The below activities use the self-regulated strategy development (SRSD) approach to teach narrative organizational structures. As you read, reflect: How does each acronym help a student understand narrative text structures?
Activity A: POW + WWW
If your student is struggling to develop and/or organize ideas when writing narrative text, use POW + WWW. This story-writing strategy focuses on the basic steps of writing a good story. POW + WWW stands for:
POW + WWW in Action
Read the first lesson of POW + WWW below to get a sense of how to teach this strategy by using the SRSD approach.
POW + WWW
Graham, S., & Harris, K.R. (2005). Writing better: Effective strategies for teaching students with learning difficulties. Baltimore, Maryland: Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co.
Now, watch how Emily Art intervenes to support a student during Stage 1: Develop Background Knowledge. As you watch, consider the techniques she uses to help the student internalize the strategy.
Activity B: POW + C-SPACE
Another strategy you might choose for a student who is struggling to write stories is POW + C-SPACE. This is a more sophisticated version of POW + WWW and is for students who already understand how to write using the basic story elements. POW + CSPACE stands for:
POW + CSPACE in Action
Read the first lesson of POW + CSPACE below to get a sense of how to teach this strategy by using the SRSD approach.
Graham, S., & Harris, K.R. (2005). Writing better: Effective strategies for teaching students with learning difficulties. Baltimore, Maryland: Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co.
Activity C: POW + TREE
If your student is struggling with developing and/or organizing ideas while writing a persuasive or opinion essay or thesis paper, you can teach him POW + TREE. It stands for:
Note: This strategy can be used to teach both narrative and expository organization structures.
POW + TREE in Action
Read the first lesson of POW + TREE below to get a sense of how to teach this strategy by using the SRSD approach.
Graham, S., & Harris, K.R. (2005). Writing better: Effective strategies for teaching students with learning difficulties. Baltimore, Maryland: Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co.
Teacher: "How are you going to sequence your ideas, now that you've completed P?"
Student: "I don't know... I could start by saying, My story is about frogs."
Teacher: "Okay, that sounds like it would work at the beginning of your story. What other ideas do you have to sequence?"
Student: "Frogs jump. They can be tadpoles, too. I don't know how to sequence them, though."
In such a case, what might you do?
When you are planning your lessons, you should anticipate that your student will make errors throughout. Here are a series of prompts that you can use to respond to errors. Keep in mind that all students are different, and that a given student might respond better to some types of feedback than to others.
| Level of Support | Description of Scaffold | Script |
|---|---|---|
| Smallest Scaffold | Check your Resources. As you continue to use these interventions, your student should have developed a self-statement list. Remind him to look back to see what to do next. | "Use a self-statement to figure out what to do next." |
| Medium Scaffold | Back it Up. If a student is struggling, back up your process. | "Okay, let's back up. What step are we on? What self-statement can we use now?" |
| Highest Scaffold | Step by Step. If the student continues to struggle, walk him through each step, providing examples along the way. | "Now, we are on O. My self-statement is 'Now I can do O in POW.' Organize my notes. I can write down story part ideas. Now, you try: what is O?" |
If your student struggles to meet your objective, there are various techniques that you might try in order to adjust the activity so as best to meet your student's needs.
| Activity | Description of Strategy | Script |
|---|---|---|
| SRSD | Self-Statements. If your student needs support with self-statements, walk through the process with him. Until a student can use these statements independently, he may struggle with SRSD. To support this, first remind the student of the acronym he is using. Then, walk through a piece of the process with the student, using self-statements. | "We are using POW + TREE. As we complete each step, we are going to say self-statements to remind ourselves of what to do next." |