Writers Circle

What Are Writers Circles?

Writing circles is a time for a group of people to read their writing to each other to receive constructive criticism. I recently was a part of a writing circle and it truly helped me see my writing in a different light. I was able to get feedback for what is it like from the readers perspective. As seen in the picture, I wrote down some suggestions they made while also jotting down some positive feedback I received as well. I also was able to hear my peers quick draft on a story as well. As they were sharing it was nice to have a purpose and give them feedback I was thinking to help them because I appreciate all the feedback they had given me as well.

How do we incorporate writing circles into the classroom?

As adults, we can understand constructive criticism and give feedback in a professional way. Young students however may have a harder time with this concept. It would be a great idea to have questions on the board of what students should be listening for while hearing their peers feedback. We want students to have a voice and get away from "that's so good" comments.

Why is it good?

Did it make you connect to anything in your life or spark an idea in your own writing?

Did you follow the story well? Or was some parts confusing as the reader?

What are somethings that could be added to help the story be more interesting?

Students are not often asked to help on an other, especially if the feedback is constructive criticism. This is a life skill that should be practiced within the classroom. Not all feedback is going to be positive in many different situations, so it is important for students to learn how to give their opinion in a nice and professional way.

Why is it so hard for students?

One of the main reasons students may have such a hard time with this is because we never see writing as community time. It is often seen in classrooms that when writing is happening it is completely silence. I have recently learned that so much of the writing process is with other people. It is a social interaction, especially in the beginning stages of writing to find what to write about. As seen in the chart below, the writing process is not just a step-by-step process. There are many arrows that go back up the chart because that is what good writers do. Good writers are able to bounce back and forth between the steps and to know when their original idea isn't what they should write about anymore. If we force students to only write about one thing when they no longer want to then they may begin to dislike writing altogether.