From Rough Draft to Completed Work
I recently received this question from a parent: “How do I get my child to move from a rough draft to a completed work? My daughter despises that part of the process. She would rather just get the story down and move on.”
I love this question because I struggle with it every time I work through a writing assignment with my class of third graders.
Once the first draft is written, how much do I push students to revise and edit? Does every piece of writing need to be edited? Which pieces are worthy of publishing? And what makes them worthy? What value does the revising and editing process bring to the child as a learner? And at what point do I accept what has been created is "good enough" to publish, even if there are still errors?
In the earlier days of my teaching career and as a person with perfectionist tendencies, I spent many hours frustrating young writers with my insistence that they “do things right.” Don’t get me wrong; sometimes, you want a child to complete a piece of work that has been perfectly edited. Publishing edited work is an important aspect of learning to be an author. But (teacher confession time), in the past, I’ve insisted on perfection from my students not because I wanted them to learn or grow or have something they could point to and say, “Look! I worked hard. I did this!” The truth is, I wanted them to produce something that would impress others so I could point to their work and say, “Look! I’ve worked hard. I taught them that!”
I had to move beyond my teacher-centred thinking and instead think more critically about what young writers truly need to know, understand, and be able to do. What did I need to teach to benefit them as learners?
I’ve loosened my grip on perfection, transforming the classroom atmosphere and how I engage with the learners entrusted to my care.
Here's what I've learned and, as a result, how I've changed my teaching expectations:
Children should write more than they edit.
The more opportunities they have to write without thinking about editing, the more creative they will be. Children will become more willing to write and naturally begin writing longer pieces when given the freedom to do so. I accept quantity over quality in the early stages of third grade. As their skills improve, I raise my expectations, but my first goal is to convince writers that they can write. To be convinced of this, writers need to know they have ideas worth sharing, even if those ideas have not been perfectly edited. Every piece of writing is an opportunity to grow writing skills, but not every piece has to be an opportunity to improve editing skills.
2. Children need to share what they have written out loud as often as possible.
Publishing, at its very core, is getting out to the public. Sharing ideas out loud is a vulnerable thing, and it is the simplest form of publishing.
When you read your ideas out loud, no one knows if they are perfectly punctuated or if your spelling is correct. Your confidence increases once you realize that others are sharing vulnerably, too. Listening to others share their writing, you realize no one’s work is perfect. And then, something magical happens! As children become increasingly comfortable sharing their writing, they often add ideas as they speak. If I hear a writer say something out loud that I know they did not write down, I point it out and praise them for thinking beyond what they’ve written on the page. I encourage them to add those ideas to their writing, even if they don't know how to spell the words.
These writers are beginning to recognize, almost instinctively, that their work can be adjusted. What they have written down is not set in stone. They permit themselves to change their mind. They learn they have the power to make their ideas even better! Understanding that writing can be revised and that even real authors don't get it right the first time is a huge learning for children in the early stages of writing. I constantly say, "That's what real authors do! You're thinking like a real author now!" Rather than being left behind because they can’t publish a (perfectly) "good" copy of their work, even English language learners, struggling, and reluctant writers grow in self-confidence. They are set up for success. This flexible mindset becomes the starting point for learning to revise and edit their written work later when they are ready.
If you are mentoring a young writer who is willing to write but doesn’t seem ready to revise ideas or edit for conventions, the best thing you can do is encourage them to revise their ideas out loud. Don’t expect them to adjust their written work yet. As they become increasingly willing to adjust their ideas orally, encourage them to add those new ideas to their rough draft independently. Layer on the praise whenever they are willing to change an idea, upgrade a word to one that is more vivid, or accept your advice about how a sentence is structured. So much about learning to write is oral for children. Listening to ideas, learning to accept feedback, and being willing to change words or ideas are all revision skills in unwritten form.
3. Publishing is important, but not every piece needs to become a final draft.
While not all pieces need to become a final draft, it is still important to publish some pieces. Before deciding which pieces should be published, an important question must be answered: Who is the audience? Young writers need lots of praise and encouragement. As a teacher or writing mentor, you provide praise throughout the writing process. However, for a final draft to be worth the effort it takes to revise and edit, young writers need an audience. Unlike adult writers, young writers do not expect a massive audience. They simply need to know someone will notice and appreciate the hard work they’ve put into producing a final draft.
If you are a classroom teacher, the audience is often the rest of the class or someone in the school. To extend to an audience beyond the walls of our classroom, I collect student stories and publish them in ring-coiled anthologies, which our librarian places in circulation in the school library. Students can check out the books and take them home to share, just like they do real books. They become published authors and experience the thrill of seeing their names in print.
If you encourage a young writer at home, you must set some goals. How many writing pieces will you take to the “good draft” stage? Set reasonable, achievable goals for publication together. Next, choose an audience for each published piece. I’ve developed a shortlist of potential audiences to get you started.
Share with dad, or the parent who is not directly involved in the writing process.
Write it in an interactive journal to share with loved ones.*
Share on a family blog, Facebook page, WhatsApp group, or annual family newsletter.
Send it to grandma (or another relative) with her birthday card.
Start a “good copy collection” (portfolio), which the young writer can read to siblings or enjoy reading themselves. It is wonderful to read pieces collected over time and see how much you’ve grown as a writer!
Publish using a story-writing app or website. For example, I’m exploring a website called “StoryJumper” for my class this year.
Use Google Docs to create a digital collection of writing pieces. Third grade is the perfect age to learn typing skills. Alternatively, use a voice-to-text extension and allow the writer to dictate their piece.
Send it to me, and I can feature it on my website!
The reward of completing a final draft and seeing one’s name in print is a powerful incentive for young writers. Don’t focus on perfection. Focus on convincing your young writer that their ideas are worth sharing… because they are! And any idea worth sharing is worth the effort it takes to share it well.
