Here’s a funny one from second grade teacher Laura Bazant (Warren Elementary, Highland, IN).

“I taught my students spider legs yesterday and had boys saying, ‘I don’t like writing, but this was fun!’ They asked, ‘What are we doing tomorrow?’ And I told them, ‘Story surgery.’ They are very intrigued!”

The goal of revision is to make the piece sound better, more clear, more thorough. Revision shouldn’t be about rewriting or recopying. Teach students ways to create space within a draft so they can add, change, and cut content without recopying a word.

Download an explanation of the spider leg and story surgery revision strategies.

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