The Writing Process Steps and Why They Matter

Teaching beginning-level students the writing process steps will help them produce higher-quality writing. The pre-writing stage is just as important as the actual writing stage. Set students up for success by spending time teaching them the writing process and helping them go through it. Your students will thank you, and you will thank yourself because you will have higher-quality drafts to grade!

Read on for more information about the writing process steps and why they matter. Note: these steps are appropriate for beginning-level writers who are not doing research yet. 

What Are the Writing Process Steps?

Writing Process Step 1: Understand the Prompt

If you gave students a writing prompt, give them time to understand it and ask questions if necessary. Make sure they know exactly what they are being asked to do. This way, they can avoid wasting time writing about the wrong topic.

Writing Process Step 2: Brainstorm

Brainstorming is an important step to get ideas about a topic out on paper, and it helps students narrow down what they want to write about. To brainstorm, students simply write as much as they can about a certain topic. They don’t worry about spelling or grammar during this stage. It is up to the teacher to decide how much time students spend brainstorming – usually 15-20 minutes.

Writing Process Step 3: Discuss

After students brainstorm, it is helpful for them to discuss their notes with other students and/or the teacher and gather more ideas from their classmates and ensure that they wrote about the right topic.

Writing Process Step 4: Outline

Students take a close look at their brainstorm notes and decide which ideas they want to include in their draft. Then they make an outline, which will help them organize their ideas. They can start by writing their topic sentence or thesis, and then add in what they’ll write for their supporting/body sentences. At this stage they can just write notes in their outline. Teachers can check outlines to make sure they are on the right track.

Writing Process Step 5: Write the First Draft

After students make an outline that they are satisfied with, it is time to write the first draft! They need to make sure they understand all of the assignment criteria and directions. It is a good idea for teachers to go over the grading rubric carefully with them and have them ask any questions about the requirements.

Step 6: Interpret Teacher Feedback

After students turn in their first drafts, spend time giving them feedback so that they can revise their drafts. It is important that students understand the feedback that you provide. In addition, teach them any editing symbols or shorthand that you use, and do one-on-one writing conferences if possible.

Step 7: Write a Second Draft

Now students can implement the feedback and make revisions in their second drafts!

Implementing the steps of the writing process will get easier with time. Before long, students will do it automatically before they start writing, and it will take less time as they become better writers. 

Want a free handout on the writing process? Download the PDF below!