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The Writing Process

Presenters:

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 Participants will… entury
• KNOW
– Five steps of the writing process
– How to use the writing process for
descriptive, narrative, persuasive and
informational composition (content
areas)
– How to use classroom
assessment for learning
to improve writing
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 Participants will… entury
• DO
– Define the components of the writing process
– Participate in prewriting, drafting , revising and
editing strategies
– View applications of the
writing process with Thinkfinity
– Assess writing using rubrics
– Create a writing lesson for the
content area classroom

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 Essential Questions entury

• Why write?
• Why do effective writers use the five-step
writing process?
• How does using the writing process help with
descriptive, narrative, persuasive and
informational writing in all grade levels and
across all disciplines?
• How does assessment drive better student
writing?
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A Process… entury

and

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 SEEPS STRATEGY entury

• Statement
• Explanation/Example
• Elaboration
• Personal Tidbit (Specific Detail)
• So…

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• “I like to go to school because it is fun.”
 
• “I like to go to school because it is fun when the teacher allows us to do experiments
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with frogs.”
 
• “I like to go to school because it is fun when the teacher allows us to do experiments
with frogs. We learned what kind of foods frogs like to eat by offering them flies, worms
and seeds. We observed the frogs during the morning and afternoon to determine
when they were more active. We also compared frogs to other amphibians to see what
characteristics they share.”
 
• “I like to go to school because it is fun when the teacher allows us to do experiments
with frogs instead of just reading about them in books. We learned what kinds of foods
frogs like to eat by offering them flies, worms, and seeds and observed them during
different hours to determine when they were more active.”
 
• “I like to go to school because it is fun when the teacher allows us to do experiments
with frogs instead of just reading about them in books. We learned what kind of foods
frogs like to eat by offering them flies, worms, and seeds and observed them during
different hours to determine when they were more active. Experiments allow us to have
the fun of discovering for ourselves how far and fast these slimy creatures can jump
and what kinds of foods they like to eat.”

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 You Try It! entury

Language Arts teachers each need an

assistant to help with grading. In a typical
teacher’s day, she has so much work.
Think about grading one paper. If I have
all my students write one paper and it
takes me 5 minutes to grade each one, it
will take just over 9 hours to grade those
papers. An assistant will solve this
problem.

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 CUPS entury

•C- Capitalization
•U- Usage
•P- Punctuation
•S- Spelling

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How do content area teachers entury

use the writing process?

• http://www.nationalgeographic.com/xpeditions/lessons/17/g68/noaashipwrecks2.html

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 entury

In effective learning environments,

assessment and instruction are
inexorably linked (Spandel &
Stiggins, 1990, p. ix).

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 entury
Role Audience Format Topic

Role
Audience constituent governor letter State
taxes

Format parent Board of

Education
complaint No Child Left
Behind

Topic Thank-you
21st Century James Madison note The
American Constitution

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 RAFT WRITING FRAMEWORKS

Science Geography entury

Role: A planet
Audience: Readers of
personal advertisements
Format: Personal
advertisement
Topic: Description of self
Physical Education
Role: A landform (e.g.
canyon)
Audience: A star
Format: A journal entry
Topic: How landforms are
created and changed
Mathematics

Role: A piece of sports Role: A unit of measurement

equipment Audience: An ant
Audience: An alien from space Format: A poem
Format: Rules of the game Topic: The uses of a specific
Topic: Your role in the game unit of measurement
Taken from: Improving Writing (2000), pg. 74, Susan Davis Lenski,
Jerry L. Johns, Kendall/Hunt Publishing, Dubuque, Iowa.

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 RAFT Assignment Assessment and Feedback
Rubric entury
Assignment Traits
• Accuracy
How correct is your information? Is it fully 5 4 3 2 1
supported by the text and/or history?

• Perspective
Do you stay in role? How effective are you at 5 4 3 2 1
performing your role and convincing audience?

• Focus
Do you stay in assigned format? Do you fully 5 4 3 2 1
satisfy the chosen topic with numerous details
and examples?

• Mechanics
Does your writing contain a minimal of mechanical 5 4 3 2 1
errors? Does your writing contain no errors as your
grammar goals?
Assessment Guide: 5 = Exceptional
4 = Effective
3 = Developing
  2 = Emerging
1 = Not Yet

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 Writing Rubrics entury

• http://school.discoveryeducation.com/schrockguid
e/assess.html

• http://rubistar.4teachers.org/index.php

• http://www.rubrics.com/best_practices_rubric_des
ign.html

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 RAFT Assignment
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Tell students that they have just left college and have landed their
first job with the National Marine Sanctuary Program. It is their job to
convince others that the shipwreck they evaluated in the Thunder
Bay National Marine Sanctuary should become a national landmark
and national monument due to its historical and cultural significance.
In the persuasive argument, students should not only refer to the
National Park Service criteria, but also to #12 and #18 on the
Frequently Asked Questions webpage to highlight the benefits, both
to the vessel and to the public, of designation. Also, students should
include information about why shipwrecks are historically significant
and what people can learn by preserving them. Students will create
essays to present their ideas. Remind students to keep the criteria in
mind. Also, remind students that they are trying to persuade the
selection committee to select that particular shipwreck.

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 Conferencing entury

• Peer conferences
• Teacher/student conferences
• Parent/student conferences

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 Focused Feedback -
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PQP
•P - Praise
•Q- Question
•P - Polish

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 Writing in Your Content
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Area
• Design a process writing lesson for
use in your content area.
• Use the Understanding by Design
lesson template.
• Participants may work in groups of 3
or fewer.
• Share your plan.

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 Reflection entury

 1. How can you use process writing in your

classroom to help students improve as writers?

 2. How can you use assessment to help students

take ownership of writing?

 3. How can using process writing increase student

learning in your classroom?
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