'I'm a star pupil!' How the color-coding strategy used in Step Up to Writing helps third graders better organize their expository writing and improve their self-confidence as writers

Research Question. How might the color-coding techniques used in Step Up to Writing help third graders organize and improve their expository writing?;Subquestions. (1) How does using this technique for note taking help students retain more information when writing about what they read? (2) How does this approach influence students' ability to expand a single paragraph into a multi-paragraph piece of writing? (3) After using this technique, will students be able to identify properly formed paragraphs and improperly formed ones? (4) Does using this technique improve students' opinion of themselves as writers?;Research Activities. This research explores the use of the color-coding strategy presented in the Step Up to Writing curriculum with struggling third grade writers. The focus of the intervention was on organization of writing. Context. This study took place in a self-contained third grade classroom at St. Jude Catholic Elementary. The study focused on three monolingual English students who struggled particularly with organizing their writing. Methods and Data. The intervention lasted eight weeks and utilized the resources found in the Step Up to Writing curriculum as well as the formal steps of the writing process: prewriting, drafting, editing, revising, teacher conferencing, and publishing. Data sets include pre and post paragraph writing assessments, pre and post attitude survey data, teacher observations during writing, and student work throughout the intervention. Results. Results showed that using the strategies from Step Up to Writing allowed students to take the first steps toward improving the organization of their writing. Although data only showed slight improvement, further practice and reinforcement would allow students to further improve in their writing.