Tired of Being a Red Ink Slave to Corrections?

Editing, Not Correcting

How do you respond to the statement: Correcting isn't teaching!

Think about it: all correcting does is make you a better proofreader. Students more often than not ignore your hard work. You as a teacher feel obligated to take out the red pen, while in your heart you know this just isn't working. Don't you see the same errors over and over again? How many times can you check, highlight, underline and explain in the margins that a lot is two words? What else can you do? Isn't every English teacher obliged to correct the work of their students? Isn't that the expectation of parents and administration?

What if you shift the burden of correcting to the student where it belongs? You can do this by integrating editing skills into the writing process from day one. If you establish simple routines by editing every day you can chip a way at the persistent problems without bleeding red ink after school and every weekend.

Many teachers use a daily oral language approach. Let's make it a daily integrated editing exploration approach and stop correcting for our students!

• Encourage students to re-read their work at every stage of the writing process.
• Be sure students read their own work aloud.
• Introduce and use the basic proofreading symbols
• Start each class with a brief editing sponge or transitional activity.
• Periodically assemble a list of Editing Essentials to tally the collective skills of the group
• Collect and organize mentor sentences for modeling usage and grammar concepts
• Throughout the year, have your students choose e-portfolio samples that document student progress

Edit Anonymous Authentic Samples

Practice editing skills with a variety of anonymous sample sentences or paragraphs in need of specific corrections. Toss the work sheets and find samples from the real world.

• Use student papers that display the most persistent problems.
• Find samples in online student publications like KMSoul .
• Use the NWREL 6-Traits database of student work.

Better yet, use the Notable Sentences Blog a treasure chest of well organized examples. Self proclaimed "sentence stalker" Loren Wolter maintains this remarkable resource. Her blog is a collaboratively build collection of sample sentences organized to address editing essentials like grammar, syntax, figurative language and many other aspects of writing. These model sentences provide powerful teaching examples and pave the way for meaningful, traits inspired, writing process oriented grammar explorations.


Remember: It is far easier to work on a sample than to edit your own work. Provide process practice before you move to self-editing.

Fresh Eyes = Edit Better

When it does come time for your students to edit their important pieces, be sure the writing has time to cool.

• Waiting a few days allows a writer to edit with fresh eyes.
• Try reading the text backwards to discover invisible errors like repeated articles.
• Zoom word processed text or switch to a larger font to see the words in a different way.

Focus on One Type of Error at a Time

Here's a professional proofreader's trick: focus on a single specific issue to keep things manageable. If you try to edit for capitalization, punctuation, spelling, and grammar at the same time you overwhelm your weaker editors, causing them to shut down. For younger students, this may mean starting with just end punctuation or capitalization. For older students, the focus may be the rules of dialog or the use of quotation marks.

Integrate Editing into the Writing Process

Students who can revise and edit their own work are on the way to becoming independent writers. Editing helps writers understand their own voice. I'm not advocating a close spell check and punctuation drill early in the process. Too much focus on correctness can stunt fluency. Instead encourage re-reading and reading aloud as part of the writing/editing process. This habit will provide opportunities for students to experiment with usage as they go.

Model by Thinking Out Loud

Often we expect students to 'hear' or 'see' grammatical problems by applying a mental filter based on their previous exposure to language. Not all students have this filter. This is especially true for English language learners or students with learning disabilities. This is why it is so important to model the editing process using the think aloud method.

Put up an sample of your own weak first draft writing on an overhead projector or computer screen. Talk your way through a quick editing process. Broadcast your inner monologue as you tear into the typical problems you want to address. Modeling your own process shows students how important writing is to you and creates a safer learning atmosphere.

Where Will I Find the Time?

If you find yourself saying, I don't have time for one more thing in my curriculum, you'll love Jeff Anderson's insightful article Express Lane Editing Techniques. His field tested methods for modeling editing and re-reading throughout the writing process are practical and effective. Anderson suggests we approach grammar as.."something to be explored, not just corrected".

Anderson is also the author of the books: Mechanically Inclined and Everyday Editing. His books provide a road map for integrating powerful editing practices into the writing process. This isn't dry academic writing. Anderson comes from the classroom and has a voice and outlook are seasoned by the realities we all face everyday.

