https://padlet.com/swilli181/t341qopt7b2v Anyone can be a great writer en-us 2018-01-27 17:15:10 UTC 2025-11-10 00:59:16 UTC hello@padlet.com swilli181 https://padlet.com/swilli181/t341qopt7b2v/wish/225308987 According to Tompkins (2012) "Prewriting is the getting-ready-to-write stage" (p. 6). During this stage writers choose their topics, reflect on the purpose/audience, and generate ideas (Tompkins, 2012, pp. 5-6).

My students blend the prewriting phase with the draft phase. Instead of being intentional about sitting down and reflecting upon their topic, they choose to explore their topic through their rough draft. I was never taught how to prewrite in school so I figured that this blend was natural and productive. However, I can now see how important it is to teach students how to properly prewrite. 
 ]]> 2018-01-27 17:17:50 UTC https://padlet.com/swilli181/t341qopt7b2v/wish/225308987 swilli181 https://padlet.com/swilli181/t341qopt7b2v/wish/225311244 According to Tompkins (2012) "Writers focus on getting their ideas down on paper during drafting" (p.8). Writers begin to develop the ideas that came up during prewriting. This stage of the writing process should focus on content as apposed to convention. Writers should use this stage to develop leads and grab their audiences attention (Tompkins, 2012, pp. 5-8).

One of my student's drafts tends to be messy and hard to read as he works through the draft stage. He has an active mind and constantly moves things around or packs in new ideas. By the time he is done his draft is hard to read which limits the impact of the revise and edit stages. After reading this chapter, I see how important it is to provide proper spacing for writers during this stage so they are able to effectively revise and edit their drafts. In the future, I will do as the text advises and use red x's every other line in order to force students to space out their writing. ]]> 2018-01-27 17:46:18 UTC https://padlet.com/swilli181/t341qopt7b2v/wish/225311244 swilli181 https://padlet.com/swilli181/t341qopt7b2v/wish/225313366 According to Tompkins (2012) "writers clarify and refine ideas in their drafts during revising" (p. 9). This is not a stage to focus on conventions but rather a time to seek feedback and make substantive rather than minor changes to a draft. This stage is a time to use your peers' comments to further develop your draft (Tompkins, 2012, pp. 5-9).

Many of my students don't enjoy this stage of the writing process. They try to talk their way out of participating in revising groups. It is during this time that the confidence, or lack thereof, of my writers is most visible. Some students truly believe they are bad writers and see revision time as an open invitation for their peers to judge them. I watch as my cooperating teacher attempts to use the revising groups as an opportunity to empower these unconfident writers by having students point out the positives elements of their writing. However, some students just can't seem to shake their insecurities. Which is something I understand, I still fear the revision stage myself. How can we as educators create a new culture around revision and shape it into something to be desired?


]]> 2018-01-27 18:13:07 UTC https://padlet.com/swilli181/t341qopt7b2v/wish/225313366 swilli181 https://padlet.com/swilli181/t341qopt7b2v/wish/225315333 According to Tompkins (2012) "Editing is putting the piece of writing into its final form" (p. 12). Writers do this by focusing their attention onto the conventions of writing. Writers are advised to step away from their drafts during this stage in order to give themselves space from their work. Once they come back they will proofread their drafts and make edits that help make their work more accessible to readers (Tompkins, 2012, pp. 12-14).

This year I am working in Kindergarten and notice my students have a really hard time wrapping their head around when to use a capital letter. Most students by now understand to capitalize the beginning of a sentence but many students will litter their writing with capital letters. It makes me wonder if this is a normal part of learning how to write or if we need to address this issue with further instruction. ]]> 2018-01-27 18:39:37 UTC https://padlet.com/swilli181/t341qopt7b2v/wish/225315333 swilli181 https://padlet.com/swilli181/t341qopt7b2v/wish/225317126 According to Tompkins (2012) "Students publish their writing and share it with an appropriate audience during this stage" (p. 15). This stage allows students to cement ownership over their works by providing the finishing touches that empowers them to feel like authors. By having the opportunity to share their work, students not only begin to identify as authors, but also become motivated to put more energy into their revisions and edits (Tompkins, 2012, pp. 15-17).

Illustrations are not only a great tool to use during the prewriting stage, they can also be used during the publishing stage. My students in Kindergarten do not consider their worked finished unless it is accompanied with a picture about what they wrote. Since many of the books we read as a group contain illustrations, my students consider a finished illustration just as important as the finished writing. In our class we incorporate illustrations as part of the publishing stage to help encourage students to take pride in their work. ]]> 2018-01-27 19:04:13 UTC https://padlet.com/swilli181/t341qopt7b2v/wish/225317126