Purpose of Writing

Mentor Text

books or other pieces of literature that are revisited throughout the school year for different purposes in literacy instruction

Example.

Due to its unique narrative and abundance of figurative language, Owl Moon by Jane Yolen is a popular mentor text to use in a language arts classroom.

Publishing

the final step in the writing process where the writer ensures the neatness and understanding of the final product

Drafting

the second step in the writing process where the writer brings together similar ideas and organizes them into paragraphs

Paralanguage

includes intonation, pitch, and volume

Demonstrative Pronoun

this, that, these, those

Example.

These boxes are ready for shipment. Those boxes aren't.

Revising

reviewing the draft and making necessary corrections for sentence usage, organization, coherence, and audience

Descriptive Writing

used to create detailed descriptions of people, places, and things. Descriptive writing also develops the mood and atmosphere of the text

Dialogue Tag

followed or preceded by a comma or punctuation mark, with quotation marks around the quotation

Example.

As Mark exited the highway, he thought, "I hope this is the right way."

Prewriting

the first step in the writing process when the writer decides on a central idea/topic for writing and formulates a thesis or main idea statement

Writing Process

the steps a writer goes through to compose a finished, polished text

Example.

prewriting, drafting, revising, editing, publishing

Precise (Writing)

in writing, a sentence that contains specific details and avoids wordy descriptions

Example.

turquoise instead of light bluish green

Connotation

the implied meaning of a word; the feeling a word conveys

Example.

Describing a person as "shrewd" may make them feel negatively, even though the definition (sharp-witted, intelligent) is positive.

Recursive

repeated application of a process, such as writing

Writing Conference

an individual meeting with students to discuss their drafts to help them revise their work before submitting a final product, and to help the teacher assess student understanding and modify instruction as needed

Editing

reviewing the draft for corrections in grammar, mechanics, and spelling

Tense

words that indicate if a statement is referring to past time, present time, or future time

Example.

Past- She spoke. Present- She speaks. Future- She will speak.

Shared Writing

a writing strategy where the instructor collaborates with students to draft a written text