Everyone wants to be great; none of us aspire to be "average." When it comes to writing, students know they want their writing to get attention, be entertaining, get some laughs-but they often don't know how to take their writing from GOOD (meets expectations) to GREAT (above expectations). There is that special "something" that sets great writing apart.
Students in my language arts classes came up with a fantastic list when posed with this question: What is the difference between GOOD writing and GREAT writing? How can you take your writing from good to great? The best thing about this list is that it is student-generated. These are their words, not mine- and not the words from some dusty textbook. I think they did a phenomenal job at capturing what it is that great writers do. And yes, I gave them all "A's" for this project.
What does GREAT WRITING LOOK LIKE?
How do you take your writing from GOOD to GREAT?
Written by Ms. Anne Blackburn’s 7th grade language arts classes
Great writing…
- Is an ATTITUDE!
- Is a CHOICE
- Goes above the mediocre; it is not content with being just “average.”
- Is individualistic, expressive, and imaginative
- Uses synonyms to avoid repetition
- Is entertaining and FUN to read
- Sets a mood
- Contains sensory detail (sound, taste, touch, smell, feel)
- Is organized (depending on the purpose, will be organized appropriately)
- Goes ABOVE and BEYOND the expectations.
- Has a catchy title that makes the reader want to read it!
- Uses great imagery; it creates word pictures in your mind.
- Uses literary techniques like metaphor, simile, personification, onomatopoeia
- Contains sentence fluency (various lengths, types, and openings to the sentences)
- Makes the writer’s voice clear.
- Has strong word choice (replace boring words with more dramatic ones)
- Contains a great hook that gets the reader’s attention
- Presentation looks neat and attractive
- Contains imagination and creativity
- Has been edited for conventions
- Means MORE EFFORT.
- Has a strong ending. It doesn’t just “stop.”
- Stays on topic.
- Is WORTH IT.
Great writers…
- Take the time to go over their writing many times before they’re done. They revise and edit.
- Understand their audience.
- Know WHY they are writing
- Move their audience.
- Take their time
- Know who they are writing for. (Ms. Blackburn's edit: for whom they are writing)
- Go above the expectations. Good writers MEET expectations.
- Are proud of their writing. They look at it and feel good about the finished product.
- Are MOTIVATED.
- Make what they write THEIR OWN.
- Let the ideas flow!
- Express themselves. They CARE.
- Practice!
- Can take criticism because they want to make their writing better.
- Have GREAT IDEAS.
- Work at becoming better; they want to improve.
- Don’t hold back! They get into it!
- Know and understand that great writing is WORTH IT.
