Write from the Beginning :)

Happy Monday everyone! Is it just me or does it feel like this is going to be one of those weeks?

Well, you may have noticed this little blog has an undying love and devotion to Thinking Maps! We both declare “Thinking Maps” as an interest on Facebook – our TM love is that weird.

A year after adopting the Thinking Map “way” our school added “Write from the Beginning” as a writing resource.

Write from the Beginning is Thinking Map’s way of using the writing process. WFTB includesThinking Maps and Minilessons to produce quality pieces of writing. Our school’s goal with Write from the Beginning is to improve our scores on our state assessment. Therefore, you may see a lot of prompts popping up here and there.

With this post we’re sharing a little .pdf we put together using the Write from the Beginning format to take students through the early stages of the writing process. Feel free to click the image to download.

This file includes: 

Writing Process Flow Map

Pre-Writing Author Questions

Brainstorming Template

Drafting Author Questions

1st Grade Drafting Explanation

1st Grade Drafting Template 

2nd Grade Drafting Explanation

2nd Grade Dafting Template: Blank

2nd Grade Drafting Template: With Transitions 

Transitional Phrases Tree Map

Student Work Warning: The attached work includes my cutie first graders work on page 10. In case you’re having difficulty reading it, her published piece would have read: In 2012 I can’t wait to go to the Disney Cruise and my mom [is] singing me up for Karate. In 2012 I want to go to Kalahari the most.  My goal is [to] be better at telling time better than right now. {She’s pretty cute!}

Happy Monday and hope your week is off to a SUPER start!!! :)