The 6 Traits of Writing:

Overview and Practice

Go ahead and get started on the GREEN SURVEY . . .

Introductions

THINK: about yourself as a writer

WRITE: what teacher or experience helped you to learn to write

PAIR up to determine the top three concerns you have about teaching writing

SHARE your name, content/grade level, and a topic/concern you would like addressed or outcome you’d like to leave with today.

Essential VocabularyWriting Process

AudienceContent

OrganizationStyle

ConventionsAssessment

Rubric

The Six Traits: A Brief History

• Originated in Oregon in the 1980s• Vicki Spandel, NWREL researchers, and 17

teachers• Purpose: to develop a consistent vocabulary for

defining good writing/writing instruction; to create an assessment rubric to be used across all grade levels

• Evaluated thousands of papers (all grade levels) and identified “common characteristics of good writing”

• Those qualities became the “six traits”

This is a great strategy for checking for understanding, and helping students connect learning to standards and essential questions . . .

1. Read the quote in the “SAY” column.2. Paraphrase the quote (rewrite it in your

own words as if you were the author) in the “MEAN” column.

3. Explain how you think the meaning of the quote relates to our WAC topic today.

Say-Mean-Matter

Traits of Good Writing

Why Use the Six Traits?

• It provides a common language for teachers and students to use in teaching and learning about the craft of writing.

• It provides consistency in writing assessment and a shared vocabulary for giving feedback to students.

• It provides a guiding focus for writing instruction and the tools students need to revise their own writing.

“If the amount kids write is limited by what teachers have time to grade, there’s no way they’ll write enough to learn curriculum content.”

-William Strong

Break

INCREASE DECREASE

Student ownership and responsibility Teacher dominance

Class time spent on writing Time spent on isolated subskills

Teacher modeling Teacher talking about writing but not modeling

Grammar and vocabulary in context Isolated grammar and vocabulary lessons

Real audiences Assignments read only by the teacher

Collaboration Deficit-view of student writers

Writing across the curriculum Writing taught only during language arts

Constructive and efficient evaluation Evaluation seen as a burden, focused on errors over growth

Best Practice Recommendations

Research

Writing NextGraham, S., & Perin, D. (2007).

• Writing next: Effective strategies to improve writing of adolescents in middle and high schools – A report to Carnegie Corporation of New York. Washington, DC: Alliance for Excellent Education.

Best PracticeZemelman, S., Daniels, H., and Hyde, A. (1998).

• Best Practice: New Standards for Teaching and Learning in America’s Schools. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann Books.

Classroom Instruction that WorksMarzano, R. J., Gaddy, B. B., & Dean, C. (2000).

• What works in classroom instruction. Aurora, CO: Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning.

LTW vs. WTL

Learning to Write a continual process that begins before kindergarten. Foundational skills are taught in English class, but each discipline also has its own conventions, and every teacher is a teacher of writing.

Writing to Learn (WTL): writing as a tool for thinking; a way of empowering students to construct meaning, understand complicated arguments, connect the dots in their knowledge, and develop insights.

Writing to Learn

• Expressive of learning• Exposes gaps

in the writer’s reasoning

Effects•Cognitive EffectWriting allows students to reflect on their learning.•Teaching EffectWriting provides teachers with valuable formative and summative assessment information.

“Good assessment always begins with a vision of success.”

~Richard Stiggins, Student-Centered Classroom

Assessment

IdeasFor students to arrive at good content, we must help them:– Select an idea (the

topic)– Narrow the idea

(focus)– Elaborate on the idea

(development)– Discover the best

information to convey the idea (details)

“When I was in school I thought details were just extra words to add in a story to make it better. I thought detail was decoration or wallpaper . . . Details are not wallpaper; they are walls.”

~Barry Lane

Narrowing the Idea: R.A.F.T.

• R.A.F.T. stands for . . .– Role of the writer– Audience for the piece of writing– Format of the material– Topic or subject of the piece of writing

• Example: You are Jerry Spinelli, author of the delightful novel, Stargirl. Design a three-part advertising campaign that will assist you and your publisher to convince one of the major movie studios to buy the movie rights and make a feature film based on the book.

Organization

Strategies for effective organization include:

• Beginning with an inviting and focusing introduction

• Providing thoughtful links between key points and ideas

• Employing a logical, purposeful, and effective sequence

• Controlling the pacing• Closing with a satisfying

conclusion

Sequencing: Mix It Up

• Choose a short piece of text—a poem, a magazine article, a short story, etc.

• Cut the text into pieces so students can move them around like a puzzle.

• Ask students, in groups, to put the parts in order. Which comes first, second, third, last? How do you know?

• If students disagree, discuss the different ways students have organized the parts. Are they logical and effective?

