eMints: Great 6-Trait Resources

The eMints National Center is a terrific state wide technology training program offered to teachers in Missouri. I had the pleasure of reviewing some of the eMints materials in my capacity as a ISTE NETS standards reviewer. The resources offered by eMints are absolutely top drawer.
 With this in mind, I was delighted to find the following 6-traits materials on the eMINTS site.
Writing: 6 + 1 Writing Traits eThemes eMINTS Home page for eMINTS 6-Traits materials

Writing: Personal Narrative Writing eThemes eMINTS

eMINTS page on personal narrative.

Writing: Text Structures eThemes eMINTS

These sites explain the different types of text structures that are used in expository writing. The text structures include chronological sequence, comparison/contrast, description, problem/solution, and cause and effect. (tags: writing 6-traits)
Grammar: Interactive Writing Activities eThemes eMINTS
These sites feature interactive grammar and writing sites that are fun to use with SMARTboards. The online games and quizzes cover topics such as nouns, verbs, sentences, proofreading, capitalization, punctuation, plurals, and more. (del.ious.us tags: writing 6-traits)

6-Traits Resource: simple searches yield fine results!

• 6-Traits Resources Search | Education Northwest
  
  Index of resources available from Education Northwest.
  tags: 6-traits
• Six+Traits-+Poster+Pack.pdf (application/pdf Object)
  The Reading Writing Poster Pack
  tags: 6-traits, posters
• Building_Traits_Overview.pdf (application/pdf Object)
  Writing posters from Writing Fix
  tags: 6-traits, posters

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

The English Companion Ning

Where English teachers meet to help each other

• The English Companion Ning
  
  
  "A place to ask questions and get help. A community dedicated to helping you enjoy your work. A cafe without walls or coffee: just friends. "
  
  tags: english, ning, resources, teaching, 6-traits
  
  
  
  

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

Guided Imagery and writing

From the soul food cafe blog: Guided Imagery in Writing: 

The creative benefits of guided imagery and creative visualization have been well documented. I do not intend to do more than facilitate the process and help you access the vast, vale of solitude and light that Zora Cross describes. Enjoy the collection of quirky guided imageries that are based on Greek Mythology and great works of literature. 

Read more at: http://www.dailywriting.net/guided-imagery.htm

Resources for Young Writers

This list of links was lifted from the always interesting WordSwimmer blog.







Claremont Review
Giggle Poetry
KidPub: Where Kids Write!
Lightening Bug
Merlyn's Pen
NaNoWriMo's Young Writers Program
New Moon Girls
Ralph Fletcher's Tips for Young Writers
Skipping Stones
Stone Soup
Teen Ink
Write It
WriteGirl
Young Poets (Canada)
Young Writer (UK)
Young Writers Online
Young Writers Society

Six Traits Search Engine

Try this Six Traits Search Engine I built using a social search system called Swicky. You can vote for your favorite materials and suggest sites you'd like included in the search results. Go to the site and click on the keywords in the tag cloud. See what you think! ~ Dennis

Methods of Teaching Sentence Fluency

Methods of Teaching Sentence Fluency Summary  (Ideas from the active classrooms of teachers from around the world!

• Decide on a topic with the students. Roll a die. The number it lands on shows how many words must be in the opening sentence. Keep rolling the die to have students create sentences to match the number rolled - without using the same first word used to begin the initial sentence. Continue for 8 to 10 sentences.
  

• "Lots of Color"
  
  Use a well-written paragraph from a favorite novel; type it on the computer, highlighting the first word of every sentence in a different color if the word is different. A great visual to demonstrate how many different ways an author begins a sentence. Then have students use crayon to do the same with their writing. ~ KA
• N2SSA rule: No 2 Sentences Start Alike. The rule meant that no 2 sentences could start with the same phrases on the same page or paragraph, depending on the age.
• I also LOVE reader's theater. I think the more children can read aloud, whether it is their own work or someone else’s is so beneficial.

