The 6+1 Traits of Writing
In keeping with the theme ‘Promoting Writing in the Primary Grades’, our sessions this week started off with a discussion on how we can help our students take their writing from a craft (the work in progress) and turning it into an art (the carefully crafted finished piece). By such, our students must be made to understand that writing is not a one step, trial and error exercise, which is quite often the impression they get, but that it involves many processes in order to reach its final product or masterpiece.
To aid us in understanding how we can further assist them with this journey, we were introduced to a set of student - centered instructional activities called the 6+1 traits of Writing.
Though I relate to them as activities, they are not necessarily things the students will do on a task by task basis, but more so, what should be included or reflected in their composed pieces at the end of their writing. In implementing these traits, teachers should or can focus on them one by one or even two at a time, as they guide students with their writing. As was noted in class, these traits complement the writing process and in such, by my understanding, should be used in conjunction with them. In other words, these traits are not made to be taught in isolation but may fall within the context of different aspects of the writing processes.
Now to share briefly what
these traits are.
The ‘6+1 traits’ is a model or framework of a set of general characteristics which were expertly identified as the key elements in every good piece of writing. They were first known as the 6 traits of writing, namely: "ideas, organization, word choice, voice, conventions and sentence fluency", but in more recent times one more, "presentation", was added, making it seven traits, more commonly referred to as 6+1 traits of writing.
These traits are said to be powerful tools that we teachers can use, to help with the difficulties even we ourselves face with teaching writing and more so, to help our students to overcome their challenges. They can and should be used in every writing classroom, at any level, and are said to be an even more exceptional advantage in use with our struggling writers.
One of my biggest take-aways in this week’s session was being drawn to the fact that our students:
1. can write
2. they want to write
3. they possess the knowledge, interest and experiences to write.
This is something that I am now coming to terms with, as I felt that writing is a skill that many students lack (myself included). With the hardships I have faced with writing and teaching writing, this piece of information has really given me more to think about as it relates to enhancing my skills as a writer and a writing teacher.
While our students possess the characteristics noted above, it is our role as teachers to help them overcome the challenges that may be preventing them from becoming the writers they can so ably be. One of such challenge starts very early on in the writing process. That challenge is with brainstorming ideas on what to write. I surely can relate to this, as I have had my share of troubles with it. Often we think that of all the stages in the writing process, this is the easiest. We think that all the students have to do is write whatever comes to mind based on what topic we give them. This is not so easy as it sounds, and many students get stuck way too long on this stage. As noted students struggle with coming up with ideas to write because:
1. Writing is complexed ( from my understanding, it involves too many processes that the student have to consider in order to put their thoughts into written language.)
2. Students think faster than they write ( from my understanding, their writing cannot keep up with their thinking process, so they often loose their thoughts by the time they are ready to write it.)
3. Students don't write for themselves ( they write what we the teachers tell them, so it stifles their own ideas.
Another major take away in this week's session was getting a practical experience in using these traits. In one session we were given a student's piece which we assessed, based on the traits of writing. I enjoyed this method of assessment and found it much easier grading in this way, as opposed to the traditional ways I was using. With the traits as a guide, you knew specifically what to look for in the student's writing piece.
I have learned a lot about these traits and I encourage all of us; myself and all others who will come into contact with this blog post: to learn more and use them to help our students. We will identify some of these good traits in their writing already, so we can help to enhance those, while developing those that they lack.
Please check out the links below which were shared in class to help further your interest in learning about these 6+1 traits.
A lesson on Ideas - 6+1 Traits
For the book lovers reading this posts please note the link below if you are interested in buying or downloading (on kindle), a copy of the book 6+1 Traits of Writing by Ruth Culham.
Thanks for reading.😊😊😊
A very detailed explanation of the 6+1. It has given me a better understanding of the concept presented. I will definitely use this strategy in my classroom so as to create the right atmosphere for writing and help students develop a love for writing. Continue doing a great job in reminding and educating we teachers on best writing practices to be used in the classroom
ReplyDeleteI like the fact that your highlighted that teachers and students alike struggle with writing and brainstorming. It takes time to generate great ideas for writing. I find it particularly hard for students to do this because they feel pressured from the teacher and two they are not granted the privilege to select their own writing pieces. In my opinion, teachers need to gradually relinquish the authoritative hold in the classrooms which will allow students to participate more in the class.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading the post made about the 6+1 Traits of Writing, as it breaks down what the traits are and how effective they can be if they are taught and taught properly. As a classroom teacher, I have also had my share of struggles during the teaching of Composition and my students also struggled. With these strategies mentioned, if they are clearly understood when taught/used, improvement should become visible in students' writing pieces.
ReplyDeleteI commend the writer for outlining that writing should not be taught in isolation rather than it should be integrated in other areas. Although writing can be difficult at the initial stage it takes a lot of practice, brainstorming of different ideas, the strategies implemented in effective way to provide high quality of writing. Students and teacher should not feel pressured if the proper strategies and resources are implemented and readily available. I believe, pre-requisite knowledge, instructional capabilities, valuable resources would definitely be an asset to make writing easier using the model.
ReplyDeleteWriting should be fun to enjoy for both teachers and students. Field trips, movies are all examples of having fun in the writing process for both teachers and students.
I like how you explain the 6+1 Traits of writing in details. Writing is a process and with this effective strategy , teachers can guide and support students writing. I also like the fact that you include resources so others can read more about the 6+1 Traits of writing.
ReplyDelete