Finding “Inner Peace” while helping your child write……a tough challenge for both of you.

1. Writing Help at Home Diane Ready House 7B ELA Parent/Guardian Workshop November 13, 2013 Finding “Inner Peace” while helping your child write……a tough challenge for both of you. D. Ready 2013

2. Tonight’s Goals To overview the writing process and types of writing we will do this year To give you guiding questions to ask—not answers to give To help you and your child feel less stressed about writing D. Ready 2013

3. Student writing needs to be authentic Seeing their weaknesses and strengths helps teachers identify gaps and help them grow. D. Ready 2013

4. Writing gets harder More independent More pages More complex D. Ready 2013

5. NEW STANDARDS REQUIRE Teaching students to blog Teaching how to use the internet for research MORE EMPHASIS ON TECHNOLOGY D. Ready 2013

6. We will write… A Lot!!! D. Ready 2013

7. To prepare for MCAS in March LONG COMP AND ORQ(3 Days of ELA testing) And High School, and College… and LIFE D. Ready 2013

8. 3 Basic Formats and Purposes D. Ready 2013

9. Open Response Questions vs. Essay Writing Format D. Ready 2013

10. The 5 C’s of 7th Grade Writing Correct Complete Clear Compelling Complex D. Ready 2013

11. The 5 C’s of 7th Grade writing Correct Complex Compelling Complete Clear??? D. Ready 2013

12. Tracking ALL the elements of writing at once….. • Focus on topic • Answering ALL parts of prompt • Meeting Format/Purpose • Targeting Audience • Significant and relevant support • Unified paragraphs • Organization • Vocabulary • Sentence Flow • Transitional phrases • Grammar • Spelling/Capitalization • Strong openings/hooks • Insightful conclusions • Creativity • Accuracy • Depth • Appropriate Tone D. Ready 2013

13. Can be VERY frustrating getting it right takes practice Different Plates will drop while they learn to balance others D. Ready 2013

14. Correct, complete, clear—NOT complex D. Ready 2013

15. More complex—less clear D. Ready 2013

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17. Our Writing Process • Pre-write 2.Compose 3. Evaluate 4. Revise 5.Edit 6.Publish D. Ready 2013

18. IT ALL STARTS WITH THE QUESTION Read The QUESTION and FCAs CAREFULLY! Use TNT— TOPIC words NUMBER of Items to include TASK or TASKS to complete Describe AND Explain? Identify AND Describe? Compare AND Contrast? D. Ready 2013

19. FAP MATTERS!! Format Audience Purpose D. Ready 2013

20. Most kids HATE prewriting D. Ready 2013

21. LACK of Prewriting is the MAIN reason students dead-end with “Nothing to say” • Plan to Fail Fail to plan and you D. Ready 2013

22. Types of Brainstorms T charts for pros and cons compare contrast fact/elaboration Webs Bulleted Lists D. Ready 2013

23. PREWRITE Brainstorm Group/Develop/Delete ***Order/Organize D. Ready 2013

24. Brainstorming • Just WRITE • Gets the gears moving • Gets thinking beyond the surface level • Fills the Scary Blank PAGE D. Ready 2013

25. GROUP…related details/find cause and effect connections—(Color-code)DELETE…less significant-Ideas you have few facts forDEVELOP…ADD to details if you get MORE related ideas as you work ASK your writer: Did you…. D. Ready 2013

26. OTHER words for “details” What IS a supporting detail? Facts Evidence Support Numbers Names Time frames (before what, after what) Places Actions What Actions Lead to D. Ready 2013

27. Put Ideas in ORDER BEFORE beginning Just Number Items OR Formal Outline D. Ready 2013

28. Basic Outline for Argument EssayOpening Paragraph: Hook, Claim, Reason 1, Reason 2 Reason 3/Counterclaim, ConclusionBody R1:Topic Sentence3-4 supporting details/ elaboration connecting detail to main point of paragraphBody R2:Topic Sentence3-4 supporting details/ elaboration connecting detail to main point of paragraph Body R3:Topic Sentence3-4 supporting details/ elaboration connecting detail to main point of paragraph Conclusion: Repeat MAIN point in NEW way; recap main categories of support; extend idea D. Ready 2013