I started thinking of how we taught editing at our school. It looked like a series of half-baked attempts to solve a problem that we were not sure how to fix. If I asked my sixth-grade class to correct a sentence riddled with errors, did that show them editing is a powerful tool? When I looked at their faces, I had to admit the answer was a re-sounding, "No!"

Set Parent Expectations

Parents expect red ink. You will be pressured to teach the good old-fashioned way. Still, the good old-fashioned way (correcting) just doesn't work. A thoughtful letter home at the beginning of the year is a good idea. Explain your editing approach. Help parents understand that you value independent correctness. Be consistent and proactive. Periodically, send an editing paragraph home and ask parents to work together with their children on the edit. Consider inviting parents who are strong editors to work in your classroom, and train them to teach editing.

Reality Check on Editing

Finally, accept the fact that not everyone will be a strong editor. A writer with a talent for unique ideas and a powerful voice may be very weak in the conventions of writing. Consider Wilson Rawls, author of Where the Red Fern Grows. Rawls was so ashamed of his spelling, punctuation, and grammar that he burned all his manuscripts and almost gave up writing. Yet who can deny the lyrical genius of his prose?

Writing is too often judged by correctness alone. Do good manners insure fine character? Does polished chrome and a fine paint job create a competitive race car? By balancing conventions (correctness) with the other traits of wiring; ideas, voice, organization, word choice, and sentence fluency, you help students find their strengths, while working on their weaknesses.
In the end, by teaching instead of correcting, you arm all of your students with some independent editing skills. You help them on the road to becoming independent writer.
You've done the job. Relax, take the weekend off!

Additional Editing Resources:

Teaching and Assessing Writing with the Six Traits (UW-Stout Online Class)
Conventions Homepage (WritingFix)
6-Traits Resources Blog: Jeff Anderson The Write Guy (a guided tour of Anderson's online resources.)
Loren Wolter Notable Sentences...For Imitation and Creation

Resources from Jeff Anderson:

The Write Guy (Jeff Anderson's Website)
Mechanically Inclined (Google Book Preview)
Mechanically Inclined Building Grammar, Usage, and Style into Writer's Workshop
Making editing useful for young Adolescents
Grammar intertwined throughout the writing process: An "inch wide and a mile deep"
Zooming In and Zooming Out:Putting Grammar in Context into Context (PDF)

