The PRIMALS Compendium of Teaching Resources

This compendium was published with

support from the Australian Government
through the Basic Education Sector
Transformation
(BEST) Program.

Permission to use or reproduce this publication

or parts of it in hard or digital copies for
personal or educational use is granted free,
provided that the copies are not reproduced or
distributed for
commercial purposes, and that proper credit is given
to the Austraian government.

Printed in the

Philippines First

Printing, 2019
Literacy Compendium Kit

E N G L I S H L E S S O N PL ANS F I L I P I N O L E S S O N PL ANS L IT ERACY S TRATEGIES

Writing and Composition

The Writing
Process: Prewriting
Strategies
O ne goa l of t h e English Prewriting in the first stage
cu r r ic ulum is t o develop of the Writing Process.
learners in t o practiced, logical, This guide describes
clear, a n d honest writers. In some strategies to help
English, writing is t a u g h t as learners plan and organize
"process" — t h a t is, thinking, information in order to
planning, d r a f t in g t he text, write effectively.
t he n reviewing, discussing,
redrafting, editing, polishing,
a n d finishing it. It's also
i m p o r t a n t t h a t students learn
t o write "on call" o r "on demand."
Lear ning these skills take time
a n d practice.

Table o f Contents:

Background/Research Base 2
Purpose/Benefits 3
Description/Procedure 3
How Teachers Can Make
t h e Strategy Work 6
Applications Across
t he Cur riculum 6
C OM P OS IT I ON
W RI T I NG A N D
 Writing and Composition

The Writing Process:

Prewriting Strategies

Background / Research Base

The writing process involves teachi ng students t o

write in a variety o f genres, e nc ou ra gi n g creativity,
a n d inc or por at in g writing conventions. This process
c a n be used in all areas o f the c ur ri c ul u m a n d
provides a n excellent way t o c on n ec t inst ructi on with
state o r nat ional writing standards.

The writing process—prewriting, draft.” Prewriting is all the work a

drafting, revising and editing,
rewriting, publishing—mirrors the
way proficient writers write. This
write-up describes some
strategies teachers can use for
the first stage—prewriting.
Prewriting is defined as “a
blanket term for a wide range
of
techniques to start thinking
about your paper before you
begin
the formal process of writing a
student does on his or her piece
before actually writing it.
Essentially, the prewriting process
begins the moment the student
reads the assignment. (Jared M,
2016).
The process takes time, but it is
worthwhile. Without any
prewriting, there’s a good chance
the student will look back at the
finished draft and realize he
missed something important.

2 The PRIMALS C o m p e n d i u m o f T eac hing Resources | LITERACY STRATEGY GUIDES

Purpose / Benefits useful in determining the relationship
between ideas. Students will be able
Prewriting helps students generate to distinguish how the ideas fit
ideas, focus their thoughts, and to together, especially where there is an
narrow or expand what they will be abundance of ideas. Clustering lets
writing about. It is an opportunity them see
for students to organize their ideas visually in a different way, so
thoughts on paper. that they can more readily
understand possible directions their
Students frequently overlook this paper may take.The journalists'
first stage of the writing process. questions are a
They launch into composing before powerful way to develop a great deal
taking the time to plan and organize of information about a topic very
Description
quickly. / Procedure
their thoughts. This kind of
impatience often turns out to be
costly. Prewriting is the process of planning
According to Wasko (2011), papers and outlining information so that
written without wise preparation students can write effectively
are not only poorer in quality, but regarding their topic. Four (4)
are frequently more time- common prewriting strategies are
consuming than papers written described below: brainstorming or
with attention to the prewriting listing, clustering
phase. or mind-mapping, and journalist’s
The main purpose of a
questions. Descriptions of these
brainstorming activity is to come up
strategies have been culled from
with a list of
KU Writing Center (2011), Wasko
as many ideas as possible
(2011),
without worrying too much
Jared M (2016), Nordquist (2017),
about how to use them.
and
Clustering is especially
ILA (2018).
PREWRITING STRATEGY #1: Brainstorming or Listing

