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about
Everyone in the 3rd grade or higher is a writer. You will write book reports, essays, end of the month reports on your job, grant applications for your great ideas and love notes to the people you care about. No matter how good of a writer you consider yourself, i gaurantee your writing will be better if you learn the 5 steps of the writing process. Pre-Writing, Drafting, Revising, Editing, Publishing. I wrote this song to help you remember these 5 steps so you'll have them ready when you need to write!
Pre-writing: This is the planning phase of the writing process, when students brainstorm, research, gather and outline ideas, often using diagrams for mapping out their thoughts. Audience and purpose should be considered at this point, and for the older students, a working thesis statement needs to be started.
Drafting: Students create their initial composition by writing down all their ideas in an organized way to convey a particular idea or present an argument. Audience and purpose need to be finalized.
Revising: Students review, modify, and reorganize their work by rearranging, adding, or deleting content, and by making the tone, style, and content appropriate for the intended audience. The goal of this phase of the writing process is to improve the draft.
Editing: At this point in the writing process, writers proofread and correct errors in grammar and mechanics, and edit to improve style and clarity. Having another writer’s feedback in this stage is helpful.
Publishing: In this last step of the writing process, the final writing is shared with the group. Sharing can be accomplished in a variety of ways, and with the help of computers, it can even be printed or published online.
lyrics
INTRO
When I do a show or an assembly, a student always comes up to me and asks how I take my ideas and turn them into a song. I tell them it’s the WRITING PROCESS. They usually ask, “What’s the WRITING PROCESS?” So, I realized I needed to use the WRITING PROCESS to write a song about the WRITING PROCESS. Are you following me?
CHORUS
When I want to write something and my thoughts are all a mess/
I put it all together with the WRITING PROCESS/
I've got thoughts I must express or issues I must address/
The way to do it best is the WRITING PROCESS/
PREWRITING, DRAFTING, REVISING, EDITING, PUBLISHING/
PREWRITING, DRAFTING, REVISING, EDITING, PUBLISHING/
PREWRITING, DRAFTING, REVISING, EDITING, PUBLISHING/
PREWRITING, DRAFTING, REVISING, EDITING, PUBLISHING/
VERSE ONE
When I’m pre-writing I’m brainstorming what’s gon’ happen/
So before I start rapping I begin by MIND MAPPING/
Start by writing down on paper everything I feel like telling/
No worries ‘bout grammar, punctuation, handwriting or spelling/
Now my idea is in pieces, this is the genesis/
I’m turning my research into a working thesis/
Once I’ve gathered ideas then I make an outline/
This works for letters, essays, books, speeches, or rhymes/
The audience and the purpose sets me on the right path/
Who am I writing for and what arguments do I have/
With those questions asked, I make my first draft/
There’s no exact answer, this ain’t science or math/
To perfect the tone and style I must revise it so I read it/
I see what else is needed and what needs to be deleted/
Like a garden when you water it and weed it, then I repeat it/
No reason to feel defeated, you’ll know when it’s completed/
CHORUS
VERSE TWO
I’ve done pre-writing, drafting, revising and I re-read it/
Now I put that polish on it cause I’m gonna edit/
I proofread and correct errors in grammar and mechanics/
This part can be a terror but there is no need to panic/
Let me tell you what I’m gonna do, I take my time and read it through/
I find another writer to give it to, because four eyes are better than two/
I make edits to improve on the clarity and style/
Remember to be patient because this might take a while/
I can publish it in so many ways, print it out on a page/
Read it at class or on a stage, depends on the audience I want to engage/
An email blast, television broadcast, an article with photographs/
Or my podcast, maybe a performance with a cast/
Most important thing is that I get it out/
And that I’m clear on what I’m talking about/
So when I turn on the microphone and put it on a track/
You can bounce your head to the WRITING PROCESS when you play it back/
CHORUS
credits
from
Baba Got BARS,
released August 3, 2019
Written, performed, produced, recorded and mixed by Bomani Armah
license
all rights reserved