• Read into a tape recorder. That way he can practice, or even erase sections. He could play the tape for a small group or the class when he's ready. It may be an issue of shyness rather than confidence in his reading. You might even begin by having him just tell his story rather than read word for word. Those strategies helped by learning disabled students start to develop confidence in themselves. ~ Pat

• Vicki Spandel offers the following suggestions:
1. First, as teachers we must not be shy or hesitant ourselves but actively model reading aloud.
2. Second, encourage students to read aloud as often as possible and appropriate.
3. Third, have young writer's read aloud into a makeshift PVC pipe type telephone to amplify their unique individual voices
4. Lastly, consider having them perform an age appropriate scene from a famous drama or read aloud from one of their favorite poems...(193). ~ TJ
• Have your shy student read to another adult in your school. It my school it is not uncommon to see a student reading to the principal, nurse, secretary, custodian, etc. ~Jeanette
• I wanted to let you all know that the PVC phones mentioned in CYW on p. 123 are fantastic!! The child just whispers into the phone and can easily hear the words said. We actually call them whisper phones. I'm definitely going to have the students use them as they write. ~ Karen A

• The most important lesson I will take away from our module on Fluency is: READ ALOUD. Children need to hear their own work read aloud. They need to learn to identify places that make them say, "I have to fix that." or 'I like the way that sounds." ~Jeanette
  

• Have students listen to audio recordings performed by authors that they are acquainted with and discussing their reactions.~ JA

• The books by Chris Van Allsburg have several options on how to use this book to enhance writing fluency at www.writing.fix. Just scroll down until you see Sentence Fluency. ~ Nita

• Spandel's quote from Mem Fox on p. 58 was interesting: "...vocabulary and a sense of rhythm are almost impossible to 'teach' in the narrow sense of the word. So they learn by being read to ... a lot!". Shel Silverstein and Jack Prelutsky are my favorites. ~ Karen A
• I really appreciated your post recalling Presidents John F. Kennedy's inauguration and Robert Frost reading one of his poems. I too watched the inauguration ceremonies on TV and heard one of America's preeminent poets voice and the powerful effect of his sentence fluency. Wasn't that a great way to be introduced to poetry! To see poetry have a place of honor at the table when the transfer of power was being celebrated by the worlds most powerful nation.; I Have a Dream speech  ~Tom

• After reading the "extra readings" such as "Poetic Sense: Sound &; Imagery" and listening to the lecture where it states, "Poetry readings, choral reading and verbal performances of any kind are Sentence Fluency exercises," hearing the masters read their own work.
• How wonderful that you remember Robert Frost reading Apple Picking Time! I love Robert Frost's poetry and remember my high school English teacher reciting The Road Not Taken. I don't think I would remember that poem if it was not for the rhythm and fluency. Poetry's fluency allows us to remember the verses as a song and I think that's important. Frost's Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Day is another favorite and a memorable verse: But I have promises to keep, And miles to go before I sleep. I'm sure we all remember this one. ~Diane

• I find that imitation is one of the best ways to get anyone, of any age started in writing - period. Not many students will end up pirating someone else's style. ~Meg

• The text states, "Sentence fluency is the rhythm and flow of language." It also states, "Skillful writers find ways to hook sentences together. They also read their own writing aloud to get the sound and rhythm. Fluency is readily measured by how easy it is to read text aloud and to weave in plenty of expression as you do so." (Spandel, pg 10)

• I also have used song lyrics in my poetry units. This is a GREAT motivator for middle school students, especially 8th graders. I have found that this age (approximately 14 years old) is the beginning of self-discovery and that they are really getting into the "lyrics" of songs, not just the artist. Lyrics are poetry put to music, and even if you read the lyrics without the music, the fluency really comes through. There is a resource called "Hip Hop Poetry and the Classics ~ Meredith

• Get your hands on some Reader's Theaters ~Meg

• Having students read their own work aloud is a fine tactic. Combine this with reading anonymous strong and weak examples and you reinforce the lesson even more. This is a good way to help those who don't have the 'ear' to hear problems in their own writing! ~Den

Concerns about reading aloud:

• Do other teachers find that imitation takes over for personal style when oral works are shared in the context of teaching style/voice/sentence fluency? How is this addressed? Some resources I have seen encourage teachers to have students model their work on a great writer...but can't students get stuck in doing this? ~Tiffany
  
• Students might begin with imitation of authors because they are unsure of how to write fluent sentences. By giving our students many opportunities to hear and write fluent sentences as well as to identify sentences lacking fluency we can help them recognize that fluency comes in many forms. This also gives them a number of ways to create fluency in their own writing. Most kids are storytellers if we give them the tools and the space to make mistakes along the way. ~Pat

