When I was in high school, I enjoyed reading, and because I was an avid reader, I was a decent writer. I usually scored high on my class essays, but when I got to college and started majoring in English Education, I began to struggle.
I remember a professor, Dr. Duffy, who my classmates and I nicknamed "The Comma Queen" because she was a stickler for all things commas. And she was also a stickler for structure and organization. She was a fantastic teacher, but she was tough. I did not have the writing skills necessary for college English, so I had to figure it out if I wanted to score well on my papers.
It was then that I remember discovering what I like to call the Essay Formula. (Before I became an English major, I thought I was going to be an accountant. Formulas make sense to me.) While many elements and skills can be subjective in English, I realized that I could make writing an essay more objective in organization to produce a well-structured essay.
I'm sure some of you are thinking, "Well duh there's a structure to follow for essay writing," but I guarantee there are some of your students in class that are struggling with their writing because they can't see "the formula" laid out in front of them.
That's why I created a one-page handout with the Essay Formula laid out in clear and explicit instructions. And when students start to realize that this basic outline will provide the foundation for their writing, it suddenly becomes a little easier. Now they aren't focusing on the structure, and they can think about the words they want to use to convey their thoughts.
Some students will be successful seeing this formula alone. They will internalize the pattern and take off writing, spilling their thoughts on the page in a logical stream.
But you will still have students who need to use this formula and a graphic organizer to plan their thoughts so they can see everyone in one place. I'm a firm believer that beginning writers should plan and prepare their essays with graphic organizers that follow this Essay Formula.
For your more visual learners, a one-page graphic organizer allows them to view everything they need to put in their essay at one glance. Once they have everything planned out, they will be able to transfer it to an essay format much easier.
If you need graphic organizers that are simple and effective for your beginning writers, I have organizers created for literary analysis, compare-contrast, persuasive, and narrative writing!
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