Best Practices
Applying Six Traits to Scientific Writing
Ideas:
A clear point, message, theme or story line, backed by
important, carefully chosen details and supportive
information.
Ideas are the heart of the message. They reflect the
purpose, the theme, the primary content, the main point,
or the main story line of the piece. When ideas are
strong, the writing is rich with detail, original and
thoughtful, highly focused and clear, and substantive. In
other words, it says something; it doesn’t just meander or
list ideas randomly. It doesn’t bore the reader with trivia,
repetition, or unnecessary information.
Organization:
How a piece of writing is structured and ordered.
Organization is the internal structure of the piece. Think
of it as being like an animal’s skeleton, or the framework
of a building under construction. Organization holds the
whole thing together. You have to ask yourself: Where
do I begin? What comes next? After that? Which things
go together? Which can be left out? How do I tie up the
loose ends?
Teachers’ Resource Manual: Spring 2001
Chugach School District
Applying Six Traits to Scientific Writing
Scientific Writing Ideas:
The ideas convey an explanation of results collected
during an investigation. The ideas are clear and
accurate. Details support the ideas which are being
conveyed. They are descriptive but concise. Scientists
note all details. Any information collected during an
investigation might be important in the final analysis.
Scientific Writing Organization:
Scientific writing often follows a specific pattern. The
basic format is: title, purpose, procedure, data, results
and conclusion. The purpose tells the reader why the
investigation was done and what hypothesis was being
tested. The procedure gives a detailed description of the
protocol followed. It should be detailed enough that
someone else could repeat the work based on the
description alone. The data is the raw information
collected during the investigation. The results
summarizes the data and includes graphs, table and
analysis. The conclusion wraps the report up and
explains what the data means and what was learned
from the investigation.
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Best Practices
Voice:
The fingerprints of the writer on the page - the writer’s
own special, personal style coming through in the words,
combined with concern for the informational needs and
interests of the audience.
Writing that’s alive with voice is engaging, hard to put
down; voiceless writing is a chore to read. Voice is the
personal imprint of the writer on the page, and so is
different with each writer. Voice also differs somewhat
with purpose and audience. A writer may use one voice
in a note to a friend, another in a story to be read aloud
to 60 listeners, and another still in a business letter or
memo.
Word Choice:
Language, phrasing, and the knack for choosing the “just
right” word to get the message across.
Careful writers seldom settle for the first word that comes
to mind. They constantly search for the “just right” word
or phrase that will help the reader get the point. Mark
Twain once said that the difference between the right
word and the almost right word was the difference
between “lightning” and “lightning bug”. Word choice is
the use of rich, colorful, precise language that
communicates not just in a functional way, but in a way
that moves and enlightens the reader.
Scientific Writing Voice:
Teachers’ Resource Manual: Spring 2001
Chugach School District
Applying Six Traits to Scientific Writing
Technical writing often uses the third person. The voice
is analytical and precise. The “mark of the writer” is not
particularly important in technical writing. In fact,
scientific writing is usually impersonal.
Scientific Writing Word Choice:
Words should be carefully selected. The writer should
steer clear of anthropomorphic descriptions or cute
analogies. Language in this format communicates in a
functional way to enlighten the reader. “Flowery” and
overly descriptive writing should be avoided. Scientific
terms are used. However, terms should not be used
unless clear understanding of the meaning of these
terms is shown.
Sentence Fluency:
The rhythm and sound of the writing as it is read aloud.
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Best Practices
Fluent writing is graceful, varied, rhythmic - almost
musical. It’s easy to read aloud. Sentences are well
built. They move. They vary in structure and length.
Each seems to flow right out of the one before. Strong
sentence fluency is marked by logic, creative phrasing,
parallel construction, alliteration, and word order that
makes interpretive reading feel simple and natural.
Conventions:
Editorial correctness and attention to any detail a copy
editor would review including: spelling, grammar and
usage, capitalization, paragraph indentation, punctuation.
Almost anything a copy editor would deal with comes
under the heading of conventions. This includes
spelling, punctuation, grammar and usage, capitalization
and paragraph indentation. It does not include such
things as handwriting or neatness. In a strong paper, the
conventions are handled so skillfully, the reader doesn’t
really need to think of them.
Scientific writing should not be wordy. Sentences should
be clear, concise and to the point. Descriptions should
give the reader an understanding of the investigation
performed.
Scientific Writing Conventions:
The writer should adhere to all standard writing
conventions. Spelling of scientific terms is important
(especially when reference materials are available.)
Sources should be credited when appropriate.
Scientific Sentence Fluency:
Note: The descriptions for the 6 traits of writing and the scientific traits of writing were adapted from Nancy Norman
material and material received at a NSTA workshop presented by Mary Margaret Welch.
Teachers’ Resource Manual: Spring 2001
Chugach School District
Applying Six Traits to Scientific Writing
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