The Ultimate Guide to the 6 Traits of Writing | Smekens (2024)

• Knowledgeable writing topics
• Writing for a purpose
• Narrow topic
• Details, development, & elaboration
• Supporting ideas with examples
• Develop plot, characters, setting
• Trait of Organization mini-lessons

• Beginning, middle, and end
• Like ideas clumped together
• Hook and ending components
• Clear transitions
• Sequential ideas

• Writing to an audience
• Reader-writer connection
• Writer’s feelings about the topic
• Voice expressed with type (NO, !!!, yuck)
• Shifting attitudes within a piece
• Perspective

• Specific nouns (right word, right spot)
• Adjectives (descriptions, 5 senses)
• Action verbs
• Imagery (show, don’t tell)
• Synonyms (varied word choice)
• Adverbs

• Complete thoughts; complete sentences
• Different sentence beginnings
• Sentence types (.!? simple, compound, complex)
• Varied sentence lengths
• Readability; easy to read aloud
• Figurative language

• Proper use of capital letters
• Paragraph indents
• Grammar & mechanics
• Punctuation (,;—’…”)
• Readable spelling
• Word spacing and wrapping

Organize your teacher resources by trait

Since every writing skill falls under one of the Six Traits, it makes the most sense to organize your lesson materials and resources by trait—not by writing unit.

• If you are looking to organize digital documents, then establish six folders on your computer—one per trait.
• If you prefer organizing paper-based resources, create an old-fashioned filing system with six folders or a set of six three-ring binders. (We developed Six-Traits mini-lesson labels to adhere to the outside of expandable hanging file folders. Use the list of skills printed on the label as a guide for collecting and organizing trait-based mini-lessons.)

Regardless of the organizational method you choose, house individual lesson plans, resources, and writing samples within their broader trait categories for easy access.

Best-practice mini-lesson instruction always contains four essential steps.

When teachers execute Think Alouds, students learn that the skill is not executed in a neat, simple, linear, step-by-step recipe. Rather, students see that reading and writing are complex processes that require problem-solving and decision-making.

To ensure efficient and effectiveThink Alouds, apply these tips:

1. Announce lessons will include an I do portion. This is the time where the teacher demonstrates, and students watch and listen. (For those eager to share, remind them not to help you but to assess if they are thinking what you are thinking.)

2. Do not make eye contact with the students. Instead, look above them, beyond them, or through them. This reinforces that the I do is a one-person monologue.

3. Speak in the first person. Rather than questioning What could you do? speak about what I could do. Use only I, me, and my statements during a Think Aloud.

4. Plan out every Think Aloud. Although teachers know how to execute various writing skills, most don’t know how they know how to do it. They just do it!

Since the skill is so automatic, it requires teachers to slow down and carefully consider their thinking process before attempting to teach it to students. If the Think Aloud isn’t planned out ahead of time, it’s easy to overgeneralize the process and return to telling and cease truly teaching.

The Think Aloud portion of a lesson provides the explicit teaching students need. It showcases an expert’s thinking while students watch and listen.

If Step 2 is the I do, then Step 3 is the We do. During this part of the lesson, the whole class works together to apply the skill with the teacher providing support.

Although this interaction step includes student participation, it’s important not to lose control. Rather than calling on individuals during the mini-lesson, engage all students with opportunities to think through the skill. to let students know when to pool their thinking with a peer and when to return their attention to instruction.

The challenge of getting every student involved in the learning is not a new one. The fact of the matter is, some students don’t have the desire, the confidence, or the skill set to actively participate collaboratively.

During our professional development for teachers, we have long encouraged the “Turn & Talk” strategy to engage students in peer collaboration as they respond to a question prompted by the teacher. However, this procedure needs to be taught, practiced, and fine-tuned.

The “Turn & Talk” and “Back to Me” code phrases are essential ways to manage time and increase engagement during a mini-lesson. They allow for all students to experience 2-3 examples orally, which is significantly better than only 2-3 students each experiencing a single written example at the board.

Step 4 closes the mini-lesson and sets students up for a response activity. After the I do (Step 2) and the We do (Step 3), it’s time for the You do(Step 4). Identify what you want students to do with the skill on their own. While writing today, I’d like you to. . .

Remember, the students don’t get better during the lesson—it’s after the lesson when they practice the skill that they improve their abilities. Consequently, keep the lesson short.

Boost engagement with concrete triggers

Increase student engagement during a Six-Traits mini-lesson by incorporating a trigger. Not only do visual aids add a level of energy and excitement, but they also help students remember the purpose and function of specific writing skills.

When identifying a mini-lesson trigger, first consider the function of the writing skill. The key is to really understand the purpose the skill serves within writing. When do writers use the skill? Where do writers use the skill? What’s the impact of the skill on the message?

Then, with that knowledge, brainstorm an object in the real world that functions similarly.

For example, when teaching students to write about a narrow topic (or focused thesis statement), the goal is to show them how to go from a large, broad subject to something smaller, more finite. It’s all about shrinking the topic.

Everyday items that get smaller are Russian stacking dolls, Tupperware, and nesting boxes. Reveal one of those objects within the lesson to demonstrate how a large subject can be narrowed down to a smaller, more focused topic.

Integrate mentor text

Step 2 of a mini-lesson often includes revealing examples of the skill in action. Although workbooks and worksheets include examples, they are typically contrived and formulaic and lack the quality and sophistication of authentic sentences.

Mentor text reveals the skill within real-world writing.

• Consider sharing picture books with your students to demonstrate a specific trait. Even middle school and high school students enjoy picture books!
• Look for excerpts from chapter books and novels that exemplify a specific writing skill.
• Collect authentic text (e.g., newspaper articles, websites, cartoons, etc.) to show students that current trends in writing include the traits in writing.
• Use student anchor papers to convey what “good” writing looks like for a specific assignment.

Teach one skill across 3+ days

Students don’t learn everything in a single 15-minute mini-lesson. Consequently, plan multiple mini-lessons to teach a specific skill. This requires slowing down instruction—and expectations. Provide opportunities for students to first recognize the skill in mentor text before expecting them to try it and apply it within their own writing.

DAY 1

First, reveal excerpts of authentic text where the skill appears. Think Aloud about how the excerpt impacts the reader’s comprehension. This is the concept of Notice & Name It. If students don’t recognize the skill in action, then they can’t apply it intentionally.

DAY 2

The first mini-lesson focused on studying the skill as a reader. Day 2 transitions to Try It as a writer. Instruction must include the teacher modeling how to return to a previous draft and insert the skill in context. This will again require Thinking Aloud during the lesson.

Students must hear how an expert discerns when, where, and how to incorporate the skill within his own writing.

DAY 3

The third day of a mini-lesson series transitions to lifelong acquisition. Teach students how to incorporate the skill while composing a first draft (rather than as a revision technique as practiced the previous day). This kind of instinctive application demonstrates mastery.

Follow the Notice it/Name it, Try it, Apply it progression within a mini-lesson series on possessives.