Collaborative Writing Responses: A Structure For Writing Paragraphs As A Group

Some of my best ideas come from other teachers on Instagram. After seeing a post from an elementary teacher about using a collaborative process for solving word problems as a group in math class, I was inspired to create a structure for writing paragraphs as a group in my English language arts class.

I use this collaborative group framework to allow students to practice selecting relevant text evidence, engage students in structured academic conversation, and increase the amount of writing students do in my class.

The Step By Step Process

First, students are assigned a page in the text and must look for text evidence to support a response to a prompt. Students write their text evidence on a sticky note. This step is key for accountability and ensures that each group member has something to contribute.

Then students get in a group of four students who were all assigned the same page. They share their selected evidence and decide which piece best answers the prompt. This step forces students to look back at the prompt and make sure their evidence really answers what is being asked. 

Finally, students write a four sentence response to the question as a group using a provided paragraph frame. Each student is responsible for writing one of the four sentences: topic sentence, introduction of evidence, citation of evidence, and explanation.

During this process, groups of four are ideal, but groups of three can work if needed. If there are only 3 students in the group, I ask the same student to write sentence 1 and 3. This breaks up the amount of time any one student is writing. Sentences 2 and 4 also require more original thought. 

From Group Work to Independent Work

Working as a group allows students to practice text dependent writing without them feeling like they are doing all of the heavy lifting on their own, but it also primes students for writing on their own

The first time using the paragraph frame, students select a piece of evidence on their own to use in the paragraph. Then students compare their evidence in a group and select the piece of evidence that best answers the prompt. Students write a paragraph together using that evidence, with each group member writing one sentence.⁠

⁠

The second time using the paragraph frame, students are responding to the same prompt (or a very similar one) after reading a new text (or another part of the same text). This eliminates any confusion with the task or the structure and allows students to focus on the content of their writing.⁠

I like to follow up the group paragraph with an independent paragraph in as close proximity as possible. I find a week or less to be ideal for students’ recall. 

Building Up Students’ Skills Throughout The Year

After repeated group and independent text dependent paragraphs, students become comfortable with the process. I can then increase the complexity and reduce the level of support.

To increase the complexity of students’ writing, their paragraphs grow from four sentences (topic sentence, introduction of evidence, citation of evidence, and explanation) to include a second and/or third piece of text evidence, which of course need to be introduced and explained, as well as a concluding sentence. At that point, students’ paragraphs have grown into a mini essay. If students are continuing to work in groups, you can stick with groups of four for more manageable conversations or increase the group size so that students are still writing just one sentence.

To reduce the level of support given as students are writing, I simplify the provided paragraph frames so that less and less sentence starters and transitions are given until all that is left are the steps: topic sentence, introduce evidence, cite evidence, and explain. 

You can find the resources for collaborative writing responses here.