Writing requires a combination of skills which is best taught by breaking down the procedure. The writing process involves following a series of steps in order to produce a polished piece of writing. We have found that through explicit teaching and focusing on each step of the process we are providing students with a scaffold to support them in achieving improved learning outcomes. By breaking down writing step-by-step and providing a well thought out WAGOLL ( What A good One Looks Like) the mystery is removed for the students and the ability to begin writing is reduced. Although the various stage can often overlap, and sometimes students will move back and forth between them, the writing process can generally be broken down into the following stages:-
Planning—this step involves brainstorming, researching, considering purpose and goals for writing, using graphic organisers to connect ideas, drawing diagrams and designing a coherent structure for a writing piece.
Composing—Have students work independently at this stage. With their plans beside them, it is time for the students to start writing. We stress that it is okay to make some mistakes during this stage. This stage is about getting their expanded ideas down on paper.
Revising- Once students have finished the composing stage it is important to let the writing sit for a day or two before coming back to it. This step in the process may involve adding, re-arranging, removing, and replacing content. The goal of this step in the process is to have students improve upon their first draft.
Adding: encourage students to go back to their original plan to make sure they have added all the relevant key detail and information from the plan. Encourage them to think about whether or not they have achieved their purpose or do they need to add more detail. Re-arranging: look at the flow of your writing and make sure that if flows logically. You may need to re-order paragraphs or sentences to do this.
Removing: Have students look at the writing to see if there are any ideas that don’t quite work out or don’t fit with the rest of the piece and may need to be removed.
Replacing: Have students examine their writing and think about whether they have met the demands of purpose, audience and structure and whether or not their ideas and examples achieve the effect they were hoping for. Have them consider the language and vocabulary they have used, making sure that it isn’t repetitive or the key terms and phrases from the topic aren’t overused. Remember to use synonyms. Reading their work aloud to classmates and other adults is a great strategy to help the students to understand what revisions are needed.
Editing—at this stage students need to focus on ensuring their writing meets the conventions of English. During this stage students are checking for spelling, punctuation and grammatical errors.
Peer Check— this step is optional. At this stage students can share their creative work with peers for constructive feedback and then use this feedback to revise and improve their work. We often have the students provide feedback in the form of Two Stars and a Wish to ensure both positive and constructive feedback are given to motivate students to continue making improvements in their writing.
Publishing— is the final step in the writing process. In this stage students are asked to re-write their writing making sure they include all revising and editing is included. They can do this either on a new piece of paper or on the computer. This becomes the final, perfected piece of writing that can be displayed in the classroom or made up as a book that includes every published piece they have written throughout the year.