• I think Spandel's title for sentence fluency, "Variety and Rhythm" is right on and it is exactly what I plan on emphasizing when I do teach this trait. So often, I see the predictable subject/predicate, subject/predicate sentence structure that I can clearly see how this is one trait that needs attention in my students' writing. We happen to be reading "The Monkey's Paw" right now and the climax of this story, when read aloud, provides a really powerful opportunity for teaching sentence fluency and how the pacing and placement of fragments add to the suspense of the plot. Reading aloud is a biggy with this one.
  
  
• I think for me your description of fluency singing is just right. However, I have to remind myself that fluency or the type of flow in a piece of writing is different if the writing is a story or if it is expository. In my ear, they can both have wonderful fluency but the way that is achieved is definitely not the same. ~ Pat

Can you teach fluency with any other trait?

• I had a hard time distinguishing between voice and fluency for a bit, so I thought maybe I could teach them together. Now, the more I read and the more I read aloud and notice good sentence fluency, I see the distinct differences and I think I need to make sure my students see them too. The voice of a piece reflect who the author is and fluency is more of a skillful art of writing good sentence that add a rhythm to the piece. ~ Meredith
  

• I find interesting the idea of bundling word choice and voice into a trait called style, and I highly disagree with that concept. Why take the clearly defined, relatively easily identifiable traits of word choice and voice and combine them into an ambiguous, relatively meaningless category called style? In the business world, the concept of "style" is used to promote conformity to company or departmental standards. In some of the writing departments where I've worked, the motto has been "many writers, one voice," and that is achieved by strict adherence and strict editing to detailed standards of "style," which include predefined word choices, terminology, formatting, page layout, punctuation, capitalization, organization, etc. In short, "style" includes all the traits and is used to strip individual characteristics from writing.

• I think that a writer's style evolves from application and evaluation of all the traits -- it is the end result, the high quality, holistic synthesis we hope our students will achieve. ~ Tricia
  

• I agree with all of you - I wouldn't bundle this trait with anything else either. For my younger students, it's important for them to learn about and focus on one aspect at a time. I think that helps them better understand what to look for in good writing. It's also easier for them to understand as we conference and talk about voice or their organization, etc. I've seen that same blank look where Pat, It is so interesting how different "worlds" bring their own perspective and objective to the work place. ~KA

• I am thinking that the sentence fluency trait, with its emphasis on reading aloud, is the cumulative trait in that reading aloud improves and reinforces all other writing (and reading) traits and skills.. ~Tom
  
• I would not bundle sentence fluency with another trait either as Trisha stated. I think if the organization and punctuation are not correct then the story won't flow. Both Culham and Spandel state that sentence fluency is an auditory trait. ~Diane
• I honestly would not bundle sentence fluency with any other trait. I think how sentences flow should be in a category all by itself. If it would go with any other trait, I would put it with conventions. I would only suggest this because if you are missing period, commas, or other mechanics, or if there are too many the sentences do not flow together properly. ~Trisha K

• You raised precisely the important question, of how fluency is more than just varying sentences, using transitions, and varying sentence lengths. Fluency really is the music of the piece and we've got to examine the whole to hear it. The context, purpose, and audience all play some role in determining fluency.

• I'm glad you raised the issue of different types of writing. In technical, "how to," or business writing, the characteristics of sentence fluency can be quite different than in creative writing. For example, starting each step in a procedure with an action verb is considered very good form in technical writing, as is consistent use of terminology, rather than the variety of word choice that might be more pleasing in fiction or poetry. Coming from a career in technical writing, I can definitely say that sentence fluency is a major issue -- I wouldn't call it singing, but cadence, consistency, and concision are probably the watchwords for procedural and business writing. ~Tricia

• You pointed out precisely what makes strong technical writing. The action verbs at the beginning of sentences and the repetitive use of the same sentence structure can really emphasize a point when not overdone. I think we need to examine the effectiveness of the writing techniques our students use without condemning any one element for what is generally a weakness i.e. starting all sentences with the same word or using only short simple sentences can also be used to wonderful effect in the right hands.

