Writing Fundamentals
Steve Schmidt, Consultant
Welcome to Today’s Workshop!
2
Handout for Today’s Session
3
Today’s Objectives
At the end of today’s workshop, I will be able to:
• Discuss effective techniques for encouraging more and better writing
• Explain research-based best practices for teaching grammar
• Access and use applicable writing resources
4
A Notable Quotable
“Up to now, adult literacy learners have far too often gone through years of
schooling that involved only the reading of other people's words. Not enough
opportunity has been provided for them to make words their own”
(Gillespie, 2001).
5
The Pyramid of Writing Priorities
6
More on The Pyramid of Writing Priorities
• Provisional Writing - Brief writing that supports learning
• Examples: Quick writes, one-minute papers, exit tickets, turn/talk/write,
brief reading reflections, social media posts
• Readable Writing – On-demand writing with more organization
• Examples: Short answer questions, paragraphs, journals, GED® extended
responses
• Polished Writing – Goes through a process of planning, writing, and revising
• Examples: Presentations, five-paragraph essays, business emails
7
“I Don’t Know Where to Start”
8
Let’s Practice!
The biggest takeaway for me so far at the GED® Conference is ______________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
9
Quick Writes
• Students are asked to write for 2 to 10 minutes on a prompt
• Prompts can be questions, texts, images, videos, charts, and more
• The focus is on developing writing fluency, not polished writing
10
Pg. 3 Let’s Do a 4 Minute Quick Write!
11
Provisional Writing: Writing to Learn
• Journaling - Journals give students a chance to think and reflect on what
they learn
• Write and Draw: Creating a picture with explanatory captions helps new
learning stick
• Talk then Write: Talking about something before writing serves to lubricate
the writing process, acting as an effective pre-writing activity.
• Entrance and Exit Tickets: Exit tickets ask students to process and give
feedback about their learning at the end of class. Entrance tickets ask
students to do some writing before class or during class before new
learning and help activate prior knowledge.
12
What Does Research Say About Grammar and
Teaching Writing?
• Use students’ writing as the basis for grammar instruction
• “Studies of grammar instruction alone or as a primary writing instructional
approach produced negative results for students’ overall writing
quality” (Just Write Guide, 2012)
• Focus on one or two areas of grammar instruction at a time
• Use an asset based approach
13
Pg. 5 With a Partner, Choose a Student and Decide:
• 1. What grammar skills need to be taught?
• 2. How would you design a lesson to teach these grammar skills?
14
Pg. 6 Providing Quick Feedback for Paper Revising
15
Journals: Reading Log
16
Journals: Metacognitive Stems
17
Metacognitive Journal Stems: Let’s Try It!
• A question I have is . . .
• I wonder about . . .
18
Writing Anxiety Causes
Many students are anxious about writing because they:
· were never taught how to write
· experienced criticism from previous writing teachers
· have little interest in traditional writing prompts
· don’t know where to start
· are inexperienced writers
19
Writing Anxiety Solutions
Some suggestions for dealing with writing anxiety are:
· model the writing process using mentor texts (examples of good writing)
and think alouds
· take an asset-based approach and praise the positive in students’ writing
· give students’ choices about the topics on which they write
· use scaffolding like writing frames
· make writing a part of every class
20
Exit Ticket
21
Session Survey
Your feedback is important. Please
scan the QR code below to rate this
session.
22
