1.    The student writes clearly and effectively.

Component 1:1
Develops concept and design.

1. Writes coherent paragraphs.
2. Demonstrates consistency in focus.
3. Begins to form logical arguments.
4. Discriminates between essential and useful information and trivia.
5. Elaborates with examples, details, and/or facts.
6. Effectively uses transitional sentences and phrases to connect ideas and paragraphs.

Component 1:2
Uses style appropriate to audience and purpose.

1. Chooses precise language suited to the topic and audience.
2. Experiments with different voices appropriate to varying genres and audiences.
3. Experiments with figurative language.
4. Varies sentence length and structure.

Component 1:3
Applies writing conventions.

1. Uses compound and complex sentences.
2. Knows and applies capitalization and punctuation rules (. / , / ! / ' / " / : / ; / ? ).
3. Uses paragraphing, stanza division, and other textual markers such as table of contents, title, and bullets.
4. Writes legibly.
5. Knows and applies conventional grammar such as subject/verb agreement and verb tense agreement.

2.    The student writes in a variety of forms for different audiences and purposes.

Component 2:1
Writes for different audiences.

1. Writes for distant audiences such as pen pals, community members, corporations, or state departments.
2. Determines and writes for the needs of different audiences (peers, teachers, family, or newspaper).

Component 2:2
Writes for different purposes.

1. Writes to express him/herself, inform others, create, explain ideas or procedures, persuade others, entertain, or debate.

Component 2:3
Writes in a variety of forms.

1. Writes in a variety of forms and genres (narratives, journals, poems, essays, stories, and research reports).
2. Varies form, detail, and structure of writing to fit audience and purpose.

Component 2:4
Writes for career applications.

1. Identifies forms one might be required to use in career settings (software programs or research reports).
2. Produces documents using resources from career settings such as tables, charts, or graphs.
3. Cites sources when writing reports.

3.    The student understands and uses the steps of the writing process.

Component 3:1
Prewrites

1. Uses a variety of prewriting strategies (story mapping, listing, webbing, jotting, outlining, free-writing, or brainstorming).
2. Gathers information from a variety of sources such as interviews, multimedia, and periodicals.

Component 3:2
Drafts

1. Constructs a clear narrative or argument.
2. Coordinates ideas and perspective.
3. Elaborates on initial idea.
4. Writes in complete phrases, sentences, and thoughts.

Component 3:3
Revises

1. Confers with others to improve text.
2. Evaluates suggestions from peers or teacher and use as appropriate feedback.
3. Adds and deletes information and graphics to enhance text and style.
4. Revises writing for the traits:  Organization, Sentence Fluency, Word Choice, Ideas, and Voice.

Component 3:4
Edits

1. Uses applicable reference tools.
2. Corrects most errors independently.
3. Corrects mechanics and grammar.
4. Assesses using Six Trait Writing criteria for the trait of Conventions.
5. Uses available technology such as word processing.

Component 3:5
Publishes

1. Selects appropriate publishing option (school newspaper, bulletin board, multimedia format).
2. Produces a legible, neat final product.
3. Uses different technologies to produce a finished product.

4.    The student analyzes and evaluates the effectiveness of written work.

Component 4:1
Assesses own strengths and needs for improvement.

1. Uses Six Trait Writing model to improve quality of writing.
2. Analyzes the works of effective writers to improve writing.
3. Uses feedback from peers and teacher to improve written work.

Component 4:2
Seeks and offers feedback.

1. Accepts and utilizes feedback from peers and/or teachers on written work.
2. Offers feedback on others' writing with regard to the Six Trait Writing model.