Considerations When Planning Writing Tasks

Select mentor texts that mirror target learning tasks in theme or structure (or both). These target tasks should represent a merger of writing for authentic audiences in and out of the academic sphere. Mentor texts can be acquired in a variety of supplemental texts found on campus; Leveled Edge textbooks, National Geographic online and print material, and library books. Engaging, authentic texts can also be found through one’s own research of media. Once mentor text or texts are selected, the teacher would benefit from dissecting the text to identify and name text structure,grammatical structures, information clusters, and salient themes that connect to an emerging American’s interests and experiences. This preparation work becomes imperative since the instruction will involve a “guided noticing” of the salient grammatical structures and vocabulary of the text. For emerging language learners, production of their “echo” writing necessitates sentence stems, whole-text frames that guide writers through the development of their own text. At all levels of ELD, encouraging the use of the writing process can be done with supportive structures and protocols that are highly collaborative. The brainstorming and generating of ideas can happen through oral transmission or use of gestures (provided the teacher is naming and recording the intended word or phrase, and captures it in a class list or class brainstorm available to all students. Using the community-generated bank of ideas, the teacher can guide students through the development of written statements through the use of sentence frames which mirror those in the mentor texts. This drafting phase should model the dynamic nature of self-monitoring an experience writer experiences through the use of think alouds, re-reading, and opportunities for suggested changes. After the initial modeling of drafting students should be given the opportunity to develop their own writing. This provides the educator with authentic writing models that can be used in the subsequent revision and editing stages in which a naming of global errors and levels of mastery are named, modeled, and utilized for the evaluation of texts. The publishing stage of writing should be cause for celebration. Always. Whenever possible, provide opportunities for students to formally share their published writing with an authentic audience who can react to their writing. This will help solidify a key understanding in writing; The choices one makes in writing impacts live audiences. initial modeling of drafting students should be given the opportunity to develop their own writing. This provides the educator with authentic writing models that can be used in the subsequent revision and editing stages in which a naming of global errors and levels of mastery are named, modeled, and utilized for the evaluation of texts. The publishing stage of writing should be cause for celebration. Always. Whenever possible, provide opportunities for students to formally share their published writing with an authentic audience who can react to their writing. This will help solidify a key understanding in writing; The choices one makes in writing impacts live audiences.