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Writing from a 6+1 Traits Perspective

Weekending 17th October, 2025

By: Polly M. Jeremiah

 

As soon as I begin to think that I have learnt sufficient strategies, tools and methods, to effectively teach writing at the primary level, there comes the presentation of another astonishing tool, one filled with components that cause me to think; why had I never thought of this before? And, so, this pattern goes on week-after-week, to the point that I keep counselling myself, to just simply sit back and relax, for I am in the hands of one of Grenada’s most learned experts in the field of literacy education; Dr. Alana B. Charles.

 With my anxiety laid to rest, I can continue to focus on this week’s points of learning; the 6 + 1 Writing Traits, which reminded me of my past practice, where I attempted teaching writing without a clear set of guidelines to follow. I was further reminded of my over simplification of the same traits, unknowingly, when it was time to assess students composition pieces, for reporting purposes. This method of dissecting writing into its true components, in order to help writers develop their skill, though qualitative, is in my view, a more accurate and scientific approach, which will always lead to positive results, no matter who use them. It further helps me as the teacher, to better understand, the true nature of literature, and how to accurately assess it, especially for formative purposes.

 Weather it is called ‘VIP COWS’ or 6 + 1 Traits, it is the best method of organising writers thoughts, around their pieces. I can now boast of my knowledge of how to teach and assess writing, using an effective conventional approach. Through the dismemberment of literature into its basic components, I can now see myself recognising and categorizing students’ areas of weaknesses, and automatically designing remedial sessions in the Language Block, to specifically address them. I can also clearly see how viewing a piece in terms of voice, ideas, presentation, conventions, organization, word choice or sentence fluency, will help young writers better understand what they are doing, and how to self-assess and edit their own work for improvement purposes. Certainly, the 6 + 1 Traits will be one of my favourite tools in my teaching of writing, which is going to ultimately guide my Language Arts teaching sessions.     

 

 

     

Comments

  1. Gloria WellsOctober 21, 2025 at 6:25 AM

    Polly, your reflection was both insightful and inspiring. I really liked how you described the 6 + 1 Writing Traits as a “scientific approach” to teaching writing, it truly captures how structured yet flexible the framework is. Your confidence in using the traits to diagnose student needs and plan remedial sessions is admirable and has encouraged me to think more intentionally about my own writing instruction.

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  2. Cami GeorgeOctober 21, 2025 at 7:34 PM

    The way you describe the 6 + 1 Writing Traits really shows how breaking writing into clear components can make a huge difference for both teaching and learning. I love how it helps students see what they are doing, improve their work, and gives you a clear way to plan lessons and support them.

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