Word Choice

• Your specific words• Precise vocabulary• Active, precise verbs

“I do not choose the right word, I get rid of the wrong one.”

A.E. Housman

VoiceVoice emerges when the

writer:• Allows the writing to sound

like him/herself• Shows that he/she really

cares about the idea• Writes with energy and

enthusiasm• Writes with the reader in

mind• Takes risks to make the

writing memorable• Matches the writing to its

audience and purpose

Voice

Voice In, Voice Out: Give students a piece of text that lacks voice (instruction manual, textbook, memo, etc.) and invite them to add as much voice as possible. Read the two versions aloud and discuss the differences. Try it the other way, too—have students remove the voice from a strong piece of writing.

“The difference between the almost-right word and the right word is really a large matter—it’s the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning.”

~Mark Twain

Sentence Fluency

“Writing is hard work. A clear sentence is no accident. Very few sentences come out right the first time, or even the third time.”

~William Zinsser, On Writing Well

• The rhythm of the language• Sentence clarity and patterns• Eliminating unnecessary words, vary sentence openings, and sentence lengths• Read writing aloud

Sentence Stretching

• Ask each student to write a simple sentence of 4-5 words at the top of a sheet of paper. (Example: Matthew ate a pizza.)

• Students pass the paper to the next student who must add or change one element to make the sentence more specific and interesting.

• After the paper has been passed to 10-12 people, it is returned to the original owner.

• Students write their revised sentences on the board for all to see.

Conventions

Teaching students the correct use of conventions includes lessons that focus on:

– Spelling correctly when publishing work

– Applying basic capitalization rules with consistency

– Using appropriate punctuation marks to guide the reader

– Using appropriate grammatical structures to communicate ideas clearly and convincingly

Tips for Teaching Conventions

• Get a good sense of what students know and what they still need to learn.

• Teach the skills that are developmentally appropriate for students to add to their repertoire of conventions.

• Allow for plenty of practice, time to experiment, and opportunities to apply the new skills in their writing.

• Hold students accountable for the specific skills for which they have an understanding.

• Use wall charts and mentor texts.

Presentation (the + 1)

• Presentation zeros in on the form and layout—how pleasing the piece is to the eye. (Culham)

• Presentation makes the piece easy to read:– Margins are even; layout is effective.– Handwriting or font is legible and clear.– Illustrations are appropriate and well-placed.– Everything contributes to the effectiveness

of the writing.

Break

“The writing process is a means to an end and not an end in itself.”

~Ruth Culham

Principles of Quality

Assessment

• Has clear criteria

• Demands self-

assessment

• Allows opportunities

for revision and

assessment

• Sensitive to student

developmental needs

Quality Writing Assessment

• Clear criteria shared with students before writing

• Models of writing that exemplify criteria

• Process and product oriented

• Authenticity

• Formative tasks before summative tasks

Principles of Effective Feedback

• Timely

• Specific

• Corrective

• Consistent

• Accurate

The Traits and Assessment

The 6-Trait rubrics can be used by: Self, peer, teacher

To assess: A single trait, a group of traits, all the traits

The 6-Trait rubrics can also be used as:• A tool for vertical and horizontal curriculum

alignment• An instrument for grade-level, school, or

district measurement

Assessment is not the end of the writing process.• It is the bridge to revision.• 6-Trait Writing is all about revision!

What do we value?

Read your sample: – What do you notice about this student’s

writing?– Identify its major strengths and weaknesses.– Share your observations with a partner.– Discuss what advice you would give this

writer.

– What grade level is this writer? What was the prompt?

The grading dilemma: if I assign more writing, don’t I have to do more (ugh) grading?

Philosophical response:•View writing as not only a way to assess, but as an aid to learning – as part of the path from the assign to the assess.

•We shouldn’t be graded for taking the time to flesh something out, to experiment, to conjecture. Mistakes are an essential part of learning! (think: learning to ride a bike, to knit, to parent, to teach)

•Ask how you can hold accountable without grading extensively.

•Do athletic coaches or music teachers grade the practice efforts?

The grading dilemma: if I assign more writing, don’t I have to do more (ugh) grading?

Practical response:

•Grade one paragraph of a rough draft

•Sample 10 learning logs one week, 10 the next, etc.

•Ask students to choose their three best entries (without warning) for spot-grading

•Give a + for a thoughtful response in a blog, a – for an apathetic response, a 0 for no response

For discussion at your tables:1. What is our current practice?

2. What can we STOP doing?

3. What should we do MORE of?

4. Who needs to do what? (responsibilities)

5. By when (timelines and deadlines)

6. What resources are needed?

Writing in the Content AreasM

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Writing Time + Assessment Using a Common Rubric

What happens when students receive consistent messages on the importance of expressing their reasoning and thinking in appropriate written form?