Brainstorming is a good way to Individual brainstorming. Have

generate a lot of ideas on a subject. students jot down all the words and
The main purpose of a phrases that they could think of
brainstorming activity is to come up about the topic. They do not need
with a list of to write in complete sentences nor
as many ideas as possible without worry about grammar or spelling.
worrying too much about how to They keep going for ten minutes.
use them. When finished, they can look at
To brainstorm, follow these their list and see which ideas stand.
steps: Ask: Which ideas grab your
1. Begin generating ideas a b o u t the attention? Which ones are worth
topic. N o idea should be rejected. focusing and expanding upon?
2. Write as many ideas as you c a n in ten Group brainstorming. A brainstorming
minutes o r so. group may be small (2-3 members)
3. Group the ideas t h a t g o together. or large (the entire class). Begin by
4. Cross the ideas t h a t don’t belong. assigning a topic to the group (writing
prompt) or have the group choose
the

Wr i t i n g a n d Co m p o si t i o n | T h e Wr i t i n g Pr o c e s s : Pr e wr i t i n g S tr a t e g i e s 3
 subject. Assign scribes to record
the ideas. Then give these
instructions:
1. Begin generating ideas a b o u t the
topic. N o idea should be rejected o u t
of hand.
2. Write as many ideas as you c an in
ten minutes o r so.
3. Group the ideas t h a t g o
together. Cross the ideas t h a t
don’t belong.
4. Label each group. Now you have
a to pi c with possible points of
development.
5. Write a sentence a b o u t the label you
have given the g r o u p of ideas.
Now you have a to pi c sentence. The most important quality of
a group brainstorming
Electronic brainstorming. session is its openness. The
Group members can members of the group
brainstorm electronically—in a should feel free to
chat room or share their thoughts without
video conference. Swapping fear of criticism. Later students
ideas online can be just as can evaluate the various
effective as face-to-face suggestions but, for now, one
brainstorming, and in certain idea can lead freely to another.
cases even more so.
PREWRITING STRATEGY #2: CLUSTERING OR MIND-
MAPPING

Clustering allows students to Here are some online tools to use

explore the relationships between for clustering:
ideas. It can be done individually • https://coggle.it/
or in groups. It is typically done • mindmeister at
with pen and paper or with a https://www.mindmeister.com/?utm_
chalk or dry-erase board Here
are the steps: source=
bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=
• Put the subject in the center world_en_search&utm_
of a page. Circle or underline content=mm&msclkid=
it. 882575979489197d230629c9aa405338&u
• As you think of other ideas, tm_ term=mind%20mapping
write them, circle them, and %20tools
connect them to the circles
that enclose related ideas.
• Continue as you like, filling
up the page/board with an
increasingly complex map
of your thoughts. Keep
coming
back to the central idea
before you wander too far
off the original topic.