Register for Online Course Today: Build a Dynamic Writing Program this Year

Register Now: Online Courses Start: Spring: February 1 - March 25, 2016 EDUC 653 Middle School through Adult 6-Traits Writing Instruction EDUC 654 PK Through Elementary 6-Traits Writing Instruction Do you want to engage your students and build a great writing program before the end of the school year? This class provides a plethora of practical methods and inspirational ideas.   LAST CALL!  Enroll today!
	Instructor: Renee Williams Telephone:  971-4504572474 E-mail: williamsr@uwstout.edu Office appointment calls available via Skype: renwill11 in Dubai, U.A.E. Course Description Concepts, instructional methods and assessment strategies for improving writing instruction, middle school through post-secondary. Self-assessment strategies, application of 6-traits, technology and software applications, and writing across the curriculum. This class will focus on how to apply the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory's 6+1 Traits™ model to the process of teaching and evaluating writing. The course activities will investigate the vocabulary, concepts, and application of writing traits to classroom instruction and student assessment. Take a few moments to review the class objectives. Each module is structured around an Introduction, Readings, Lecture, Activities, an Activity Checklist, and Discussion Forum. You will work individually and as part of a community to practice and refine your assessment skills. You will score a variety of demonstration papers, discuss your rationale with online colleagues, discover a variety of classroom strategies for teaching the traits, and share your own teaching methods. While online education is highly flexible and designed to meet your schedule, you will need to set and meet deadlines as part of your weekly assignments and collaborative work. Additionally, your colleagues will depend on you for timely feedback as you work together to deepen and clarify essential concepts. Free e-Textbook Spandel, Vicki. (2012). Creating Writers: 6 Traits, Process, Workshop, and      Literature (6th Edition). Pearson. ISBN: 978-0132944106 Additional reading materials will be included as e-mail mini lectures or references on the WWW. When you log in to the course, you will access the e-textbook to read online from your tablet, laptop or desktop. The e-textbook software is compatible with an iPad, Kindle Fire or fully Internet-capable device. It is not compatible with a Kindle Reader. You can highlight info and organize info in the e-book (i.e. adding a note stating something like "reference in my discussion posting") and print only what you want for use as a study guide. You may share notes and highlighting with peers in the class. Printing of the entire textbook is allowed for your personal professional use. University Email Checking your university email daily is recommended. Mobile Phone Access to Your EmailYou may configure your mobile device to receive your university email automatically. Directions are provided at:http://helpdesk.uwstout.edu/kb/resolution.asp?q_id=262 Click on the appropriate link for directions that match your device. If you need assistance, please call 715-232-5000. Objectives Articulate an understanding of the historical foundations of the 6-traits writing movement and its relevance to classroom instruction. Analyze writing samples based on the critical attributes of each trait. Apply a variety of composing and revision techniques used in the writing process. Apply the 6-traits rubrics to analytically score writing samples and describe reasoning behind scoring decisions based on the point scale rubrics of the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory (NWREL) and the Oregon Public Education Network (O.P.E.N.). Utilize online databases to practice analytical scoring for each of the 6-traits. Demonstrate effective strategies for teaching writing and differentiate 6-traits instruction based on a wide range of academic diversity including English language learners and special needs students. Redesign current writing lessons and integrate the 6-traits approach with developmentally appropriate learning activities. Analyze the impact of standardized testing on writing instruction and how 6-traits assessments prepare students for Common Core state and national writing tests. Apply collaborative learning theory, model the technique with writing classes, and demonstrate use of technology such as discussion forums, online writing centers, blogs and wikis for writing assignments. Increase the frequency of student writing and strategic integration of carefully designed writing tasks in different subject area curriculum. Write reflectively about the themes, topics, and issues involved in teaching with the 6-traits. Synthesize current research, contemporary theories, teaching strategies, and instructional technology to teach writing in content areas. By the end of the course participants will be able to efficiently assess student writing using the 6+1 Traits™ model. Participants will have shared effective methods for teaching each trait. Finally, participants will publish an original student sample, complete with 6-traits scores and rationales. Assignment Due Dates Review the Course Calendar.  A link is available on each course content page. Instructor-Student Communication The primary methods for communicating with students with be via... Course NewsUpdates, instructions, advice and tips will be posted in the Course News. Remember to check it each time you login to your course. Please log in at least four times a week. DiscussionCheck the Discussion Board posts and responses regularly and remember that your level of Discussion Board participation and your discussion summary will be factored into your grade. Your UW-Stout Email Account Check the university email at least every other day. Daily is better. No course communication will be sent to your home/work personal email accounts. As we complete each activity, you are encouraged to share your discoveries and successes with other participants and collaborate during team problem-solving. Participants may share drafts of works-in-progress for peer feedback and discuss ideas and suggestions before submitting the final project. Each participant brings unique needs and resources