anonymous sample papers.

Provide focused PRACTICE for REVISION.

WRITE. (Yes, you.)

READ and DISCUSS strengths and weaknesses in all kinds of writing.

DEMYSTIFY writing in your class.

Provide thoughtful, effective PROMPTS.
Two Stars & a Wish
Please record two of the most important or
relevant ideas you heard.
Please record something you wish about this
session