Introducing 6 Traits into Our Writing

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Introducing 6 Traits into Our Writing

• Helping to Make Our Writing More Complete

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The Dreaded Writing Assessment.

• What are the Keys to Higher Writing Scores????????

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Key to Higher Writing Scores..

• Write daily.
• Integrate writing with content areas.
• Require students to do more than one draft
• Model writing
• Follow a checklist

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What are the 6 Traits?
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What are the SIX Traits?

1. Ideas
2. Organization
3. Sentence Fluency
4. Word Choice
5. Voice
6. Conventions

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1.
2.
5.
4.
6.
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Ideas

• Start with the ice cream. Whats a sundae without
  the ice cream? The main idea or topic is
  essential and begins the piece. All other
  add-ons or toppings enhance the ice cream (main
  idea).
• Ideas must clearly relate to the topic to be
  Good meaning..Focused, Meaningful, Rich
  Vivid with a sense of purpose

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Organization

• Hold it all together with the dish. The dish
  (organization) makes the ice cream (ideas) easier
  to grasp and prevents it from melting away.
• First sentence is engaging
• Transition words phrases
• Logical sequencing of information (most to least
  important, least to most, time)
• Lots of supporting Details examples in the
• right place

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A Closer Look at Word Choice

• Use powerful words that paint a mental picture
  for the reader.
• Add descriptive adjectives to enhance nouns.
• The lumpy brown toad hopped quickly through the
  squishy gooey mud.
• Verbs should be strong action words.
• The cows stampeded through the field.
• The cows sauntered through the field.

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What else?

• Try to use specific, rather than general nouns.
• The car zoomed down the street. The 1957 Chevy
  zoomed down the street.
• Use language that is comfortable, not flowery
  or stuffy.
• I shall not follow you.
• Avoid slang and cliches.
• He was fixin to finish his homework.

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Word Choice

• Something more to go on that sundae? Bananas,
  candies or chopped nuts also enhance the sundae.
  There are many types of add-ons (word choice) to
  compliment your sundae (main idea).
• Use vocabulary that add meaning
• Adding interesting adjectives adverbs
• Make ideas specific imagery
• Avoid repetition of words
• Written for the audience

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Moving on to Voice

• Always write from your heart and share your
  feelings with the reader.
• Avoid using you.
• Try not to sound like an encyclopedia.

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Voice

• Hot fudge, strawberries, pineapple, enhance the
  ice cream. Toppings add individuality to the ice
  cream (main idea). We dont all like the same
  things on our sundaes, do we? Without toppings,
  ice cream is just too blah!
• Personal stories or examples
• Appropriate to audience
• Convey your feelings and point of view
• Appropriate for purpose

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Now Lets Examine Sentence Fluency

• Let your writing develop an easy flow or rhythm.
• Aim to make your writing ache to be read aloud.
• He moved like a slow-motion instant replay.
  (Christopher Myers)
• Use complete sentences.
• Slept soundly in the crib.
• The baby slept soundly in the crib.

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What else should a good writer do?

• Vary sentence lengths.
• He wore a red shirt. He had on brown slacks. His
  jacket was wrinkled.
• He wore a wrinkled jacket over a red shirt with
  brown slacks.
• Vary sentence beginnings.
• I like to sing. I like to play
• the piano.
• I like to sing. Playing the piano
• is my favorite pastime.

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Anything else?

• Try different sentence structures.
• The cow jumped over the moon. The dish ran away
  with the spoon.
• The cow jumped over the moon. Did you see the
  dish run away with that spoon? What an incredible
  sight!
• After the cow jumped over the moon, the
• dish ran away from the spoon.

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And Theres More

• Avoid repetition.
• She liked to dance and she liked to skate and she
  liked to sing.
• Make sure to use words correctly.
• There driving to theyre house and will arrive
  their by noon.
• Unless you are Hemmingway or Hawthorne, be
  concise.

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Sentence Fluency

• Will there be anything else to go on your sundae?
  How about some whipped cream to help the toppings
  flow along?
• Flow or rhythm of words
• Transition words used to make connections
• Sentence structures variety (S, Cmp, CX, Cmpd-cx)
• Sentence lengths
• Avoid run-ons and fragments
• Varied beginnings on sentences

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Conventions

• Whats a sundae without a cherry to top it off?
  Polish up your dessert and add the finishing
  touch. Its all in the presentation looks CAN
  fool the stomach! And now grab a spoon and
  enjoy!
• Grammar
• Punctuation (comma, end marks, quotation marks)
• Indentation
• Capitalization
• Spelling

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Now lets get it WRITE!