writing process TEKS talk image

Knowledge and Skills Statement

Composition: listening, speaking, reading, writing, and thinking using multiple texts--writing process. The student uses the writing process recursively to compose multiple texts that are legible and uses appropriate conventions.

Instruct students to choose one strategy (brainstorming, freewriting, or mapping) to help them plan a first draft for a piece of their own writing. Ask students why they chose the strategy they did.

Further Explanation

This SE requires students to demonstrate their knowledge of the writing process as they plan their work. Students will determine the topic, the reason to discuss that topic, and the audience for whom their message is intended. Once students have made these determinations, they must organize their thoughts using strategies such as brainstorming, freewriting, and mapping to organize their thoughts. Students should be able to provide a logical explanation for the strategies they choose.

the intended target group for a message, regardless of the medium
a technique in which many ideas are generated quickly and without judgment or evaluation, usually as part of a problem-solving process or to inspire creative thinking Brainstorming may happen in a classroom, with a small group, or individually.
a prewriting technique in which a person writes continuously for a set period of time without regard to spelling, grammar, or topic Freewriting is similar to brainstorming but written in sentence and paragraph form and produces raw, often unusable material that has the potential to increase the flow of ideas for writers.
the type or class of a work, usually categorized by form, technique, or content Literary genres include tragedy, comedy, poetry, novel, short story, creative/literary nonfiction, etc. and the sub genres of fantasy, science fiction, mystery, horror, satire, etc.; nonfiction genres include biography, essay, memoir, historical text, scientific text, academic reporting, etc.
a structured way to organize thoughts and notes on a topic prior to writing; an organized format for showing important information and relationships among pieces of information by using a series of boxes, circles, or lines (Note: Mapping is different from the unstructured strategy of brainstorming wherein students produce notes in a more random, unrelated manner.)
Designing the rough draft of a piece of writing, often referred to as prewriting, is the first step in the writing process. In this stage, students should choose their subjects (topics), identify the target audience and intended purpose, and begin to organize their thoughts using a number of strategies such as brainstorming.

Research

1. Cruickshank, B. (2011). Supporting children during the prewriting stage: developing an author's understanding of purpose and audience using interviews. Practically Primary, 16(3), 25+. Retrieved from https://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A269690189/PROF?u=tea&sid=PROF&xid=96dbbf1b

Summary: Students were challenged to create their own children's literature. As part of the writing process, the students conducted an audience interview for their written stories. That audience was composed of peers. The process enabled students to develop a real sense of what their audience wanted. Students saw that their books had a real purpose and better understood the importance of audience.

2. Grünke, M. (2018). The effects of a peer-delivered writing planning intervention for struggling fifth graders. World Journal of Education, 8(6), 157–164. doi:10.5430/wje.v8n6p157.

Summary: The article is focused on mapping strategies to help students plan their writing. Peer tutors were used to help students brainstorm and organize their thoughts before writing.