MINILESSON 5 for Writing Workshop Generating Ideas for Writing

Idea Listing

Idea listing is similar to brainstorming and clustering. Write your general topic at the top of your sheet of paper. Then, list as many ideas you can about that topic. Sometimes, your list will resemble clusters when they are finished. Don’t worry about order or relationships, simply write as many ideas as you can think of. The purpose of listing is to generate ideas. When you finish your listing, go back and review your ideas.

Brainstorming

Brainstorming is a prewriting strategy in which a person quickly lists everything about a topic. Effective brainstorming relies on the following:

·         Record all of your ideas.

·         Do not take time to analyze ideas or look for relationships among the ideas.

·         When finished, go back and then look for relationships.

Researching as a Way to Find an Idea

After you have chosen a general topic or ideas, you can get online or go to the library to read more about that topic. Keep notes on other ideas or questions that are generated through your initial search.

A Prewriting Warm Up

·         What is the purpose for writing?

·         Who is the target audience?

·         What is the main idea?

·         What are some details?

Organizing Your Writing

·         Effective organization helps authors write clearly and express exactly what they want to say. This is especially important for assigned topics such as research papers.

·         Organization is anything from a standard outline to a simple list.

·         Your organizations strategy should help not hinder your writing.

When I write, I list my ideas. I write my topic at the top of the page and begin writing. I do all prewriting by hand on cheap notepads or notebooks. Sometimes, I use notebook paper. Organizing your writing is like a rehearsal. It is the practice before the drafting. When I organize my ideas, I am able to list my main ideas in some effective structure for the type of writing that I am doing.

Here is a sample structure form:

·         Main Idea: Training Labrador Retrievers

·         Detail: Start when they are young.

·         Detail: Devote five to ten minutes per day to the training.

·         Detail: Be patient with the dog.

·         Detail: Reward the dog when he does something right.