The Revision Toolbox
Teaching Elementary Students how to Revise.
What is revision?
"Revision involves making substantive changes to the meaning, content, structure, or style of a piece of writing rather than the more surface changes that editing demands," (Heard pg. 1) Revision, is in a sense, the essence of fixing our writing in order to more clearly portray what it is we want our readers to know.
Why do we revise?
"Most writers revise because they realize that what they have written doesn't match what they really intended to say [...] Writers revise because they feel committed to making a piece of writing the best they can because it means something to them--it matters enough to try to make it their best." (Heard pg. 7)
The Keys to Successful Revision
"Revision Vision"
Students need to know why we revise and need to be provided with specific strategies teaching them how to revise.
Revision Nuts and Bolts
Assigning students a revision partner can often aid them in the process of revising their writing. Also, giving the students revision self-assessments can prove to be extremely helpful in gaging their understanding of revision.
Deep Reading
When revising work, it is important to take in a fresh perspective of your writing. This can often come from hearing your work read out loud or having the students "refresh" their eyes. It is also extremely important to view our writing through different lenses.
Revision Toolboxes
Students need to be taught "concrete revision strategies." What this means is that our students need to be given the proper tools to be able to fix and adjust their writing in order to better portray meaning to the readers.
Structure
When writing, it is important to have a focus. Revising to find a focus can be an important part of the revision process. This can include such things as webbing and constructing a blueprint. It is extremely important to have organization when writing and revision toolboxes help with that.
Words
Students need to learn from a young age how to elaborate and expand upon ideas. A good way of doing this is through having the students "crack open" words. This means having the students think of different words to use and more descriptive ways of relaying information to the readers.
Voice
There are several different facets to voice. Voice can be difficult to teach because it is "subtle."
Voice Revision Strategies:
1) Speak to someone who is really there.
2) Change the Point of View.
3) Try on different selves (writing from a persona).
4) Write text as dialogue.
Revision is a guaranteed way of improving your writing!
Frequently Asked Questions
When should we start teaching revision strategies?
Revision should be taught to students when they begin to write. It is important to begin teaching students revision strategies at a young age because revision is how our students learn to more clearly word what they are hoping to portray to the readers.
How can teachers make sure that revision becomes a core part of the writing process?
- Conducting "revision shares" where students are able to both give and ask for feedback.
- Share examples from professional writers about their revision processes.
- Ask students to make their own quotes and reflections about their writing and revising processes.