Creative Writing
Learning to plan
Planning requires thought about:
- what we are going to write;
- how we are going to write it; and
- how we are going to structure it.
Pupils often forget to give enough thought to structure, but it is critical in creating impact on the reader. How information is revealed to the reader often plays a critical role in the reader’s judgements about characters and their behaviour.
Planning software
Pupils don’t usually get excited about planning and may benefit from trying some of the planning software available.
These tools can encourage pupils to collaborate with each other on creating stories
Practising the skills of drafting
Classroom Activities
The My Dream Holiday – the best two weeks of my life story has many uses for Assessment for Learning.
You could use it to consider:
- how the writer has created the voice of the narrator;
- the type of character the writer has created;
- the obvious structural issues and how to address them;
- the inconsistent use of tenses;
- the details that contribute positively and those that do not add value to the piece; and
- the use of appropriate verbs, adverbs and adjectives, and their effects.
Give your pupils opportunities to:
- use the Critical Friend questions;
- use the Yellow Box method for improving writing;
- write advice for the writer using What Went Well (WWW) or Even Better If (EBI);
- use the Purple Pen of Progress and Green for Growth;
- use Two Stars and a Wish;
- rewrite a section collaboratively; and
- use the Faults and Fixes table.
Extension opportunities
Pupils could:
- write an additional paragraph about the holiday and select places to cut or edit; and
- model writing by using one paragraph of this piece and Thinking Aloud to explain the choices made.