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6 Traits Writing Inservice

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Presentation on theme: "6 Traits Writing Inservice"— Presentation transcript:

1 6 Traits Writing Inservice
For grades 3-5 By Sherrie Berry 4th grade teacher Hanna Springs Elementary

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3 How do we teach it? Teach the traits one at a time and in the following order: 1. Ideas 2. Organization 3. Voice 4. Word Choice 5. Sentence Fluency 6. Conventions (+1 – Presentation) (You will teach conventions all year long through daily teacher modeling and editing and revising with your students).

4 How do we teach it? 1. Define the trait
2. Give some quotes from experts 3. Show many good examples (Books) 4. Activities & mini-lessons 5. Use rubric to score anonymous samples. 6. Assignments – Now the kids are ready to write and score their papers with the rubrics for only the trait that is the focus.

5 Ideas You will spend the most time on the Ideas trait.
Kids need many opportunities to write in different ways. In the beginning you want to give them the idea that “anything goes.” ALL of their ideas have value and may make a great story and sometimes we write just for fun!!! Many kids stare at blank pages saying, “I don’t know what to write.” They need to become comfortable with brainstorming and they need teachers to model for them and give them examples of great ideas in books. The ideas trait is FUN!!! This is when the kids get hooked on writing!

6 Ideas This trait is the heart of the message. It is the central idea and the support for that idea. Look for clarity: the message must be easily identified. Look for focus: the topic is narrowed down to a manageable size. Look for quality details: details are beyond the obvious or general.

7 Ideas Rubric

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9 Ideas- (Great ideas show great thinking)!
Have the students write in ALL subject areas. RAFTS are a great way to get kids writing in the content areas. Quick Writes to make predictions or respond to literature in any subject are a great way to see what kids are thinking. (time them for 1 minute. They write everything they can think of about a given subject) “Wet Ink 1” – Students write as much as they can in 1 minute then count their words. The next day they try to beat their score (write more words). Then you go the “Wet Ink 2” where they write for 2 minutes. Progress to 5 minutes allowing the kids to choose whatever they want to write about. Start over at 1 minute giving them a topic. Ex. “Write everything you know about the weather.” (Could introduce a Science unit). This seems like a game to the kids. Brainstorm - This is just listing ideas not complete sentences. Show them an object and ask them to think of all of the uses of that object.

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12 Organization This trait is the internal structure. It is the skeleton of the piece. Look for an inviting opening: it should get and hold a reader’s attention. Look for sequencing: the order should be logical and effective, with careful linking of one idea or paragraph to another. Look for an effective ending: the ending should tie up loose ends and leave the reader with something to think about.

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14 Voice This trait is the personal quality of the piece. It is the author’s original fingerprints on the page. Look for a sense of the writer behind the words. Look for “flavor” or tone: the tone should be appropriate to the purpose for the writing and the audience. Look for involvement and enthusiasm in the piece. Look for commitment: there is a sense that the author “cares” about the topic.

15 Voice Have the students write from a different perspective.
Pick a tone and have everyone write in that tone. Ex. Write “grumpy” stories. Choose an anonymous sample that is “flat” and have the students “spice” it up with voice.

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17 Word Choice This trait focuses on the correct and accurate use of language. Look for words that are vivid and precise: the language is appealing, memorable and noteworthy. Look for effective and original use of everyday words: misuse of language or over-reliance on the thesaurus tend to hamper the effectiveness of good word choice.

18 Word Choice Have the students search for great word choice in books that they are reading. Have a simile scavenger hunt. Have a “funeral” for overused words. Purple Words - Use a purple highlighter on the student’s papers to indicate that they have used good word choice. Have a purple word bulletin board. Taboo words – first brainstorm the top 5 words used to describe a certain thing, then the students are forbidden from using those words when writing about the subject. Ex. Write about a winter day without using the following words: snow, cold, white, flakes, freezing.

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20 Sentence Fluency This trait focuses on the rhythm and cadence of the piece. Listen for smoothness and easy flow. Look for variety and logic in sentence beginnings. Look for differences in sentence length. Look for variations in general patterning.

21 Sentence Fluency Use a slinky to measure the length of the sentences when a piece is read aloud Have students listen to the punctuation. Read the alphabet with added punctuation to show students the impact that sentence length has. Ex. AB? CEDF. GH! I? J. KL. MN?

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23 Conventions This trait reflects the general correctness of the piece.
Look for editing: there should be evidence that the piece has been edited and proofread with care. Look for the mechanics: proper spelling, punctuation, grammar and usage, paragraphing, and use of capital letters are emphasized. Look at the presentation: this dimension can expand into the areas of handwriting, neatness, format, and layout. (This is the “+1”)

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26 All 6 Traits Model for the students daily
Conference with students to help them edit and revise their papers. They learn conventions through this process. It is much better than marking their papers with red ink and expecting them to make corrections. They will feel defeated. Do not score every trait every time. Use rubric level numbers, not letter grades. The scores are intended to be part of the learning process to help the students see where their strengths and weaknesses are on a piece of work. Discuss the author’s craft in Literature. Have the students connect writing with reading. Have the students answer questions in short answer form in all subject areas. Using complete sentences should be expected from 3 grade up.

27 All 6 Traits Have fun with the kids!!!! Call me if you need any help.


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