Questions for further thought:

• I would love some suggestions to help a child who struggles with the confidence to read out loud, but writes very well. He always wants someone else to read his original work. How do I help him come out of his shell? How long do I let him have others read his own writings? ~Kerry

• Do other teachers find that imitation takes over for personal style when oral works are shared in the context of teaching style/voice/sentence fluency? How is this addressed?

• As writing teachers, how can we create safe environments for our students to risk expressing those strong voices? All children have that sense of passionate voice but are often unwilling to let us see it for fear of criticism or rejection, the lessons of the editor's red pen. How can we encourage that joy of writing? ~Pat

Resources:

• Silverstein's website if terrific with a variety of activities - one is listening to and identifying poems. http://www.shelsilverstein.com/indexSite.html
• Prelutsky has similar activities: http://www.jackprelutsky.com/
• Scholastic has a lesson on writing poetry: http://teacher.scholastic.com/writewit/poetry/jack_home.htm
• I did a quick search for resources to use in teaching fluency and came across some very interesting sites. If you would like some practical suggestions just check these out. Pat
• Strategies for teaching fluency http://tusdstats.tusd.k12.az.us/planning/resources/getting_to_know_the_six_traits/Sentence_Fluency_TbyT.htm
• Nice checklist for students http://www.kimskorner4teachertalk.com/writing/sixtrait/sentencefluency/read.html
• PowerPoint on sentence fluency http://www.gse.buffalo.edu/org/writingstrategies/pdffiles/7_6Traits_SentFluency.pdf
• Suggested stories for teaching fluency http://www.cyberspaces.net/6traits/book7.html
• A lesson plan for middle school http://www.geocities.com/jdljdljdl/SentenceFluency_LessonPlan.htm
• Links to a variety of 6 Traits materials
• http://www.cms.edu.do/Teachers%20Folders/willian%20farren/Pages/express/expindx.htm
• The Z was Zapped" that was geared toward sentence fluency. The web address for this activity is http://www.writingfix.com/Traits.htm
• Chris Van Allsburg books with suggestions on sentence fluency www.writing.fix

Ruth Culham's Writing Company

Workshop & training schedules with a comprehensive listing of books and other materials make this site worth a visit.

Also listed are recommended books to support the traits.

Full Text Online Books about Writing

When teachers write books about writing they have a lot of time tested wisdom to share. Stenhouse publishers provide a fine selection of professional books you may want to consider. If you find any of the following books useful, buy it! (Or at least ask your school librarian to purchase a copy.)

Talking, Drawing, Writing
Lessons for Our Youngest Writers

Martha Horn and Mary Ellen Giacobbe
Year: 2007
Media: 276pp/paper
ISBN: 978-157110-456-4
Grade Range: K-3

"This is a book about responding to children. A book about listening and noticing children. The first move is not the teacher's. Rather, the starting place is the child's practice through language, drawing, and storytelling. This requires great patience, and I was struck by the time markers that breathed through the text. How long does a teacher wait? It could be ten seconds, twenty, thirty—long enough to tell the child you have all the time in the world to listen. This is a book that teachers have been waiting for but didn't know they needed."
—Donald Graves

Boy Writers
Reclaiming Their Voices

Ralph Fletcher
Year: 2006
Media: 176 pp/paper
ISBN: 978-157110-425-0
Grade Range: K-12

Writing test scores indicate that boys have fallen far behind girls across the grades. In general, boys don't enjoy writing as much as girls. What's wrong? How can we do a better of job of creating “boy-friendly” classrooms so their voices can be heard?

Inside Words
Tools for Teaching Academic Vocabulary, Grades 4-12

Janet Allen
Year: 2007
Media: 128 pp/paper + CD ROM
ISBN: 978-157110-399-4
Grade Range: 4-12

We've learned a lot in recent years about the important role vocabulary plays in making meaning, yet many teachers still struggle with vocabulary instruction that goes beyond weekly word lists. Effective vocabulary instruction is particularly vital in the content areas, where the specialized language used by “insiders” often creates a barrier to understanding for those new to the subjects. In Inside Words, Janet Allen merges recent research and key content-area teaching strategies to show teachers how to help students understand the academic vocabulary found in textbooks, tests, articles, and other informational texts.

