| Why Johnny Can't Writeby Mark Pennington, MA | | | | reader. Additionally, most of his writing will be |
| Reading Specialist and author of Teaching Essay | | | | subject to some kind of time constraint. Johnny |
| Strategies ©2002 Pennington Publishing | | | | has just not had the instruction and practice in this |
| "Johnny is a creative story-writer, but he can't | | | | kind of writing. His college professors probably will |
| write an essay to save his life." Does this ring true | | | | not hand him a "blue book," tell him to write a |
| for your child or student? | | | | story of his own choice, and then turn it in after |
| Johnny has had some good writing instruction. He | | | | multiple revisions when his final draft has been |
| can recite the steps of The Writing Process from | | | | published and properly illustrated. |
| the posters he has seen in every classroom | | | | Students need to learn how to write structured |
| throughout his elementary school years. He | | | | essays designed to inform and convince their |
| knows all about Writers Workshop. He would | | | | teachers and professors. But how do you |
| know what to expect if the teacher had written | | | | transform a creative, non-linear thinker like Johnny |
| "Writers Conferences" or "Response Groups" on | | | | into an organized and persuasive writer? Take the |
| the white board as parts of her daily lesson plans. | | | | mystery out of essays by replacing the confusing |
| Johnny's writing portfolio is chalk full of fanciful | | | | terminology of thesis statements, topic |
| stories and writing pieces in the sensory | | | | sentences, concrete details, and commentary with |
| descriptive or imaginative/narrative writing | | | | simple numerical values that reflect the hierarchy |
| domains. He has been encouraged to unleash his | | | | of effective essay structure. |
| creative mind-although that story that he wrote | | | | For example, assign a "1" to introductory |
| last year about the student boycott of the | | | | strategies, a "2" to the thesis statement, a "3" to |
| cafeteria may have been a bit too creative for | | | | the topic sentence, a "4" to the concrete detail, a |
| the principal's tastes. | | | | "5" to the commentary, and a "6" to the |
| However, if you give Johnny a writing prompt, | | | | conclusion strategies. Telling a student that a "5" is |
| asking him to "Compare and contrast the cultural | | | | needed to support a "4," which supports a "3" is |
| roles of women in Athens and Sparta," sixth | | | | much more intuitive-and students get it! |
| grade writing paralysis would surely set in. Or | | | | Teach structural variety by having students write |
| worse yet, Johnny might begin his essay with | | | | 3-4-5-4-5 paragraphs and revise with |
| "Once upon a time in a far-away land called | | | | 3-4-5-5-4-5-5 paragraphs. Have students analyze |
| Greece, two young women from Athens and | | | | text structure by numerically coding their science |
| Sparta…" His difficulties would, no doubt, | | | | book or a newspaper editorial. Use this approach |
| increase if this were a timed assessment. | | | | to develop sequenced writing skills, incorporating |
| Unfortunately, most of the writing that Johnny will | | | | different grammatical structures and sentence |
| need to complete throughout his academic and | | | | structure. Teaching Essay Strategies ©2002 |
| work careers will not take advantage of his | | | | Pennington Publishing provides a systematic |
| story-writing experience. Instead, most of what | | | | program of essay skills instruction. Need more |
| Johnny will be required to compose will be some | | | | ideas? |
| form of writing that informs or convinces his | | | | |