6 Trait Power Write
Meeting the NCLB Challenge:
Using Technology to Apply Research Based Strategies in the Classroom

Check out our student or teacher demo!
Sign up for a FREE informational Webinar!

Research Analysis for 6 Trait Power Write™

6 Trait Power Write™ brings together the writing process in a way that no other program does. It encompasses not only standard writing process steps but also research based effective strategies that many teachers find difficult to implement because the standard five step writing process does not incorporate them into the writing process framework. Textbooks or handbooks teach all of the steps found in 6 Trait Power Write™, but not within the easy to remember framework that 6 Trait Power Write™ does. Teachers find they must continually guide students to find the sections that apply to the type of writing they are doing. In addition, students rarely remember the steps needed to effectively write a paper. The acronym POWER WRITE holds the process together for the students and guides the students through the steps with research based strategies that are specific to the type of writing they are working on. For teachers, the acronym allows consistency in terminology and instruction for all grade levels and content areas using the program.

Known methods for teaching writing and problems with those known

Most teachers are aware that research shows that students need to prewrite, write, revise, edit and publish their writing. In 6 Trait Power Write™, the critical steps used in Organize, Evaluate 6 Traits, Wait, Read Aloud, Tackle Final Flaws, and End with a Perfect Copy are all steps that research shows teachers need to do, but without a framework like POWER WRITE, it is difficult for students to cognitively master the steps they need to complete in order to be responsible for their own writing. Teachers find students generally hand in a first draft/last draft copy of the writing assignment. It is then up to the teacher to spend hours trying to write instructions on the student’s writing in an attempt to improve writing skills.

In looking at the research supported strategies for each step within the POWER WRITE acronym, it is maintained that all steps need to be completed for maximum achievement to occur.

Prewrite & Organize

“Well-developed plans for writing result in better first drafts. It specifies a topic and asks the questions, “Who am I writing for?”, “Why am I writing?”, “What do I know?” (Englert, Raphael, & Anderson, 1992)

“Writing should be approached as a process. After selecting the topic, the students need to consider five basic activities. These basic subtasks are: preplanning and organizing, writing the draft, proofing and rewriting, editing and rewriting, and writing the final. Preplanning is perhaps the most important activity within the writing task.” (Richards, 2002)

Write Sloppy Copy

“Frank Smith (1982) described the writing process as an ongoing tension between the writer’s two roles: the author and the secretary. The author thinks about the message, the organization of ideas, and the language in which to express those ideas. The secretary, on the other hand, has to worry about the mechanical concerns: margins, spelling, punctuation, and handwriting.”

“Students with learning problems have difficulties with both the author and secretary roles. One way to relieve this tension for poor writers is to emphasize the author role during the writing of the first draft and shift the emphasis of the secretary role to the final draft.” (Isaacson & Gleason, 1997)

Evaluate 6 Traits & Revise

“The best writing instruction will teach students how to plan, compose, revise and edit their own pieces of writing, all within the context of inquiry, self-assessment and self-regulation fostered by interaction with teachers and peers.” (Cunningham, Cunningham, & Allington, 2002)

Wait

“One strategy in helping students perform well on a writing task is to have them proofread papers after a delay so they don’t read what they meant to say instead of what was written.” (Richards, 1999)

Read aloud & Input/Feedback

“Having students work with other students has long been regarded in composition studies as a useful instructional process, at least since influential articles on the subject—written by Kenneth Bruffee, Anne Ruggles Gere, Peter Elbow, and others—appeared in the 1970s and 1980s. Peer critiquing (as opposed to “peer editing,” or surface-level copyediting), is best managed through teacher-written prompts, specific criteria directing the student reader’s attention to explicit elements of the text. The prompts provide the clearest channel for establishing a conscious understanding of what effective writers should be seeing and deciding upon as they write and revise.” (Kemp, 2003)

“More than three-quarters of the selected teachers admitted that they rarely used response groups in their classes, primarily because they weren’t sure how to employ them in an effective manner.” (Totten, 2003)

Tackle Final Flaws & End with a Perfect Copy

"It is important for students to consider proper and pleasing presentation of their writing. Impressive presentation of one’s writing can influence the reader’s perception of the overall product of writing. Striving for an exceptional product helps students to embrace the ownership of their writing, thus building positive attitudes toward learning and achievement. Research shows that a successful writing program must build positive attitudes toward writing." (Graham, Harris, Troia, 2000)

Assessment

"[Writers] collect writing in folders so that writers can see the accumulation of what they know. Papers do not go home; rather, the collected work is present in class for student, teacher, parent, and administrator to examine. Some writing is published in hardcover or some more durable form." (Graves, 1985)

References

Cunningham, P.M., Cunningham, J.W., & Allington, R.L. (2002). Research on the components of a comprehensive reading and writing instructional program. Clemmons, NC: Four Blocks Literacy Model.

Englert, C.S., Raphael, T.E., & Anderson, L. M. (1992). Socially mediated instruction: Improving students’ knowledge and talk about writing. Elementary School Journal, 92, 411-449.

Gersten, R. & Baker, S. (2001). Teaching expressive writing to students with learning disabilities: A meta-analysis. Elementary School Journal, 101 (3), 251-72.

Graham, S., Harris, K., & Troia, G.(200). Self-regulated strategy development revisited: Teaching writing strategies to struggling writers. Topics in Language Disorders, 20(4), 1-14.

Graves, Donald. (1985). All children can write. Learning Disability Focus, 1, 36-43

Isaacson, Stephen, & Gleason, Mary M. (1997). Mechanical Obstacles to Writing: What Can Teachers Do to Help Students With Learning Problems? Learning Disabilities Research & Practice. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.

Kemp, Fred. (2003). The Importance of Peer Interactivity in writing instruction. Thomson Learning, Inc.

Magrath, P.C. & Ackerman, A. (2003). The neglected “R.” National Commission on Writing. College Entrance Examination Board.

Richards, R.G. (1999). Strategies for Dealing with Dysgraphia. Riverside, CA: RET Center Press, www.retctrpress.com, 1998.

Richards, R.G. (2002). Strategies for the reluctant writer. Riverside, CA: RET Center Press, www.retctrpress.com, 1998.

Smith, F. (1982). Writing and the Writer. New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston.

Totten, Samuel. “Completing the Paradigm Shift to Process Writing: The Need to Lead.” National Writing Project, 2003.

State Standards

Intro

Benefits and Features

See What Users
Have to Say!

To Learn More

Research

Funding

Technical Requirements

Brochure

Many Voices
Matrix Steps