4 The PRIMALS C o m p e n d i u m o f T eac hing Resources | LITERACY STRATEGY GUIDES

 PREWRITING STRATEGY #3:
Journalists traditionally ask
six questions when they
are
writing assignments, 5 W's
and 1 H: Who?, What?,
Where?, When?, Why?, How?
These can be used to
explore topics for a writing
assignment.
A key to using the journalists'
questions is to make them
flexible enough to account for
the specific details of the
topic. Students may have
very little to say about Who?
if the focus doesn't account
for human involvement. On
the other hand, some topics
may be heavy on the Who?,
especially if human
involvement is
a crucial part of the topic.
Possible generic questions
to ask using the six
journalists' questions on
the
The right.
journalists' questions
are a powerful way to
develop a great deal of
information about a topic
very quickly. Learning to
ask the appropriate
questions about a topic
takes practice, however. At
times during writing an
assignment, students may
need to go back and ask
the journalists' questions
again to clarify
important points that may
be getting lost in the
planning and drafting.
Writing a n d C o m p os it io n
THE JOURNALISTS' QUESTIONS
What? Who? Where
?
When? How? Why?
WHO? Who are the participants? Who is affected?
Who are the primary actors? Who are the
secondary actors?
WHAT? What is the topic? What is the significance of
the topic?
What is the basic problem? What are the
issues?
Where does the activity take place?
Where does the problem or issue have its
source?
At what place is the cause or effect of the
problem most visible?
WHEN? When is the issue most apparent? (past?
present? future?)
When did the issue or problem develop?
What historical forces helped shape the
problem or issue and at what point in time will
the problem or issue culminate in a crisis?
When is action needed to address the issue or
problem?
WHY? Why did the issue or problem arise?
Why is it (your topic) an issue or problem at all?
Why did the issue or problem develop in the way
that it did?
HOW? How is the issue or problem significant? How can
it be addressed?
How does it affect the participants? How can
the issue or problem be resolved?
| T h e Wr i t i n g Pr o c e s s : Pr e wr i t i n g S tr a t e g i e s 5
 How Teachers Can Make The
Strategy Work
PREWRITING STRATEGIES
The secret to effectively WORKSHEET
implementing the writing process DIRECTIONS:
is to do it in steps. There are
many effective ways for each of A. Selec t one o f the p ro mp t s
be low.
the 1. What is your favorite
five stages. Here are some ways technological device? (Example:
computer, phone, etc.)
teachers can make the
2. What type o r types of
prewriting stage more technology would you like t o see
purposeful and engaging. in your high school classroom?
How would you like this
1.For students in grades 4-6, technology used?
have them brainstorm
individually or in small groups B. Choose one o f the p rewriting
strategies below t o get start ed o n
with a specific prompt, such your writing project.
as, “Make a list of important
people in your life,” for BRAINSTORM/LIST
example.
Use the p r o m p t t o begin
2.Use graphic organizers to help brainstorming. Remember, begin with
students to organize their ideas the t op ic a n d write down as many
ideas as possible.
for specific writing genres
during the prewriting stage.
3.The prewriting strategy that
works best for one might not
work so well for another
writer. Identifying the best
prewriting strategy for one’s
learning and writing styles
takes time and practice. CLUSTERING/MIND MAP

Write the t op ic in t he center circle

Applications Across and finish completing the ou t er
The Curriculum circles with ideas t h a t relate t o the
subject.

It is a given that the strategies

described here will be useful MIND MAP

for teachers of the language

arts when they teach the
writing process. In the other JOURNALIST’S QUESTIONS

subject areas, teachers will find Answers the questions below a b o u t

these strategies helpful for the t o pi c you chose.
write to learn assignments,
Who?
and not necessarily as
What?
precursor to the next four
stages of the process. Where?

This example worksheet can When?

be used in a class on Why?
computers or in connection How?
with a project in Science and
Technology.

6 The PRIMALS C o m p e n d i u m o f T eac hing Resources | LITERACY STRATEGY GUIDES

References

Englishpost (2019) 5 Best prewriting strategies

for the writing process. Retrieved from
https:// englishpost.org/writing-process-
prewriting- strategies/

ILA (2018). Strategy guide: Implementing the writing

process. In Read-Write-Think. International
Literacy Association/National Council for
Teachers of English. Retrieved from
http://www. readwritethink.org/professional-
development/ strategy-guides/implementing-
writing- process-30386.html

Jared M. (2016). 6 Prewriting strategies t o get

your essay rolling. In Kibin Essay Writing
Blog.
Retrieved from https://www.kibin.com/essay-
writing-blog/6-prewriting-strategies/

KU Writing Center (2011). Prewriting strategies.

University of Kansas. Retrieved from
ht tp:/ / writing.ku.edu/prewriting-
strategies

N o rdquist, R. (2017). H ow b rainstorming can

help you generate, focus, a n d organize
ideas for writing. In ThoughtCo.
Retrieved from
https://www.thoughtco.com/what-is-
brainstorming-1692847

Study Guides and Strategies (1996).

Organizing a n d pre-writing. Retrieved
from http://www.
studygs.net/writing/prewriting.htm

Wasko, B. (2011). 3 Prewriting strategies for any

writing project. In The Write-at-Home Blog.
Retrieved from http://blog.writeathome.com/
index.php/2011/08/3-prewriting-strategies-for-
any-writing-project

Wr i t i n g a n d Co m p o si t i o n | T h e Wr i t i n g Pr o c e s s : Pr e wr i t i n g S tr a t e g i e s
7