Everyday Editing
Inviting Students to Develop Skill and Craft in Writer's Workshop

Jeff Anderson
Year: 2007
Media: 176 pp/paper
ISBN: 978-157110-709-1
Grade Range: 4-8

Editing is often seen as one item on a list of steps in the writing process—usually put somewhere near the end, and often completely crowded out of writer's workshop. Too many times daily editing lessons happen in a vacuum, with no relationship to what students are writing.

National Writing Project Rolls out New Website

If you haven't signed up for the free resources and online access to National Writing Project Resources .... DO IT! This is THE COMMUNITY for writing teachers. You won't be sorry you joined.

Here's an announcement I just got in their newsletter that I want to pass along:

NWP Launches New Website

We are pleased to announce the launch of our new website, www.nwp.org. The new site beautifully showcases the depth and breadth of the work of the writing project, including resources that writing project colleagues have written and developed over many years.

Among the changes you’ll notice are

• a new NWP Sites section devoted to site development
• a Results section featuring research on NWP's effectiveness
• an expanded Resources section showcasing hundreds of articles
• a new Calendar with an assortment of views according to types of events
• an improved Search function that delivers more extensive results.

Use the online form at “Contact Us” to comment on the new website.

Top 20 6-Trait Resources

These resources come from my del.icio.us social bookmarks. (Network name wiredinstructor)

1. Fifty (50!) Tools which can help you in Writing - lifehack.org

   tips from poynter.com on writing

   to writing writing-process 6-traits ... saved by 4729 other people ... 2 days ago

2. Techlearning > > Poetry Out Loud > September 7, 2007

   Hear British poets read 21 of their own poems, including, incredibly, Alfred, Lord Tennyson's 1890 reading of "The Charge of the Light Brigade," as recorded by agents of Thomas Alva Edison

   to writing 6-traits poetry ... on sept 11

3. ReadingLady.com :: ReadingLady.com Teaching Resources

   Posters for the six traits in word document form

   to 6-traits writing writing-process ... saved by 1 other person ... on sept 05

4. 6+1 Traits for Revison | Scholastic.com

   edit / delete

   Ruth Culham provides overview of traits. Links to other support materials.

   to 6-traits writing writing-process ... saved by 1 other person ... on sept 05

5. Essay Punch: An Interactive Writing Tutorial

   The web site provides questions that help to guide users step by step through pre-writing, writing, organizing, editing, rewriting, and publishing.

   to writing 6-traits writing-process writers ... saved by 38 other people ... on aug 26

6. Storybase.net - writing prompts for fiction writers

   web 2.0 oriented writing prompts

   to writing writing-process writers 6-traits ... saved by 2 other people ... on aug 26

7. Journalists Writing Style guide

   English (UK) Detailed style guide from the other side of the pond.

   to 6-traits ... saved by 289 other people ... on aug 08

8. Research on the 6+1 Trait Writing Model for Improving Student Writing

   65 page pdf of research on effectiveness of 6 traits in writing achievement. also ppt slides from ASCD presentation

   to 6-traits ... on aug 08

9. Hartman Reader Page

   Web 1.0 page dedicated to words, their meanings, and various bits of literate trivia.

   to wordchoice 6-traits ... saved by 4 other people ... on aug 07

10. The Write Weblog: Six Traits of Writing Brainstorming

    Classroom blogging project, good example of how to use a blog in a writing class.

    to 6-traits blog ... on july 29

11. Quotable Quotes on Writers and Writing

    to writing writers writing-process 6-traits ... saved by 99 other people ... on june 03

12. Advice to writers by Vonnegut

    How to Write With Style by Kurt Vonnegut

    to writing 6-traits ... saved by 363 other people ... on june 02

13. UWC @ TAMU - Writing Process

    webliography of writing process resources
    

    to writing 6-traits e-learning ... on may 11

14. In digital age, more t's are crossed poorly - The Boston Globe

    impact of technology and nclb on handwriting.

    to 6-traits writing ... saved by 6 other people ... on may 08

15. ESL 6-Traits

    Forms for scoring 6-traits elements with an ESL orientation

    to 6-traits esl ... on may 05

16. Six Trait Writing Ideas

    Fun page of links to various 6-traits links!

