"How to Get Kids Excited About Writing 2019/What are the Modes of Writing? For the Reluctant Writer"

Have your children ever asked? “What is my assignment?”
“Why do I have to do this?”
“Am I going to get a grade on this?”
“What do you want again?”
“How long does this have to be?”
When you take the TIME to explain the WHY behind what we are doing together, questions like these will eventually be eliminated altogether. We want our children to understand WHY we are doing something, so when we teach them to just listen for a moment, and (the teacher) will explain all the details, most of their questions will be answered, and they will no longer moan and groan about their writing.
I have found that when I actually spend enough time to explain, listen, and clarify right then and there with my students, it actually saves time in the long run, and students are much more likely to get much accomplished during writing time, and assignments are turned in on time. When I do this effectively, I find I no longer need to repeat myself. The Whys: The whys in writing are the MODES
The Whats: The whats in writing are the FORMATS
I teach using the six traits of writing, but when I am teaching each trait one at a time, and spending at least a month on each trait, I am not addressing the whys and the whats. Over time, my students do see how writing works when the pieces of the writing puzzle traits are all put together, but this particular piece is not necessarily addressed when I am teaching the traits.
I use the different MODES of writing so I can explore the questions, “Why am I writing?” After I do this, then I can discuss all of the different formats of writing WITH my students as I take a look at the next question which is: “What am I writing?” When I understand the modes and the formats, then I can teach my students HOW to write (the traits of writing as I have previously discussed in my lessons and video “My Writing System.”
Expository
Narrative
Persuasive
These modes help your children establish the purpose for writing that is clear to the reader.
Many educators consider “descriptive” to be a mode, but I would like to present something from a little different angle. While it does make sense to think “descriptive” as a mode, rarely are descriptions written to do just that. DESCRIBE. Now, descriptions are written to enhance the narrative, or perhaps the expository or persuasive modes. I like to recommend using descriptions to actually enhance the modes and not write a description in and of itself.
By establishing the purpose for writing, the author knows why he or she is writing the piece, and can then narrow the topic.
The traits of writing actually touch all three modes. It really does not matter the purpose of writing, whether that is telling a story, informing, or explain, or constructing an argument of some sort, the author has to come up with the idea and organize his or her thoughts in some type of logical order. The voice that is just right for that particular audience must be thought about, and then the best words need to be selected in order to convey the message. Of course, conventions goes without saying…we always need to help our students and teach them to use proper conventions, including grammar, punctuation, capitalization, neatness, and so on. All of the traits sit nicely under the MODE umbrella.
I like to ask my students to EXPLAIN WHY they are writing and not just ask them WHAT they are writing about. It’s so EASY, its so SIMPLE, and YOUR children will make meaning in this way.
Writing requires HARD thinking, but when you teach your children to ask these questions, and answer in meaningful ways…they already are ahead of the game, and writing is now no longer a CHORE, but it is FUN!!
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Disclaimer:

Some of the pictures used in this video are from google photos or Shutterstock and I have no rights over them.

This video is for informational purposes only, which include my personal studies and tips. It should not be substituted for any form of professional therapy or medical advice. Although the effort to uphold accuracy is made, there are no guarantees on the accuracy or recency of this information. I disclaim all responsibility or liability on the content of this video, including compliance with applicable laws and regulations.