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Revising — changing the writing, not just the spelling
Can do: Rereads their draft and improves word choice, sentence variety and clarity, not only mechanics.
Why it matters
Editing fixes errors; revising makes it better. Children who only ever edit believe writing is one draft plus tidying.
What it looks like when it's wobbly
"Revising" means recopying it neatly, and every sentence still starts with "Then".
⏱️ Two-minute check
Give them their own draft. "Make three changes that make it better — not spelling."
Solid looks like: Three genuine improvements: a stronger word, a joined sentence, a cut.
The full activity for this topic · 15 minutes
Three Colour Revision
- 1Colour one: circle every boring word — said, went, nice, good — and replace two.
- 2Colour two: underline the first word of every sentence. If three in a row match, change one.
- 3Colour three: cross out anything the reader doesn't need. Cutting is revision too.
- 4Read the before and after aloud, back to back.
- 5Ask which change they think helped most, and why.
If it's too hard
Just the boring-word pass, replacing two words.
If it's too easy
Combine two short sentences into one, and split a rambling one in two.
Say this
"Read it out loud. Where did your own voice get bored? That's the bit to change."