Keeping Student Writing Organized

K-1 students can use a two-pocket folder to hold their pieces in progress and their completed work. Just label each pocket for easy identification. Children will have easy access to their pieces, and you will have easy access for reviewing progress.  Keep a separate writing portfolio for each student, which can be stored in a file cabinet or milk crate. This portfolio should contain works chosen by the student and the teacher that represent an array of finished genre pieces. It’s a great resource for genuine progress monitoring, accountability, and documentation for parent conferences.

In grades 2-8 students can organize their writing in a loose-leaf notebook with tabs. Core tabs might be:

·        Resources. This section fills up during the year as you teach skills and create models, lists and examples.

·        Practice Pieces. Students refer to practice pieces when they write to apply the Target Skill they have been taught that day.

·        Assessment Pieces. Weekly formative assessments are kept here to record student progress.  If you require students to review and revise these pieces, they become valuable learning tools.

·        Published Pieces (or Portfolio).  This section provides a chronological record of a student’s growth as a writer. 

Stay organized,
Susan Koehler