How to Improve Student Writing
Writing is a peculiar craft. On the one hand, it requires mental freedom--the ability to write what's on your mind without inhibition or self-consciousness. On the other hand, it requires a fanaticism for detail to master the mechanics of grammar, punctuation, word choice, and organization. There is no grand, sweeping method to teach your students to master these opposite skills. Each lesson must teach something different.
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Instructions
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Have your students write every day. Assign journaling, reading responses, mini-essays and creative projects. Use a wide variety of different short assignments to let your students develop narrative, organization, expressiveness, grammar, spelling and punctuation, and other writing skills.
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Read as a class good examples of everything you teach . If you are working on essays, for example, read some essays with your students. Discuss the strengths and weaknesses together.
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Model everything you teach. One of the best ways to do this is to write a short version of the assignment with the whole class before assigning it. If you are writing an essay, for example, you can stand at the board and have students suggest topics, thesis sentences and details to include. You can also do the assignment yourself while the students are doing it, then share your piece and invite them to share theirs.
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Teach every phase of the writing process. Work with your students on taking notes and doing research, organizing an essay, writing a first draft, proofing for content and proofing for mechanics. If you stress every aspect of the writing process, your students will master every phase.
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Mix peer review and teacher feedback. By working in groups to critique one another's writing, your students will learn to spot mistakes on their own. By giving feedback yourself, you help them catch difficult mistakes such as language usage and grammar errors that other students might not see.
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Make it fun. Allow students to write on topics that they enjoy. Organize class debates and readings.
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