Incorporating the 6+1 traits of writing

The “six plus one traits” of writing is an aspect of literacy that is fairly new ground for me to understand. Throughout my years in school, this concept was not used frequently, especially not the way I will have to as a future educator.  These “traits of writing” are what Thompkins (2012) explains in her book, six techniques of the writer’s craft,…ideas, organization, voice, word choice, sentence fluency, and conventions.  Presentation was later added.  I was introduced to the six plus one traits of writing in my undergraduate education at Nazareth College, and saw first-hand how they are implemented in classrooms during my student teaching placements. From my own experience, I do see the benefits of using these techniques because I believe it enhances students’ writing tremendously.  Thompkins (2012) writes, “As students learn about the six traits, they internalize what good writers do. They learn to recognize effective writing, develop a vocabulary for talking about writing, and acquire techniques for improving the quality of their writing” (p. 68). I completely agree with Thompkins’ statement here, I believe this type of thinking for students makes them aware of what exemplary writing is supposed to look like.

I have found that teachers use a variety of ways to introduce this topic to students. For example, using a combination of mini lessons, mentor texts, and guided practice, students have the ability to learn about each trait and then use it independently during writing workshop.

 The way in which the six plus one traits of writing is set up is: ideas, organization, voice, word choice, sentence fluency, conventions, and presentation. Ideas are extremely important because it is the message and the meaning. This is also how the students arrange their writing to fit a certain genre (persuasive letter, story). This can be a tough aspect of writing for students who are not knowledgeable about their topic; this can be helped by completing a lot of research beforehand.

Organization is the basic structure of the writing piece, it also gives the readers a clear sense of direction. This is the trait that I most struggle with as a writer to this day, having a piece flow consistently while still organizing my thoughts in a logical manner.  Teachers can instruct their students to use transitions as a way to keep the information organized, but yet still flowing.

Voice is the writer’s distinctive style, or how the writer brings “their own voice” into the piece. When a student truly cares about what they are writing about, you can tell because the reader can actually hear the writers’ voice shining through (silently). There is also a stronger passion that is very obvious throughout the piece.

Word choice is how the writer chooses the words that he or she puts into the piece. Students must be taught to use words for a specific purpose, and to convey the meaning appropriately. Descriptive language, powerful (accurate), and “million- dollar words” are all encouraged here to add depth to the writing. I found that when I am struggling to find the right word to use instead of the same words over and over again, I turn to a thesaurus for a breath of fresh air.

Sentence fluency is the rhythm and flow of language. Using long and short sentences is a great way to make the piece original, while still being able to read easily. Some students may find this trait to be difficult because they have always been taught about using short, effective sentences. It is important to stress to students that their writing has to sound natural when reading it aloud to their audience, which means that sentence patterns must vary.

Conventions refer to the spelling, punctuation, capitalization, and grammar usage. In other words, what most young students have the greatest trouble with already. At this young age, children are still learning a lot of the conventions used in Standard English, so this goes hand in hand. After writing their rough draft, students should be encouraged to proofread for these types of mistakes before writing their final draft.

Presentation is the final step to make their writing piece look polished. This means, students either very neatly handwrite their final copy, or turn to a computer to word process it. The students should be told to use appropriate margins, create a title, and even incorporate illustrations.