ArtsAutosBooksBusinessEducationEntertainmentFamilyFashionFoodGamesGenderHealthHolidaysHomeHubPagesPersonal FinancePetsPoliticsReligionSportsTechnologyTravel

How to Teach Drafting: The Third Step of the Writing Process

Updated on February 28, 2013
Source

What is Drafting?

Drafting is the third step in the Writing Process and it is important to note that is it the draft"ing" step, not a draft. That is because we want our students to understand that there will be multiple versions of their writing before it is finished. What is first written down should look nothing like what is finally turned in.

How to Teach Drafting

This step is perhaps the most hands off step of the writing process for the teacher. Again, students should be encouraged to approach this step in a way that is authentic to their learning and writing style, but there are a few things that are important to emphasize as they do draft.

Since the writing process at its core is really about manipulating and crafting writing, it is essential for the writer to get the first draft out. Students should go immediately from the outlining step to writing the first draft of the essay. I usually instruct a lesson (or lessons depending on the ability of my writers) on the elements of an essay, an introduction, body and conclusion and then let the students work out their first draft.

Because I want to encourage several versions of the writing piece, I make my students hand write their first draft. For some writers, typing is a more efficient medium and revision can take place on a typed draft just fine. For my students, the tendency is "one and done" and the revision will be limited on a typed copy as they will not be as likely to tear sentences and paragraphs apart. I know when I have my students hand write their first copy, they will be rewriting their essay entirely one time when they retype it. Essentially, they will have to be purposeful about every word they enter into the computer, so it really drives the beginning process of revision.

When my students draft, I let them go.I tell my students that the pressure is off when they draft, that they can put anything down to get thoughts out and that their final paper won’t be this paper at all; it will be better. I once had a student, who was a strong writer already, get very confused about the drafting process. She couldn’t understand the point and actually didn’t turn in some of the initial assignments and steps of the essay. When I asked her about it, she told me she didn’t know how to “dumb down” her writing to make a draft. She said her writing is usually good enough and she only ever has to do it once.

I was actually caught of guard very much by her comment, but it completely solidified for me why I bring my students through such a tedious process with their writing. I told her that I would prove to her the process would be worth it, that in fact, her “good enough” draft she has would get better, even if she thought it was perfect to begin with. I promised her she would see the reasoning behind it and I had to keep my promise.

The student ended up writing her draft and during the course of the revisions realized that it was completely disorganized. She told me that she would have never read it over again, at least not critically, and would have turned in an assignment that was disorganized had it not been for the time she had in class to do the writing process.

First Draft Complete, Now What?

After students get the first draft complete, there are still a few steps to go before it is in its best form. Once the first draft is finished, we move into the revision process. Each revision essentially gives way to another draft. Depending on the writing project and the time allowance in class, there can be anywhere from one additional draft to 10. Keep in mind that each draft does not necessarily have to be an entire re-write of the essay, but each draft should be different from the previous one.

working

This website uses cookies

As a user in the EEA, your approval is needed on a few things. To provide a better website experience, hubpages.com uses cookies (and other similar technologies) and may collect, process, and share personal data. Please choose which areas of our service you consent to our doing so.

For more information on managing or withdrawing consents and how we handle data, visit our Privacy Policy at: https://corp.maven.io/privacy-policy

Show Details
Necessary
HubPages Device IDThis is used to identify particular browsers or devices when the access the service, and is used for security reasons.
LoginThis is necessary to sign in to the HubPages Service.
Google RecaptchaThis is used to prevent bots and spam. (Privacy Policy)
AkismetThis is used to detect comment spam. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide data on traffic to our website, all personally identifyable data is anonymized. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Traffic PixelThis is used to collect data on traffic to articles and other pages on our site. Unless you are signed in to a HubPages account, all personally identifiable information is anonymized.
Amazon Web ServicesThis is a cloud services platform that we used to host our service. (Privacy Policy)
CloudflareThis is a cloud CDN service that we use to efficiently deliver files required for our service to operate such as javascript, cascading style sheets, images, and videos. (Privacy Policy)
Google Hosted LibrariesJavascript software libraries such as jQuery are loaded at endpoints on the googleapis.com or gstatic.com domains, for performance and efficiency reasons. (Privacy Policy)
Features
Google Custom SearchThis is feature allows you to search the site. (Privacy Policy)
Google MapsSome articles have Google Maps embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
Google ChartsThis is used to display charts and graphs on articles and the author center. (Privacy Policy)
Google AdSense Host APIThis service allows you to sign up for or associate a Google AdSense account with HubPages, so that you can earn money from ads on your articles. No data is shared unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Google YouTubeSome articles have YouTube videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
VimeoSome articles have Vimeo videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
PaypalThis is used for a registered author who enrolls in the HubPages Earnings program and requests to be paid via PayPal. No data is shared with Paypal unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook LoginYou can use this to streamline signing up for, or signing in to your Hubpages account. No data is shared with Facebook unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
MavenThis supports the Maven widget and search functionality. (Privacy Policy)
Marketing
Google AdSenseThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Google DoubleClickGoogle provides ad serving technology and runs an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Index ExchangeThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
SovrnThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook AdsThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Unified Ad MarketplaceThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
AppNexusThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
OpenxThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Rubicon ProjectThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
TripleLiftThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Say MediaWe partner with Say Media to deliver ad campaigns on our sites. (Privacy Policy)
Remarketing PixelsWe may use remarketing pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to advertise the HubPages Service to people that have visited our sites.
Conversion Tracking PixelsWe may use conversion tracking pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to identify when an advertisement has successfully resulted in the desired action, such as signing up for the HubPages Service or publishing an article on the HubPages Service.
Statistics
Author Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide traffic data and reports to the authors of articles on the HubPages Service. (Privacy Policy)
ComscoreComScore is a media measurement and analytics company providing marketing data and analytics to enterprises, media and advertising agencies, and publishers. Non-consent will result in ComScore only processing obfuscated personal data. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Tracking PixelSome articles display amazon products as part of the Amazon Affiliate program, this pixel provides traffic statistics for those products (Privacy Policy)
ClickscoThis is a data management platform studying reader behavior (Privacy Policy)