The Writing Process

Monday, August 31, 2015

Today we began creating our interactive notebooks. The first entry in the interactive notebook is the steps of the writing process. The steps and notes on the Writing Process provided are as follows: 

Planning

•Brainstorming or generating ideas

•Researching and reading about the topic

•Taking notes, writing down key points that support the topic

•Organizing ideas on a planning sheet or graphic organizer

•30 minute process

Drafting

•Writing an essay based on your planning sheet.

•Getting your thought on paper.

•Compose the Introduction, body, and conclusion.

•60 minute process

Revising 

•Reread your essay and make sure that:

   oThere is a clear central idea.

   oSupport is clear and aligns with central idea

   oAdd definitions and evidence if necessary

   oEverything flows logically and relates to the central idea.

   oVoice and tone are consistent with writing style

   oReview word choice

   oVarying sentence structures and lengths.

   o15 minute process

Editing

•Check for and fix

   oSpelling errors

   oGrammatical errors

   oProper punctuation

   oClarify statements that can be misinterpreted

   oMisused words (ex. From vs. form)

   oSources are properly cited

   o15 minute process

Taking a New Approach

•If your essay is not working, ask yourself these questions:

   oDoes the form of my essay achieve my purpose?

   oAre the tone and language appropriate for the topic and audience?

   oIs the information organized effectively, or will it confuse the reader?

   oIs there a different approach I could take?

If something is not working, go back to an earlier step in the writing process and make improvements

Publishing

•Be sure that what ever you submit is your best.

•If you are not happy with it, make it better before submitting.