Proper Preparation Prevents Poor Performance. Prewriting is an important aspect of the writing procedure but it is neglected by many teachers due to different reasons. without proper preparation, you can’t expect your students to write error-free paragraphs.

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Whenever we talk about pre-writing activities, brainstorming comes first to mind. Though brainstorming is a vital prewriting activity there are many other things that need to be taught before going for brainstorming. I call them pre-prewriting activities.

Let’s see what pre-prewriting activities you need to teach your students. To start with, you first need to teach them the vocabulary required for the writing topic. Language is important because good vocabulary improves all areas of communication. Having a good vocabulary enables the students to write effectively. For example, if you are teaching Description. Let’s say describing a person, the students should be taught vocabulary related to physical appearance, personality, hobbies, job, and other such things. Instead of using vocabulary by writing the words on the board, the teachers can use online tools like Quizlet, Quizizz, and Kahoot. This method is fun and exciting and students will remember it for a long time. Teachers should prompt the students to use the new vocabulary words in their writing.

Tips to Introduce and teach vocabulary

  • Create a PowerPoint with new words and their meanings with images 
  • Create a study set on Quizlet. With Quizlet students can learn vocabulary outside the classroom and when they are in class the teacher can play a classic Quizlet game with them to test the vocabulary.
  • Create Kahoot games where you can have sentences with new vocabulary and their meanings can be given in options and students select the correct meaning of the word.

Spelling

Once they are proficient with the new vocabulary words and are able to use them with ease start teaching the spelling of these words. Many of the EFL learners find it difficult to remember the correct spellings of the words and that sometimes makes their writing horrendous. Teaching spelling in the initial stages helps students to communicate effectively. Spelling can also be taught using online tools like Spelling Training. In spelling training, the teachers can create games with the words they want their students to learn the spelling of. Live worksheets are another option to design your own spelling worksheet.

  • To teach spelling online log in to spelling training and input all the words students need to learn, you can simply import the list from your PC and when you scroll down you will have options to select the game you would like to play like spelling sharks, Amazing Roller Coaster, Dragon Adventure, and Jungle speller.
  • Create a jumbled word spelling activity or secret code spelling where if the word has 5 letters you draw 5 characters (like flowers, leaves, fruit, etc.,) each representing a word. 
  • Check https://educationtothecore.com/ website for more such activities.

Sounds time-consuming, but believe me, do it for once and you can use it semester after semester.

Now, your students acquired the vocabulary and they know the spelling of these new words, what next? Teach them the structure of the paragraph. Explain to them clearly what is expected of them when they begin to write. But why is it necessary to explain the structure? It’s because many students will have good thoughts but they don’t know how to put them on paper. The structure of the paragraphs will help students in deciding how to start and end. For Instance, when teaching a description of a person tell them in the introduction they need to write the name, age, and occupation of the person they are describing. In the supporting details and the body of the paragraph they are expected to write the physical features of the person followed by personality traits and in conclusion, they can say why or what they like in that person. Once they have this route map they will not deviate and won’t mix up a sentence describing physical features with another sentence describing a hobby. Sharing the paragraph structure before the commencement of the writing will enable students to write with coherence and cohesion.

Use different colours to show the structure on the board like in the case of describing a person

Topic sentence (Name, age, job)

Supporting details (Physical appearance, personality, hobbies, routine)

Conclusion (Why do you like the person or what do you like in the person?)

Your students now know the vocabulary they need to use, the spelling of the new words, and what and how they need to write. At last, explain to them which tense you want them to use when writing. As it is a description they need to use simple present tense, and also teach them the subject-verb agreement. You can use a PowerPoint presentation to explain these grammar points or online tools like Quizizz and Kahoot can be used to teach SVA through games and quizzes. In the case of essays, they can be explained about the tense they need, discourse markers, third-person usage, etc.

For checking the understanding of grammar 

  • Use Kahoot to practice SVA, Third-person usage, and simple present tense.
  • Use live worksheets 
  • YouTube videos

Conclusion

All these activities can also be given as homework before the writing class like flipped learning and discussion on and revision of the same can be done in class. This will not only save time but also encourages students’ autonomy.