Week 5 Reflect

 

Week 5

 

Derika Joseph:

The act of writing happens in many ways. As we continue this week, we will realize that writing can be done in stages, as a process, and as a trait. These aspects of writing are important for the understanding of our students, in order for them to be good writers and authors as well someday. Writing is considered a stage through which students improve from emergent, early, transitional and fluency levels, as we discussed last week. Moreover, it is considered as a process through which students master skills such as pre-writing, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing, as we have discussed before as well.

 Likewise, writing is considered a trait through which our students develop ideas. These ideas require students to show instead of telling to clarify a report of an event. Writing is also a trait through which students learn organization. In organization, students use a phrase to connect paragraphs. Writing as a trait also requires having a voice. However, in this context, having a voice means inserting a personal story to engage reader empathy. Additionally, writing as a trait considers students using word choice. In other words, students change clichés to the original expression. Finally, writing as a trait considers students having sentence fluency and conventions too. In these cases, students use short sentences when action in a story speeds up, along with using sentence fragments for effect. These traits not only bring out the skills mentioned above but also brings out student's creativity which is a handy tool as well in writing. Thus, when our students are good writers, they are more confident to write stories and other forms of writings for anyone to enjoy.

Shaquan Williams:

Writing strategies are used as a plan of action designed to achieve the goal of enhancing writing through problem-solving. While writing, students will encounter problems and may need help. Using these strategies along with the writing traits help students to solve cognitive problems they encounter during writing.  The six traits of writing help students to break down complex cognitive thoughts into six key component processes.

These six writing traits include:

• Ideas-Ideas are the main point of the piece being written. It helps to build the reader's interest in the piece and also ensures understanding through details.

• Organization- this is the framework of the piece. Organization can show compare and contrast and also deductive logic. Events in the piece tend to transition along smoothly answering situations in the piece without leaving it "open".

• Voice- this doesn’t refer to the actual voice of the writer but in fact, is a unique imprint left on the page by the writer that gives the writing more life and allows the reader to feel and respond to what is written. Voice is the writer coming through the words, the sense that a real person is speaking to us and cares about the message. It is the life and breath. When the writer is engaged personally with the topic, the writer imparts a personal tone and flavor to the piece that is unmistakably his/hers alone.

• Word choice-Word Choice is the use of language that moves and enlightens the reader. Word choice helps to clarify meaning. For example, a writer may one word instead of another to better clarify an idea.

• Sentence fluency- Sentence Fluency is the rhythm and flow of the language, the sound of word patterns, the way in which the writing plays to the ear, not just to the eye.  Sentences are well built and seem to flow effortlessly from one into the other.

• Conventions- The Conventions trait is the mechanical correctness of the piece and includes five elements: spelling, punctuation, capitalization, grammar/usage, and paragraphing. Writing that is strong in Conventions has been proofread and edited with care. Since this trait has so many pieces to it, it is mainly analytical. Conventions are the only trait where we make specific grade-level expectations should be based on grade level to include only those skills that have been taught.

Upon further research, I found another trait which is known as presentation. This trait combines visual and textual elements. It is the way we present our writing on paper. Each of these traits can be evidently seen in the writing process and can be used to enhance the author's writing.

 

Makiba Ward:

As teachers continue to produce a writing environment for students which brings a maximum of advantages to express one's personality, foster communication while developing thinking skills thus allowing students to link their writing skill to the six traits of writing. The Six Traits model allows teachers and students to focus on one or two elements of writing at a time creating a more manageable and effective way for students to learn how to write. It also is a means of providing specific feedback to students through the assessment of their writing. The Six Traits help both the student and teacher identify the areas of writing that the student needs work at improving. Good writing must incorporate the Six Traits. The Six Traits of writing are Voice: Describes the unique style of each writer. Through voice, a writer's personality permeates a piece but does not detract from the genre or message. Ideas: captures the main idea of a piece through detail. Only details that are relevant and informative of the main topic should be included. Conventions: focuses on the correctness of a piece in terms of spelling, grammar, punctuation, and other rules. Organization: describes how all ideas in a piece of writing must fit together within a larger message. Using phrase to connect passage. Word Choice: describes the unique style of each writer. Through voice, a writer's personality permeates a piece but does not detract from the genre or message. Sentence Fluency: describes the smoothness that sentences contribute to a piece. Fluent writing is rhythmic and forward-moving because its sentences are easy to read.

Additionally, while engaging in the six traits of writing students are also engage in the writing process such as: Prewriting: The student brainstorms and thinks about what to write. Drafting: The student writes down their thoughts on paper. It is the “rough draft” or “sloppy copy.” Revising: The student rereads their work and makes changes to make the writing piece better. Editing: The student edits the paper for conventions. Publishing: The student writes the final copy. It is ready to be shared with others. It is important for a student to work through each of the steps in order to ensure that he/she has produced a polished, complete piece. 

In conclusion, the writing process provides a path to a young writer and the traits are touchstones along the path. ... Drafting helps the writer apply organization, word choice, and sentence fluency to the first rush of ideas and voice thus enhanced by a traits-based vocabulary that sharpens and enhances revision.