Source: NASSP Bulletin 2000: “Standards are Not Enough”

“As time devoted to writing increases, test scores increase.”

Backwards Design

1. Identify desired results

2. Determine acceptable evidence

3. Plan experiences and instruction

Closing the Implementation Gap

• Important Element of Assessment– Conferencing – the challenge is . . . The goal is . . .

Proficient: Five minute conferences with each student once per month AND I record needs for class mini-lessons

Progressing: Five minute conferences with each student once per month AND I keep track of needs in a systematic way

Does Not Meet Standards: Conference with students once per quarter, conferences are informal and do not address specific needs

Exemplary: Regular cycle of conferences (2x/month) with needs tracked by both me and student. Feedback/corrective teaching connects directly to specific student work. We also communicate in between F2F conferences digitally.

Setting Goals for Assessment

Material studied during unit, but unlikely to be

emphasized beyond this unit

Material related to what student know

and should be able to do as a result of unit

(facts, concepts, principles, skills)

Big ideas and abstract concepts

within key curricular areas that students

will revisit again and again

Identify Desired Results

When we understand we:

Can EXPLAIN

Can INTERPRET

Can APPLY

Have PERSPECTIVE

Can EMPATHIZE

Have SELF-KNOWLEDGE

Academic Vocabulary

• Analyze• Classify• Compare• Contrast• Define• Describe• Discuss• Evaluate

• Examine• Explain• Identify• Illustrate• Interpret• Justify• List• Outline

• Reflect• Refute• Review• State• Summarize• Support• Trace

Determine Acceptable Evidence

Think like an ASSESSOR

• What would be sufficient and revealing evidence of

understanding?

• How will I be able to distinguish between those who really

understand and those who don’t (though they may seem

to)?

• Against what criteria will I distinguish work?

• What misunderstandings are likely? How will I check for

these?

Monitoring and Assessment

•  Informal•  Formal•  Formative•  Summative•  Conferencing•  Rubrics

Prediction Paragraph

Example: My teacher has asked me to make predictions/form hypotheses about ______________. The things I see in the photographs include _______________. (Add a few sentences of description and/or tell what you think it is.) I think we are going to study this because __________________. I would also like to learn about _______________________. These are my initial predictions/hypotheses.

Almost There . . .

What is the Role ofCreative Writing?

Why is the 6+1Trait Model an Effective Teaching Tool for Writing Instruction?

• Defines good writing in a specific way for the teacher and the student

• Provides a way to delineate areas of individual strengths and areas of challenge

• Allows for greater consistency and accuracy in assessment

• Provides a common vocabulary for vertical and horizontal alignment of instruction

• Develops all of the traits evaluated in state assessment

• Provides a clear link between reading and writing• Enables students to become self-assessors

I always did well on essay tests. Just put everything you know on there, maybe you’ll hit it. And then you get the paper back from the teacher and she’s written just one word across the top of the page, “vague.” I thought “vague” was kind of vague. I’d write underneath it “unclear,” and send it back. She’d return it to me, “ambiguous.” I’d send it back to her, “cloudy.” We’re still corresponding to this day ... “hazy” ... “muddy” ...

~Jerry Seinfeld, SeinLanguage

Parking Lot:Write down specific content related questions you would like addressed this afternoon . . .

Quickwrite!

What do you find challenging about writing instruction?

This is a great strategy for note-taking from lectures, multimedia, or texts.

1. Follow along with the slides.2. Write only the key information in the right

column3. Formulate a question that addresses the

information you recorded; write your question in the left column under the topic heading.

4. Write a summary of your learning in the box at the bottom of the page.

Cornell Notes

Research

Writing NextGraham, S., & Perin, D. (2007).

• Writing next: Effective strategies to improve writing of adolescents in middle and high schools – A report to Carnegie Corporation of New York. Washington, DC: Alliance for Excellent Education.

Best PracticeZemelman, S., Daniels, H., and Hyde, A. (1998).

• Best Practice: New Standards for Teaching and Learning in America’s Schools. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann Books.

Classroom Instruction that WorksMarzano, R. J., Gaddy, B. B., & Dean, C. (2000).

• What works in classroom instruction. Aurora, CO: Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning.

This is a great strategy for both pre- and post- reading.

1. Read the words “splashed” on the page.2. Discuss the words with your colleagues and

make a prediction about our next topic.3. On your own, use 3-5 of the words to write

out an explanation of what we might learn in our next segment of the workshop.

Word Splash

Writing and Communication

Routine and structured discussions

Prerequisite skill to writing

Engaging: no passivity allowed

Provides non-threatening practice

Teaches discussion etiquette