to the group. Our sharing will provide a broader base of experience as we discover the solutions to each other's design needs and challenges. Since our diverse groups are usually in many different time zones feel free to use the following aids to determine what time it is in your classmates' countries and/or cities. This will help when setting up real-time chats with your learning partner during collaborative projects. The World Clock - Time Zones Evaluation Your final grade will be based on: 40% - Satisfactory completion of module activities20% - Final Project 20% - Online Discussion (postings to Discussion Forum) 20% - Self-reflection Your projects will be evaluated using standards listed on the module rubrics or checklists. A -- Exceeds the standardB -- Proficient demonstration of the standard I -- Incomplete demonstration of the standard (Work must be resubmitted.) Discussion Board Etiquette (Please Read!) Evaluation of your Discussion Forum participation is cumulative and subjective based on notes that the facilitator records each week. Always feel free to e-mail your facilitator for help in upgrading your participation in the Discussion Forum. Exemplary indicates you participated above the minimum level in both quantity and clarity of communication in your Discussion Forum postings. Proficient indicates you met the minimum requirement. Discussion postings are timely, relevant and include some feedback about the readings and responds to others' comments in the discussions Partially Proficient Discussion postings are too few in number, or too trivial to fully meet the requirement. For example, most of the postings are "I think so too" or "I disagree", but lack any argument that adds to the discussion or includes excessive quoting from the material without any real supporting evidence of how the topic might integrate with their classroom teaching. Incomplete indicates you consistently contributed below the minimum two messages per week or contributions were merely perfunctory ("I agree with so and so.") or unclear. Discussion Rubric Reflections will be evaluated for clarity and your understanding of the readings and activities. Any time that you want to ask about your progress, send an email directly to your facilitator. Grading Scale A 100-94 A- 93-91 B+ 90-88 B 87-84 B- 83-81 C+ 80-78 C 77-74 F 73 or below To maintain Full Academic Standing, a cumulative GPA of 3.0 is required for graduate students. http://www.uwstout.edu/grad/upload/Graduate-School-Policies.pdf Course Outline Getting Started With TraitsIntroductions, Community, The 6-Traits Theory, Historical Foundations, The Writing Process, Coaching Students Trait by Trait Trait: Voice Finding the Courage to Speak from the Heart, Teaching students to be assessors, Composing and revision in the writing process, Teaching strategies, Voice and informational writing, Books for teaching Voice, Six point writing guide Trait: Ideas and Content Generating Great Ideas, Ideas defined, Lessons and strategies for Ideas, Practice papers for Ideas, Ideas sample rubrics, Three level writing guide, Timeline/revision checklist for Ideas, Ideas and informational writing, Prewriting activities, Ideas as a foundation for meaning, Books for teaching Ideas Trait: Organization Techniques and Tips for Structuring Student Writing, Organization defined, Timeline/checklist for Organization, Teaching of Organization, Books for teaching Organization, Practice papers for Organization, Focused lessons for Organization, Three level writing guide, Six point writing guide Trait: Word Choice Developing Descriptive Vocabulary to 'Show' What You Know, Word choice defined, Timeline/checklist for Word Choice, Teaching Word Choice, Books for Teaching Word Choice, Six point writing guide, Practice papers for Word Choice, Focused lessons for Word Choice, Informational writing guide Trait: Sentence Fluency Developing Rhythm, Sentence Fluency defined, Teaching strategies, Teaching Sentence Fluency, Books for Teaching Sentence Fluency, Practice papers for Sentence Fluency, Focused lessons for Sentence Fluency Trait: Conventions Conventions - Editing, Not Correcting / Assessments & Grading, Conventions defined, Timeline/checklist for Conventions, Books for teaching Conventions, Teaching Conventions, Scoring for Conventions, Practice papers for Conventions, Focused lessons for Conventions, Six-trait rubric Practical Applications of the 6-Traits in Writing Across the Curriculum Use of technology for collaborative writing and editing in the classroom, Writers workshops in the disciplines and across the curriculum, Writing and the discipline areas, Understanding the role of audience, Modes of writing and the content areas The Assessment Roundtable Bringing It All Together Assessing middle school, high school and community college writers, Communicating with students, Expanding the vision of 6-traits and the writing process in the classroom Participation and Collaboration Participants will: Exchange posts with their colleagues and participate in discussions using a Discussion Forum Review and discuss online and text based reading materials Use online examples to practice score each trait Score demonstration papers using the rubric and discuss assessment rationale Develop and score an original student sample for all traits. You will be able to customize activities to your specific teaching responsibilities and needs. Citations No more that 10% of a discussion posting or paper may be directly quoted. Tips for documenting direct quotes in a discussion posting or paper:http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/02/ See: "short quotations" and "long quotations" and "summary or paraphrase." Late Work Regular, timely feedback to classmates via the Discussion Board makes this class vital, and prompt submission of assignments for assessment allows the instructor to give you the guidance you deserve to receive. Due dates for each module are published on the course calendar at the start of the class. Work turned in by midnight on the due date will be considered on time and will receive full credit. Life can bring emergencies which may prevent timely submission of assignments. If you have an emergency which interferes with your coursework contact the instructor as soon as possible. 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