    to 6-traits writing ... on may 05

17. Lesson Plan:"All About Me" Paragraph - Grade 5 Writing

    This is an introductory lesson for students in the beginning of the school year, based on a collection of ideas from "The 6-Traits in Writing" (rubrics adapted to be kid-friendly), and also the "10-Point Writing Checklist." This collection of organizers i

    to 6-traits writing ... saved by 2 other people ... on may 05

18. 6+1 Trait Writing @Web English Teacher

    Web English Teacher presents the best of K-12 English / Language Arts teaching resources: lesson plans, WebQuests, videos, biography, e-texts, criticism, jokes, puzzles, and classroom activities. Permission to link is granted to any educational site.

    to writing 6-traits ... saved by 32 other people ... on may 03

19. The Neverending Tale

    The Neverending Tale is for kids and kids-at-heart. It is a choose-your-own-path adventure story- like you might read in a book. But you can add to the tale where ever you like. Whatever you add will become part of the tale, anything you can think of.

    to writing writing-process 6-traits ... on may 03

20. The Opportunity of Voice (Techlearning blog)

    David Jakes on Digital Story Telling. Meat for thought here. How does medium is the message reality of web 2.0 tech interact with traditional ways of teaching writing (6-traits)? Hint: It's all about audience, and to find an audience you have to underst

    to writing 6-traits digital_storytelling ... saved by 2 other people ... on april 24

6-Traits PowerPoint Resources

This is worth looking at! There are many power point projects on this site that you can download and use for class or parent presentations. Take a look!

http://languagearts.pppst.com/6traits.html

Writing Strategies Web Site

I'd like to recommend the Writing Strategies Web Site. Jim Collins of the University at Buffalo has created a website worth your attention. This is a rich resource for information about 6-traits, the writing process, and writing across the curriculum. If you need classroom poster materials, teaching ideas, or advice on how to teach the traits as part of the writing process, this site will be a treasure chest of goodies for you.

You'll be able to download a series of fourteen traits specific PDF files. These files are richly illustrated and would make a great writing center display, or presentation set for an in-service.

Here's a clever presentation of the traits and the writing process:

This diagram shows how you might roll out a traits based writing process in your classroom:


Take the time to visit this site! You'll be glad you did.

Traits Resources!

• The Neverending Tale
  The Neverending Tale is for kids and kids-at-heart. It is a choose-your-own-path adventure story- like you might read in a book. But you can add to the tale where ever you like. Whatever you add will become part of the tale, anything you can think of.
  (tags: writing writing-process 6-traits)

• 6+1 Trait Writing @Web English Teacher
  Web English Teacher presents the best of K-12 English / Language Arts teaching resources: lesson plans, WebQuests, videos, biography, e-texts, criticism, jokes, puzzles, and classroom activities. Permission to link is granted to any educational site. Here you'll find all their 6-traits resources in one place.
  
  (tags: writing 6-traits)

Writing classroom tips...

A conversation between Peter and Paul about writing workshop:

Hi Paul, I appreciate the insightful process that you're following with your students. What level do you teach? It sounds like you've developed a strong workshop approach with your students. Do you introduce and teach one trait at a time?

From your feedback, it sounds like your curriculum has a good sense of continuity? How do you get there?!??! Also, I'm interested in using the white board in my classroom. My sense is that it would facilitate sharing and contribute an invaluable visual component to instruction. How have you used it in your classrooms? Obstacles? Successes? What is the ultimate learning curve? Thanks for any help you can offer. Cheers, Peter

--------------------------

Peter, I teach Language Arts and Geography to 7th graders. Last year I was tasked with starting an 8-week "Creative Writing" elective for them. I had no idea what to do other than try to follow Nancie Atwell's In the Middle*, so that's what I did. Most activities I've discussed here come out of that class.

Setting up the class takes time each quarter, which is frustrating since it ends pretty quickly. On the other hand, I get to learn from my mistakes and start over 3 times in one school year. Halfway through my 7th quarter now, I'm getting the hang of it.

The luxury is that I don't have to fit this stuff in with all the other Language Arts content, since that's a separate class. So the kids have 100% freedom of choice on topic selection. And I don't always have to force a schedule on them (and me) like I do teaching Lang.Arts. Organization is NOT one of my strong points, so I like that the structure can be fairly loose. It doesn't get chaotic since the class size is only 15-16 kids.

