Teaching Writing

Humans learn from our mistakes. Nothing could be more true of learning to write. We have to come to understand our tendencies when it comes to writing, including what we tend to include/not include.

Students learn to write by correcting their thinking and their writing mistakes. CORRECTING. There is research that shows the ineffectiveness of “drill & kill” through worksheets. Ineffective here meaning, Losing valuable time on practices that could be allocated to proven strategies. The kind of writing growth I am talking about is substantial (not the minimal ranges of improvement that show up statistically through the employment of worksheets or examining others’ work).

Students strong in Humanities tend to be strong Thesis and Commentary writers. Students strong in STEM tend to be strong in Detail and Elaboration writing. Our job as English teachers: to help students to locate their weaknesses, help them to understand their weaknesses, and then work to correct them

Because students learn through correcting mistakes, it follows that the revision piece of writing is where students learn and grow. Not requiring revision work with a concerted writing draft (academic piece written for academic learning and assessment) is a lost learning opportunity.

If wanting students to benefit from the strategies employed by other students or writers, they must incorporate those strategies into their writing intentionally. The only way that happens is if you ask (require) them to do it as a part of their revision process.

All writing should be done in class. This does many things: 1) eliminates cheating; 2) promotes key coaching conversations between the teacher and student; and 3) helps students to feel (get) comfortable with writing by being in an environment where everyone is in the same struggle while also being supported.

All writing should be done by hand until it is time for track changes (explained below). Handwriting Shows Unexpected Benefits Over Typing

If we want our students to improve their writing, they must improve their thinking, and that begins with improving their reading skills. All three skills areas work together to bolster and promote amazing growth. 

Recommended strategy for helping students to read critically:  

• 3 Reads (1-pager) and 
• 3 Reads (slide deck).

For independent study, check out 

• independent book study complete instructions. 

Teachers often feel they don’t have time to make room for the full process, or that they will bore students with intensive work, and yet we have a responsibility to do what is required to help our students grow. Take the time. Teach the reading. Do the full revision process.

Requiring regular revisions is simply the right thing to do. If we mean what we say - that THINKING & WRITING are the TOP skills students need to navigate life - there is no relevant argument against it, not even lack of time. We have to make time for it - it is that important.

Nothing feels better than authentic confidence, and that is what begins to take hold in students. It is this one factor alone that generates motivation in our students to write, and to work at writing. 

We forget how hard it is to learn how to write. We forget how personal it feels to have our writing “graded.”

All writing is persuasive (makes an argument), even creative writing.

Essential Writing Resources Shortlist (Finite Writing | TDEC) contains a plethora of resources that you might find helpful with coaching students writing.