Writing Process Activity

Graded Class Group Activity 

Materials Needed: The instructor needs to provide groups with notecards that name the writing process stage (an explanation of the stage may be written on the back of the notecard).

Purpose: to learn the connection between a well-written document and a strong, thorough writing process that helps students succeed in their college courses that require writing.

Skills:     Linear Thinking skills

         Organization skills

         Collaboration (social skill)

         Study and Learning skills

Grade: Grades will be letter grades assigned to individuals based on their engagement with the class activity. Students are expected to collaborate, moving around the room and talking to one another about the note cards they have been given. The minimum participation grade is a C (75) and the maximum grade is an A (95). Students who do not participate at all will receive a 0.

Task: Notecards with writing process steps and strategies are handed out to students. Students will be given a chance to study the process on their notecards before they gather in a circle to discuss the steps they have been handed. Students are to work together to determine the order of the note cards that will form an outline of the writing project presented in the prompt. The notecards will then be arranged upon the order students agree. Then students will discuss the timeline in which Dotty needs to complete each task. Students should be prepared to verbally state the timeline and how the completion of the task will help Dotty have a well-written essay.

Alternative Task: Students who are absent may write their own timeline showing when Dotty needs to have completed certain stages of the writing process. Depending on the quality of their timeline, grades can range from 50 to 85.

Resources: D2L Writing Process Module, Purdue Owl “The Writing Process” unit, including the submodules underneath the “The Writing Process” module: ttps://owl.excelsior.edu/writing-process/

Technology: D2L

Situation Prompt:

Dotty had a month to complete a major writing assignment, but Dotty did not use her time to go through the writing process. She thought a five-page paper would not take long to write. The day before the paper was due, Dotty had not even written the introduction or given her topic much thought. Dotty began writing her paper after her afternoon shift at work. By ten o’clock, Dotty knew she would have to stay up most of the night to write a paper that would at least make a D grade, allowing her to pass the class she had done well in until now.  When Dotty received her grade for the essay, she saw the big red “F” across the top. She fought back tears, even as she realized she could have done a better job writing the paper had she used her time wisely. Now, Dotty is asking her professor if she can revise the paper in hopes she can get a little more credit so she can pass the class. While the professor denied her a second chance, she assured Dotty that the second paper made up half the semester grade and could pull up her minor essay grade. The professor stressed that Dotty needed to work through the writing process in a timely manner if she wanted to succeed with this second paper. Dotty has a month to write a well-written essay, but she needs your help in knowing where to start. Help Dotty manage her writing project in small chunks of time and activities.

Working together as a large group, use a large space in the classroom to organize your notecards. Use a sticky note to write in the date when Dotty should have each process completed. Use a 30-day timeline from March 1 to March 30, as Dotty’s paper is due March 31. Write your timeline on the whiteboard and be ready to explain and defend.  

Outcome: Students reported this activity as a strong "ice-breaker" that encourages students to engage with one another early in the semester. They enjoyed working together to arrange the notecards in a logical order and planning the paper. Students also claimed the activity helped them see the importance of project management and appreciated the activity's role in showing them how to manage large projects. The activity is enforced throughout the semester when student feedback tells the student they need more time in the research and planning processes or revision and editing processes.