Revising and Editing in First Grade
Using Success Criteria to Focus the Writing Process (Virtual Tour)
Stage of Literacy Development:
Stage 1: Beginning LiteracyStage 2: Consolidation / Fluency
Stage 3: Literacy for Growth
Ages:
5-12
Grade Range:
K 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6thFood Groups:
Primary: Writing Processes & Strategies, Classroom Organization & Time Management Secondary: Knowledge Building
Transcript
One of the things that I use with my students is establishing a Success Criteria. Students might not understand what that means at first, so you have to give them a lesson about what being successful looks like, feels like. Here's an example of a Success Criteria that I use with predictions in this case. We went over all the things that we consider together that their writing piece should have in order to be considered successful. Before coming to see me, they come here and make sure that they actually hit all those points. They don't need the teacher as much at that point because they already know "yeah, I did this, I did this. Oh, I forgot this." Of course this is a process at first that many students need support to do. Then what I do is I come here with them. "Alright, let's check the success criteria together. Did you do this?" They look and say, "yeah, I did that". "OK, good perfect. Let's move onto the next one". "Oh no, I forgot that". So, you go back and do it. Another thing that's important during the writing process is that my students understand that when they go to the editing process, with me, I can tell them, "OK, here, these are the things that you could change or improve." I give them suggestions. They go back; this is called descriptive feedback. They go back and improve their work, but they get a new piece of paper. So they have a record of all the writing processes that they went through. I always tell them: professional writers go through this process. It's not like they write a book the first time and it's ready for printing and publishing. No, it doesn't happen that way. It goes to an editor and it goes back and forth many times. That gives them a sense that it's OK to make mistakes, and it's OK to change things around to make it better. At the end, when they get to the final product, the good copy, they really feel very good about their product.
Related References
Additional Links:
Reading Rockets: Revision in the Writing Process http://www.readingrockets.org/article/revision-writing-process
Activity Objective
The goal of Revising and Editing in First Grade: Using Success Criteria to Focus the Writing Process (Virtual Tour) is to provide clear goals for students as they work to become successful writers. The teacher reviews the success criteria with his students before, during, and after they submit their work to help students produce a final draft of which they can be proud.
Quick Tips
Additional Comments:
- Develop the success criteria with your class. Students are more likely to follow criteria they helped create. - Post your success criteria so that it is visible from students' desks.
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What are We Doing in Class Today?: Motivating Beginning Readers with a Daily Schedule (Virtual Tour)
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Literacy CAFE in First Grade: Fostering Independence using a Menu of Strategies (Virtual Tour)
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The Daily 5 in First Grade: Engaging Students with a Balanced Literacy Approach (Virtual Tour)
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Predicting and Inferring: Scaffolding Comprehension Strategies using an Explicit Framework (Virtual Tour)
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