Introducing 6 Traits into Our Writing Helping to Make Our Writing More Complete

What are the 6 Traits?

What are the 6+1 Traits? 1.Voice 2.Word Choice 3.Conventions 4.Sentence Fluency 5.Organization 6.Ideas Presentation

Ideas Start with the ice cream. What’s a sundae without the ice cream? The main idea or topic sentence is essential and begins the piece. All other “add-ons or toppings” enhance the ice cream (main idea).

Organization Hold it all together with the dish. The dish (organization) makes the ice cream (ideas) easier to grasp and prevents it from “melting away.”

Word Choice Something more to go on that sundae? Bananas, candies or chopped nuts also enhance the sundae. There are many types of add-ons (word choice) to compliment your sundae (main idea).

Voice Hot fudge, strawberries, pineapple, enhance the ice cream. Toppings add individuality to the ice cream (main idea). We don’t all like the same things on our sundaes, do we? Without toppings, ice cream is just too blah!

Sentence Fluency Will there be anything else to go on your sundae? How about some whipped cream to help the toppings “flow along?”

Conventions & Presentation What’s a sundae without a cherry to “top it off?” Polish up your dessert and add the finishing touch. It’s all in the presentation… looks CAN fool the stomach! And now… grab a spoon and enjoy!

A Closer Look at Word Choice Use powerful words that paint a mental picture for the reader. Add descriptive adjectives to enhance nouns. –The lumpy brown toad hopped quickly through the squishy gooey mud. Verbs should be strong action words. –The cows stampeded through the field. –The cows sauntered through the field.

What else? Try to use specific, rather than general nouns. –The car zoomed down the street. –The 1957 Chevy zoomed down the street. Use language that is comfortable, not “flowery” or “stuffy.” –I shall not follow you. – I will not follow you. Avoid slang and cliches. –He was fixin’ to finish his homework. – He was almost finished with his homework.

Let’s Give it a Try! The toad ______through the mud.. The ______ toad ________through the _________mud. The _______ ________ toad __________ ________ through the _________ _________ mud. ~ For more ideas, see Connie’s Write On Sentence Stretchers. schools.net/write/stretching_files/frame.htmhttp://jc- schools.net/write/stretching_files/frame.htm

…And There’s More Avoid repetition. –She liked to dance and she liked to skate and she liked to sing. Make sure to use words correctly. –There driving to they’re house and will arrive their by noon. Be concise. K.I.S.S. (Keep It Simple, Stupid)

Let’s Give it a Try!

Using our common senses……. The old man grumbled a bit as he wiped his teary eye with the back of his gnarled hand. He could taste the salt as he rubbed his parched lips. He glanced at his silent wife standing a short distance away. She too was old, but he still saw in her wrinkled face the pretty young girl he had married. She still smelled like freshly mowed spring grass.

Using our common senses……. The old man grumbled a bit as he wiped his teary eye with the back of his gnarled hand. He could taste the salt as he rubbed his parched lips. He glanced at his silent wife standing a short distance away. She too was old, but he still saw in her wrinkled face the pretty young girl he had married. She still smelled like freshly mowed spring grass. Key: sound touch taste sight smell

Making Word Posters Tombstone WordsSparkle Words pretty good so a lot said terrifying ear-splitting squishy scrumptious copious. hoice.pdf

Now Let’s Examine Sentence Fluency Let your writing develop an easy flow or rhythm. Aim to make your writing ache to be read aloud. –“He moved like a slow-motion instant replay.” (Christopher Myers) Use complete sentences. –Slept soundly in the crib. –The baby slept soundly in the crib.

What else should a good writer do? Vary sentence lengths. –He wore a red shirt. He had on brown slacks. His jacket was wrinkled. –He wore a wrinkled jacket over a red shirt with brown slacks. Vary sentence beginnings. –I like to sing. I like to play the piano. –I like to sing. Playing the piano is my favorite pastime.

Anything else? Try different sentence structures. –The cow jumped over the moon. The dish ran away with the spoon. –The cow jumped over the moon. Did you see the dish run away with that spoon? What an incredible sight! – Trouble.ppthttp://jc-schools.net/write/I- Trouble.ppt

Moving on to Voice Always write from your heart and share your feelings with the reader. Avoid using “you.” Try not to sound like an encyclopedia.

Tell me more…. Invest yourself in what you write. Proudly take ownership. Connect with your audience. Give the reader a glimpse at the person behind the pen.

Strategies (Choose 1) Rewrite a popular story from a different character’s point of view. (The Real Story of the Three Little Pigs). Read stories with vivid images. Have students close their eyes and draw what they “see.” Read segments of dialogue and have students guess who is “speaking.” (Charlotte’s Web) Do some Author Studies to compare voice. What is the voice behind Stephen King? raits/voice.pdfhttp:// raits/voice.pdf

Bringing new voices into the classroom.. Solomom had three hundred wives and seven hundred porcupines. Socrates was a famous Greek teacher who went around giving people advice. They killed him. Socrates died from an overdose of wedlock. After that his career suffered a dramatic decline. Ancient Egypt was inhabited by mummies and they all wrote in hydraulics. They lived in the Sarah Dessert. The climate of Sarah is such that inhabitants have to live elsewhere.

For more information: Kim’s Korner for Teacher Talk – alk.com/writing/sixtrait/ideascon tent/topic.html Trait Writing 6 Trait Lesson Plans a/6Trait/lessons.htm#Word%20Choice A GREAT Site!!