I intended to start teaching the traits this year, but I haven't felt like I knew the concept well enough to teach it well. So to answer your question, I haven't introduced the traits at all. BUT, since this online class has started, I can't resist working with things that I'm learning. I'll try to do a complete 6-trait delivery for the 4th quarter.

The interactive whiteboard is fantastic for all content areas, particularly with the Internet. Tomorrow, if my writing class needs help with leads, I can have Dennis's lecture and examples up on the board in seconds. One day while reading, a student asked what a rumble seat was. 30 seconds on Google Images, and they see photos from multiple angles, assorted car models, even a Norman Rockwell print.

I'm fairly neutral about technology, neither Supergeek nor Luddite, and I'm totally comfortable using it. And we have a great ET at the school who makes life bearable for the real technophobes. I don't use it as much as many teachers, but I'd hate to go without it. For me the challenge is to keep adding to my skills and creativity with it, and I confess I've been lazy about that lately.

Have I answered what you were asking? As my students know, I can spew out a lot of words without delivering much. I often finish a response to them by saying, "Is that the longest way you've ever heard someone say, 'I don't know' ?" ~ Paul

(This conversation from the Spring 2007 session of Teaching and Assessing Writing with the 6-Traits was used with the author's permission. )

*For more great books about writing see my Writer's Bookshelf!

6-Trait Powerwrite

Folks I have no ties (other than admiration) to this product and company. I came across them several year ago and was impressed by the grassroots origins of this very clever Internet based approach to blending the writing process and the 6-Traits. You can tell this was invented and battle tested by a Middle School Writing Teacher. Anything that promotes writing instruction and the traits gets my vote. I'd stuff the ballot box for 6-Trait Powerwrite!

6 Trait Power Write™ is an online interactive writing process system developed by Leah Ames, a middle school English teacher from Leoti, Kansas, who created the system to help her students grasp the fundamentals of writing.

6 Trait Power Write™ is a web-based, interactive system for teaching the writing process to students in grades 4-12. The name "Power Write" is an acronym for the 10 steps in the writing process that the system teaches.

This exemplary product is made by Step Up 4 Learning Systems, Incorporated.

6-Traits Lesson Plan Database

Lesson Plan Database & More.

Go to this site: Heartland AEA 11 You'll find the database link at the bottom of the page!

This is a rich resource folks. Consider bookmarking it for later reference.

~Dennis@San Diego

Search Engine for 6-Traits Writing

I've been seeing a lot of search activity on the personalized 6-Traits search engine I set up at: http://six-traits-search-swicki.eurekster.com/

It's gratifying to know this tool is getting some use. I just spent 15 minutes 'training' the system. I added a few new terms to the 'Tag Cloud' of suggested keywords. Then I went through and removed weak results for the keywords 'conventions' and 'voice'. The idea is to tune the system to only retrieve results relevant to writing!

This search engine is build on the Eurekster server. Eurekster provides 'community powered' search. Users can promote or tag a good site, suggest keywords, and add new target resources.

Ultimately, the idea is to provide rich resources just a quick search away.

Drop by and give it a whirl! 6traits Search Swicki.

Annenberg Media: Writing Communities

From Annenberg Media:

"Inside Writing Communities: Grades 3-5" <http://learner.org/redirect/january/iwc1.html>

This is an incredibly rich resource for professional development. The online video and course materials are free and available online; all you do is register. You'll find a complete, in-depth course of study here for free.

By participating in a formal teleclass/e-learning course you can also complete the materials for graduate credit. Materials are available on dvd and videotape as well.

"Inside Writing Communities: Grades 3-5" is a video workshop that uses classroom footage to demonstrate the effectiveness of a writing workshop approach with upper elementary students. Ten teachers from across the country model and discuss teaching strategies, while nationally known experts in writing instruction comment on the research and theory behind the strategies being used. The workshop is produced by Kentucky Educational Television, which also produced "Write in the Middle: A Workshop for Middle School Teachers" and "Signature: Contemporary Writers."

On the Inside Writing Communities Web site
<"http://learner.org/redirect/january/iwc2.html>, find links to Video on
Demand, a downloadable Workshop Guide in PDF format, interactive
activities, and more.