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35. Problems with PLANNING Stage? Ask : WHY??? HOW?? SO WHAT? How does that relate to the main topic or question? D. Ready 2013

36. COMPOSE PAGE FRIGHT? JUST WRITE! Encourage the writer to form sentences out of the planner. JUST a DRAFT Does not have to be Shakespearean…Just gets bullets into full sentences. D. Ready 2013

37. TIPS for Drafting (compose) 1. Write body paragraphs FIRST! The opening and closing CAN be the hardest part— Conclusions and BIG IDEAS come through after working with topic for a while D. Ready 2013

38. TIPS for Drafting (Compose) 2. Just write Topic Sentences for each paragraph Then go back and fill in details and elaborate on why the details matter/prove the point IN the topic sentence D. Ready 2013

39. TIPS for Drafting 3.Talk it through…..Sometimes we speak in a more direct way than we write Have your child explain what they want to say without writing. Scribe any phrases that seem to capture the ideas that they were “stuck” on Your child can clean up the phrasing later. D. Ready 2013

40. TIPS for Drafting CHUNK IT Take a break—walk away after a body paragraph is complete. Then revisit the planner to begin the next D. Ready 2013

41. TIPS for Drafting (Compose) First Draft is a SKELETON Keep the writer CALM First draft is JUST a Skeleton— You can add some muscle to the ideas and dress it up in more appropriate style during revision. D. Ready 2013

42. BACKWARDS PLAN TO HAVE TIME TO REVISE!! FDR had time to revise his famous INFAMY speech after Pearl Harbor— If the leader of the free world on the brink of war had time to revise—YOU better make time to revise! D. Ready 2013

43. REVISE AFTER a break – Before Rewriting—REREAD THE QUESTION/PROMPT/FCAs Review FCAs Reconsider Format Audience Tone D. Ready 2013

44. REVISE Reread DRAFT OUT loud— mark any sections student LOVES Celebrate success! Mark areas to come back to—what seems fuzzy? Incomplete? Wrong Tone? Insignificant? D. Ready 2013

45. REVISE using COWS Chunk Revision into 2-4 separate read-throughs: Chunk by: CONTENT ORGANIZATION WORDCHOICE SENTENCE FLOW D. Ready 2013

46. CONTENT check-in questions What do you you think were your strongest points? Try to duplicate approach in weaker sections. Do you directly answer the prompt? Use topic words from question in opening? Are details persuasive? Logical? Any INSIGNIFICANT details to delete? D. Ready 2013

47. CONTENT more check -in questions Do you clearly EXPLAIN HOW the details prove or relate to the main claim/point of the paper? Of each paragraph? Do you show “cause and effect” relationships using words like “because” “which shows” “which led to…” “this resulted in… Do details skim the surface or ZOOM in close—go deep? D. Ready 2013

48. CONTENT more check -in questions Does your opening HOOK the reader? Bring a moment to life with sensory details? Relate a familiar quote to the topic? Make the reader THINK and FEEL? WHAT line in the opening shows you have thought deeply and come to a clear conclusion about the topic? Do you have a POINT? OR just a topic? D. Ready 2013

49. ORGANIZATION check-in questions Does the opening LEAD the reader through the claim and the main point you will make in EACH body paragraph. Are there details in the opening that you should MOVE to a body paragraph? Does a clear TOPIC SENTENCE open each body paragraph? Do ALL the ideas in each paragraph clearly relate to that topic sentence? D. Ready 2013

50. ORGANIZATION more check in questions What is the reason for the ORDER you presented your body paragraphs in? Did you save strongest point for last or lead with it? What transitional phrases did you use to show how the order flows? “The most important factor…” Even more significant is the fact that…” D. Ready 2013