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6 + 1 Traits of Writing6 + 1 Traits of WritingAnalytical ModelAnalytical Model

6 + 1 Traits of Writing6 + 1 Traits of WritingAnalytical ModelAnalytical Model

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“Young children are writers as

soon as they draw or put a

symbol on paper and tell us

what it says. We should call

them writers and treat them as

writers from that moment on.”

-Marcia S. FreemanTeaching the Youngest Writers, p. ix

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“My beliefs about children and writing

are based on three assumptions:

1. Young children can write

2. Young children want to write

3. Young children possess the

knowledge, interests, and

experiences to write about.”-Carol Avery

And With a Light Touch, p. 65

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HLo! IUS TLVNSTL WEMVDNDNW IHV A DGNMDBN I HLPMYMOMCKHello! I used to live in Seattle. We moved, and now I have a dog named Ben. I help my mom cook.

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Helping very young [any] writers

Find what is right and strong

Give supporting detail

Suggest one kind of addition

Title, punctuation, words, picture, etc.

Honor the writing

Link writing and reading

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Helping very young writers

Read, read, read

Model, model, model

Assess together

Revise together

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Helping very young writers

Having time to write

Keeping portfolios

Celebrate the writing!

Writer, editor, reviser

Not merely task completer

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The Traits in Your School

• Will it help the students?

• Will it help test scores?

• Will it help teaching?

• What about parents’ perceptions?

• What if ALL teachers don’t agree?– Looking at Student Work

• Support

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