What are student responses and why should I consider adding them to my writing program?

  1. Writing responses are a chance for students to reflect on their own writing.
  2. Students talk about what they like and dislike about their writing.
  3. Students give you a window into their mind.  What do they think once they are completed with a project?  How do they feel about themselves as a writer?
  4. The student takes a personal interest in assessing their own work.  This becomes more and more important as they get older and ready to enter college.  At that point they need excellent assessment skills.  Is the paper ready to be turned in for credit or does it need more work?
  5. Responses need not be completed after every writing assignment.  You might ask for a reflection every couple of weeks. 
  6. Responses can be included in the portfolio.  They are an area where you will want to see growth over the years.  As your child pushes towards independent writing and assessment you will want to see growth in this area.
  7. Students may include the following in their responses:  why the piece was selected for their portfolio, what the strengths and weaknesses are, and why they wrote the piece in the first place.
How can portfolios be adapted to my special needs?
You can really allow yourself plenty of creative freedom when organizing your portfolio. 
  1. Maybe you would like to create a group of special smaller portfolios:  holiday writings,  correspondence, book reports, and written under a pseudonym.  You could have a theme portfolio centered around a favorite/important subject like horses, sports or British literature.
  1. Maybe you really want to collect a large grouping of writing.  You could certainly create a multi-year portfolio.  You might group the middle school years together.  Or you could combine K-2 grade.  It is totally up to you.
  2. It is also possible to make a "best of…" portfolio.  You might create the best of poems, stories super sentences, paragraphs or journal entries.
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