Campfire Tip #1: Empower Students to SELF-Edit
We’ve got you! Head over to Print Shop to download for FREE our student self-editing checklists—Writer’s ChecklistLevel 1, Writer’s Checklist Level 2, and Writer’s Checklist Level 3. These resources are designed for use with writers at three levels: Early Elementary (CORE Level 1), grades 3, sometimes 4 or 5 depending on the writer, Upper Elementary (CORE Level 2), grades 4 and 5, and Middle School (CORE Level 3), grades 6 through 8. At each level, the goal is for writers to re-read the first draft, the rough, and to self-edit, looking for issues ranging from indentation and capitalization to spelling errors, to run-ons and fragments and much more. The checklists will gently encourage writers to engage in writing as an artform and to raise their voice accordingly!
It’s important that we help students, early on, to engage in the process of writing—all the stages. Real writing is not a one-and-done activity. Real writing is sparked by curiosity, simmers in the imagination, and is brought to shape through a process of steps: brainstorming, writing it down, reading it over, self-editing, teacher-editing, refining, and polishing.
We’ll talk about role as Teacher soon enough… until then, hand your students a checklist and get them self-editing!
~Kimberly