This chapter discusses the writing process and the importance of each individual stage. It started with Prewriting and then went on to Rough Drafting, Revising, Proofreading, Publishing and Rereading. At first glance it seemed to be plucked out of any typical writer’s manual. However, after reading it I discovered that there was a unique common thread woven throughout each part. “We don’t want to teach our students the writing process; rather, we want each one of them to find a process that works for him or her” (p.62). This idea really struck a cord with me because growing up I was taught that there was one specific writing process and that it needed to be done correctly and in order to produce a quality piece of writing. I can just imagine the anxiety I must have given my students by requiring that they write using the same process that I find comfortable. What a freeing feeling to be able to choose a process instead of being assigned one!
Another very important point in this chapter was the difference between revising and editing. Revising is, “a composing tool; editing involves the surface features of the writing” (p.66). As a teacher it is really important to embed these differences into the minds of my students so that they can be successful writers. It is much more meaningful for the students to go back and revise their ideas than it is for them to skim for spelling errors. The main focus of writing is the content and getting that content onto paper. This chapter points out that with revision, editing will come naturally. Just like when you read a piece of writing back to yourself to look at the story, the spelling and grammar errors stand out as well.
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