"Read! And your Lord is the Most Generous.
Who has taught (the writing) by the pen."
[96:
3-4]
Though the names may
vary,
there are basically five steps to the writing process:
1. Pre
Writing
2. Writing
3. Revising
4.
Proofreading
5. Publishing
Prewriting
The stage where the writer gathers and organizes ideas. A writer may prewrite using some of the following methods:
-
Making lists.
-
Conducting
research.
-
Formal or informal
reading.
-
Interviews.
-
Brainstorming.
-
Webbing,
clustering, or use of
graphic organizers.
-
Outlining.
-
Remembering
-
Drawing.
-
Discussion.
-
Free writing,
notebook or journal writing.
-
Note taking.
Prewriting is an
important step of writing. It should not be skipped or cut short. I
typically tell my "students" that after prewriting using some sort of
graphical organizer and then writing a good outline, the paper practically
"writes itself."
Writing
The stage
where the writer, using his prewriting materials, gets his thoughts down on
paper. Many feel that at this stage, the writer should write and not
worry too much about mechanics or style or organization or anything other
than getting everything down on paper as quickly and as easily as possible.
The writer turns
sketches, notes, and ideas into sentences and paragraphs at this point. The
writer should have a "recognizable" beginning, middle, and end.
Tips for the writing
stage include:
-
Double spacing
the draft so you have room to add editing marks
-
Before you write,
determine who the audience is. Establishing your audience before you
write, will make your writing easier as you can write “to that
audience.”
-
Sometimes writers may put down their work for a day or two before moving
on to revising.
During the revision
stage, the writer may also want
to get a
response from a reader.
Writers usually go through three stages of revision:
Adding on.
This is the easiest kind of revision to accomplish. After hearing
from readers, writers often realize they have left out important
details.
Moving around.
As the writer adds more materials, ideas may begin to "bump" into
each other or interact in unforeseen ways. Getting things in the
right order becomes more and more important.
Cutting out.
This is the hardest thing to do, but it is often the most valuable.
By this point the writer may have accumulated far more material than
he originally planned.
At this point, the
writer focuses on mechanics: grammar, usage,
punctuation, spelling, capitalization, etc.
This is the point in the process where traditional editing occurs.
Grammar, usage, punctuation, spelling and minor text changes (word
choice, formatting) are, ideally, the only work the paper should
need at this point.
Ideally no
changes of any kind occur at this point except those that affect
presentation. Keep in mind, who your audience is and what the best
form is for presenting your writing.
Publication can
take many forms, including:
-
posting in
classroom/study area
-
submitted
for formal publication to a magazine, etc.
-
read out
loud
-
collected
in a portfolio or web gallery
-
email to a
relative
BE CREATIVE!
Writing Process Checklist
This is a checklist that I made to walk my students
through writing a paragraph or paper.
Teachers: Use to guide student through writing process.
Students: Use to guide yourself through writing your
paper.
Printable Copy
|
Prewriting |
q |
1.
Pick/narrow your topic
and then state (in writing) your topic and
purpose for writing. Example: (to
compare/contrast Egypt and Yemen; to summarize
the article “How Sharks Work,” to explain how to
make wudhu. |
|
q |
2. List your main points or use a
graphical organizer (word web, T chart, Venn
diagram, etc). |
|
q |
3. For each main point, list 1-3 details
to explain or illustrate that main point. |
|
q |
4. Make an outline from your
list/graphical organizer. |
|
q |
5. Think about graphics/charts and other
visual aids you might use to support
your ideas. List them and where you would get
them from. (clip art, url, etc). |
|
Writing |
q |
6. Write your topic sentence. This
sentence sums up what you are writing about.
Try to briefly list your main points in the
sentence if appropriate |
|
q |
7. Write a sentence for your first main
point. Begin with a transition word
such as First, to begin, etc.
Transitional/Terminal Words from TJ.
|
|
q |
8.
Write your details for the first main point
in one or more sentences.
|
|
q |
9.
Repeat steps 6-8 for each main point.
|
|
q |
10.
Write a conclusion.
The conclusion should begin with a terminal word
or phrase (such as In conclusion, in short, etc)
the conclusion should be a restatement of your
topic sentence (but in different words). |
|
q |
11. Make a title. Make sure the
title matches the ideas of your topic sentence
closely. Bold it and make the font a size larger
than the body of your paragraph. |
|
Revision |
q |
12. Go back and review/revise your
paper for content:
c
Did you stay on topic?
Make sure your supporting details actually
support your main points and make sure your main
points support your topic sentence.
c
Do your sentences make sense?
Read them aloud and read only what you see, not
what you think it should say.
c
Did you plagiarize?.
If you quote something, make sure the actual
saying is in quotes and that you having cited
your references. If possible, try to restate in
your own words as much as possible unless you
need to absolutely quote verbatim (word for
word, i.e. ayah from the Quraan, or a hadith).
c
Can you make your verbs livelier?
I.e. use exclaimed instead of said.
c
Can you add adjectives
to make your writing more descriptive?
c
Can you replace nouns
with more interesting synonyms?
c
Does your conclusion sum up your paper?
|
|
Proofread |
q |
13.Proofread
your work
for punctuation, spelling, and capitalization.
Tip: look for one type of mistake at a time. |
|
q |
14.Make
sure you have
indented your paragraphs. |
|
Publish |
q |
15. Add Graphics and designs to
enhance your work, but don’t drown your paper in
design and formatting |
|
q |
16. Make your final copy and present it to
your intended audience. |
|
q |
17. You’re done, alhamdulillah! Great job! |
How do I actually teach writing?
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