Understanding the Writing Process: Steps to Enhance Your Writing Skills

1. The writing process By: Angélica Guerra, MS Greater Miami Adventist Academy Collated with Houghton Mifflin – English (charts & some pictures taken from book)

2. The Writing Process Has 5 Parts • Prewriting • Drafting • Revising • Proofreading • Publishing

3. Before you even prewrite, you must think of 2 things: entertain • Who your audience will be • What is your purpose for writing – (entertain, inform, persuade, or MORE THAN ONE of them) • YOU MAY WANT TO BEGIN THINKING about how you will publish your writing (picture book, power point, essay, etc.)

4. 1. PREWRITING

5. 1. PREWRITING • This is the MOST difficult part (for most people). • It is composed of 3 parts: C = CHOOSE A TOPIC E = EXPLORE A TOPIC O = ORGANIZE A TOPIC

6. PREWRITING -> C CHOOSE A TOPIC To do this, you must: • Remember your past experiences • Talk to other people about theirexperiences • Read a book • Use your imagination • Etc.

7. Now, brainstorm a list of topics (3-5) that you will consider for your writing.

8. Concerning the topic you want to write about, ask yourself: • Can I use at least 3 senses to describe it? • Can I add lots of details? • Do I like this topic?

9. Now, CHOOSE the topic you will finally use in your writing. My Favorite Restaurant…

10. PREWRITING -> E EXPLORE A TOPIC To do this, think: • What will I write about? • Place information in any way that works for you (see chart next slide) • Use your senses (see chart 2 slides from now)

11. Use what works for you:

12. SENSORY WORDS

13. Now, using the method that best works for you, explore your topic.

14. PREWRITING -> O ORGANIZE YOUR TOPIC To do this, you must: • Choose what to include. • Plan your order. • Group events or ideas that go together (ex. a reason and its supporting details). • Choose an organizational pattern that fits your purpose (see chart next slide).

16. Even as you organize your thoughts…

17. But how do I organize, REALLY?! • Decide how to organize (see chart). • Group details that go together. • Delete details that aren’t important or relevant. • Number your details in order. • Add other necessary details.

18. Now, organize your topic keeping in mind the 5 items just described. 1-2-3-4-5 (End of Prewriting)

19. 2. DRAFTING

20. Don’t worry about mistakes or messiness. Keep your purpose and audience in mind as you write. Example: Inform / Elem. students

21. Add more details as needed. If you change your mind about something, DON’T START OVER; just cross out and continue. My frend friend is…

22. Skip lines (for revising later!).

23. But how do I do it? Write sentences and paragraphs: Using your prewriting plan, turn phrases into sentences, etc. EX: “Crunchy, salty fries” “The French fries at Johnny Rockets are crunchy fresh and deliciously salty to my taste buds.” Every paragraph needs a topic sentence. (The sentence that expresses the essential idea of the paragraph; usually found at the beginning)

24. Write a beginning and an ending: • Introduce your topic in an interesting way. • Write an ending that tells your overall impression or a comment on the topic. A grabber!

25. Make transitions: Use words that tie your paragraphs. • The body of your writing: For each paragraph, think of the main idea and write a topic sentence. EX: Johnny Rockets is my ultimate favorite restaurant! (This is the TOPIC SENTENCE FOR THE ENTIRE PAPER.)

26. REMEMBER:

27. 3. REVISING

28. DON’T ERASE! Make changes right on the draft. • Use a different color pencil or pen.

29. Revising is where it’s at… You should do FOUR things when revising: • Add something. • Take away something. • Change something. • Move something.

30. Adding Something Includes: • Transitional words and phrases • Showing sentences/paragraphs • Magnified moments • Precise word choice • Dialogue • Adding a conjunction to combine two short sentences • Simile or metaphor

31. Taking Away Includes: • Eliminating unrelated information • Too many “I’s” • Too many “and then(s)” • Too many “so’s” • Etc.

32. Changing Something Includes: • Look through the paper. • On the LEFT-hand column, list every verb you used. • On the RIGHT-hand column, write a substitution for each verb you listed on the left. EX. The man fell. / The man collapsed.

33. M • Use “editor’s marks.” THESE MARKS ARE USED FOR BOTH REVISING AND PROOFREADING!

34. NOW, ASK YOURSELF: • Did I say what I wanted to say? • Did I elaborate by adding details? • Did I organize my facts? • Did I make my writing interesting and appropriate for my audience and purpose?

35. THIS IS A GOOD TIME TO HAVE A CONFERENCE WITH A PARTNER OR THE TEACHER (just to make sure you’re on track!).

36. 4. PROOFREADING

37. Focus on ONE skill at a time. • Circle words that might be misspelled (but you’re not sure) to check them later in a dictionary. • Use “editor’s marks.” (same chart used with Revising)

38. “EDITOR’S MARKS” LEARN THEM, AND USE THEM!

39. 5. PUBLISHING

40. This is the sharing of your writing with your audience.

41. THERE ARE MANY WAYS OF DOING THIS: • an illustrated book • a Pw. Pt. • present as a report from the front of the class • etc.

42. SOME GREAT IDEAS FOR PUBLISHING:

43. THE ENDHappy writing!