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Fort MacLeod: Project Read

The Step-by-Step Writing Process

1. SELECTING A TOPIC

• Strike up a conversation. Ask your student about what interests them.

• Try brainstorming. Have your student quickly write down all the things they see.

• Suggest free writing. Give your student a pen and paper. Have them write everything that comes to mind. If they can't think of anything, have them write, "I can't think of anything." until another thought comes.

• Start drawing. Tell your student to draw what they are thinking about.
  

2. PREWRITING

• Be an idea sounding board. Listen as your student raises questions about their subject and tries to answer them.

• Ask questions to make sure they can narrow the topic and offer specific details to support his ideas.

• Try free association. Ask your student to write down everything that comes to mind about a subject.

• Try the library or other sources. Finding out what others have said on the topic will spur ideas.
  

3. ORGANIZING

• Indexing. Have your child put each idea or fact on index cards. Then they can arrange them in a logical way.

• Outlining. Have your student number main facts and ideas. Then line up related information using dashes or bullets.

• A good outline puts information in a logical order. Here are three ways to do this: 

By time. When presenting a series of events, put them in the order they happened. 

By difficulty. Start with the simplest points. Build up to the harder ones.

By cause and effect. Show how one event leads to another; an action and the effects of that action.

4. DRAFTING

• Writers write several versions.

• Don't worry now about spelling and punctuation, or "getting it right." Just let them write let their ideas flow.

• Think like a reporter. Include who, what, when, where, why and how.

• Skip lines where information can be added later.

• Take a break.

• Try an umbrella:

 

Subject: what you want to write about: dogs. Statement: what you want to say about your subject:  I like dogs. Proof: explaining your statement: Dogs are friendly.  They are loyal. You can play with them.




5. REVISING

• Ask your student to read what they have written aloud. Don't interrupt.

• Next, praise it! Find something specific that you like.

• Ask questions about content. ("Is there a place you can add more details or description?")

• Ask questions about word choices. ("Do you have a better word for 'thing'?)

• Don't make corrections or add any details yourself

• Be enthusiastic. Don't show any disappointment about poor writing.
  

6. PUBLISHING

• Now all that is left is creating a clean copy of the revised draft and delivering to the PAL Co-ordinators.

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