Model it

Young people learn a great deal through observation and imitation. Good writers are usually avid readers who have picked up the skills of writing through recognising effective techniques used by writers to create impact or evoke an emotional response in their writing. Unfortunately, young people don’t often get the chance to observe writers in action. Therefore, teachers need to demonstrate the skills and techniques of effective writing through modelling the process.

Model the writing process using positive self-talk

Showing students how writers work and think is an important step in helping them become competent writers. Start by demonstrating the thought processes involved when planning a writing task. For example:

“I need to write about a museum I visited. I can use IPEELL to help me remember all the important parts that I need to include. If I break the task down into smaller parts, it will make it easier.

“So, for the introduction: what was the name of the museum and what were the main features that I want to focus on? It would be helpful to put some ideas down on my planning sheet.

“That’s good. I can do this! Now which of these features was the most interesting?” Verbalise the thinking and illustrate how this has an impact on what you write on the whiteboard or smartboard. Constantly refer to good writing techniques and practices as you construct your model. For example:

“I shouldn’t just write a long list of things but select one or two ideas and write about those in detail. That will make it more interesting.”

IPEELL has revolutionised my English lessons. Cleverly using feedback, editing and a few cognitive approaches, our writing sessions are far more directed and purposeful with a very visible learning journey. Progress in children’s books has never been more evident.

Specialist Leader of Education

It is crucial not to spend too long modelling any particular aspect. Split the task into parts and model each part before asking the students to have a go themselves. When modelling the writing task, keep referring to the IPEELL components:

Is there an introduction?

Are there three or more relevant points?

Has each point been elaborated?

Is there an appropriate ending?

Are the sentence openers varied and appropriate?

Are the discourse markers varied and appropriate?

Is the language used appropriate for the task? It is also important to keep repeating the positive motivational messages: "A person who never made a mistake never tried anything new. Preparation is the key to success. I need to improve my language choices."

Using the planning frames

Show how the planning sheet can help break the task down into smaller, more manageable parts. As you introduce the strategy for the first time, it is likely that students will write far too much on the planning sheets. It is important to show young people how to plan using notes rather than writing full sentences. Provide students with a completed plan for a given task and ask them to construct a final piece from the notes. This can be helpful when developing narrative writing. Provide students with an outline plan for a story but don’t supply an introduction. Ask different groups to write an introduction to the story starting from different parts of the plan. For example: “I would like this group to start with the place and weave in the characters” or “I would like you to start at the end and develop the story through flashbacks.” This technique helps overcome the traditional approach to story writing, which often follows the predictable pattern: “Once upon a time…” and “… it all ended happily ever after.”

This task is not limited to narrative writing. Adapt this by using an outline plan for a different text type. Ask different groups to write one paragraph, with each group focusing on a different point and elaboration as outlined on the plan.