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Top down, not bottom up. I will have to agree with this statement. Producing an entire paper is more important than the grammar and mechanics when it comes to preparing the first draft. The grammar and mechanics can be fixed in the editing stage. Now I am not saying that grammar and mechanics are less important. Each part of the paper is equally important. There is just a time for each part.
The stages of composing are very important to me. I use most of these stages when I compose a paper. Sometimes I do not realize that I am. I guess I am saying that I don’t sit down and write everything down. I sometimes plan things out in my head. I am sure we all use these stages without realizing what we are actually doing.
I found these three points very interesting. Have you students write often, provide feedback, and require many revisions based off the feedback. I think this has great potential in improving writing skills in the students. I always found feedback to be helpful. I guess this is why we do workshops and have our classmates read our work.
The author makes a valid point when he said that language arts classes are not always all about writing. There are other aspects to the class. I think learning new things in general helps students become more creative with their writing. New knowledge helps students become more confident in their writing. They will also learn punctuation, grammar, and other mechanics.
I like the idea of teachers being coaches. At the same time, I think students need to know that they can’t end a sentence in a preposition. I absolutely hate when people end in prepositions. “Where is she at?” That drives me crazy. Anyway, this is probably distracting to students when they are trying to write if they are constantly worried about things like this. This sort of thing can be easily corrected in the editing stage.
I personally like using outlines for certain papers. I am the type of person who needs to have structure in my life. If I don’t have structure, my life would be chaotic. It goes the same way for my writings. If I do not write out an outline, I have one mentally in my head. I am constantly planning things out in my head.
My final point is going to be made about the free writing section. I liked that the author mentioned Peter Elbow. Like I said in previous blogs, I enjoy free writing. I think it gives students the opportunity to write without worrying what they are writing. Writing is a process. Everyone has their own way of how they go about writing.