Six Traits Summation

We're in class now and you are busy as bees typing your posts. I thought I would do a quick post summarizing our thoughts on the six traits. I've combined your thoughts as well as those of Teacher A, Teacher B, and Teacher C.  Teamwork in action!

Ideas and Content

• Know what you want to get across to your reader and put your ideas together so they make sense.
• Give lots of interesting details that help readers see what you are thinking.
• Your paper has a reason to be written that gets across to your readers.
• Once you start reading, you will not want to quit.

Organization

• Grab your reader’s interest with the lead.
• Readers understand my writing because everything ties together.
• It works up to the good parts.
• You can follow it easily.
• At the end it feels finished and makes you think.

Voice

• It is almost like hearing you talk.
• Write about what you are thinking and feeling about the topic.
• You can tell that you have an interest in this topic.
• Invite your reader to think about what you wrote and when blogging you may use I wonder, I think, I wish….
• Also, in blogging write a thought-provoking question at the end to invite comments from your readers.
• You will want to read this to someone.

Word Choice

• Use vivid vocabulary so people will make pictures in their head.
• Strive to use new ways to say everyday things.
• Your verbs are strong.
• Keep thinking about the best way to say things and make sure your title will be a hook to make the reader want to read what you have written.

Sentence Fluency

• Some of your sentences are short.
• Some are long.
• It is clear and just sounds good as you read it aloud.
• Your sentences begin in different ways.
• When you start a new idea, you make a new paragraph.
• It flows.
• Your sentences are clear and one builds on another.

Conventions

• I check for mistakes in my paper.
• I make sure capitals are used correctly.
• Periods, commas, exclamation marks, and quotation marks are in the right places.