Our Website Planning Doc formatted for Adult Literacy Lessons: Document Plan Outline.

Using this Site Home a Learning Fortress Stress Management Using this Site About the Editor
Composing Section Overview Outlining Clarity Organizing Formats
Other Sections Letters & Sounds Forming Sentences Composing Good Things to Read Rhyme and Reason
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Project Planning

Our site planning doc presented as a literacy lesson

This planning document was created while building the literacy website guidedreadingjourney.com. Instead of writing a fictional example for lessons, the real planning notes for the project were adapted so they could be used as reading material.

Because this is a real planning document, some parts are rough. Some decisions changed as the project developed. Not everything that was understood by the author was written down. This is normal in real projects.

For learners, this document provides an opportunity to see how a writing project is planned in practice.

What This Document Shows

The chapters in this planning document illustrate several steps that are commonly used when preparing a large writing project:

These steps are not strict rules. They are tools that writers can use to help organize their thinking.

How Learners Can Use This Document

You can read these chapters simply as an example of how one project was planned.

You can also use the chapters as a guide when planning your own writing projects.

After reading each chapter, consider questions such as:

Learning to read and write well also means learning how to organize ideas and plan complex work.

A Note About Real Projects

Planning documents rarely capture everything that happens during a project. As work progresses, new ideas appear and earlier plans may change.

For that reason, this document should be viewed as a snapshot of the thinking behind the project at the time it was written.

The finished website reflects many additional decisions that were made during development.

Coach's Notes

Many writing lessons focus only on the final product. However, good writing often begins with planning.

This document allows learners to see how a real project was organized before the final material was published.

Discussion questions:

Activity:

Ask the learner to think about a project they would like to complete (for example: writing a letter, creating a blog, planning a trip, or organizing a community event).

Have them write a short list answering these questions:

Reflection

Think of something you would like to create or improve. What is the project?

This exercise introduces the idea that planning can make complex writing tasks easier.

Coach's Notes: Document structure

Many learners find it easier to understand a complex idea when they can see the whole process first. Keep the document outline nearby when reviewing individual chapters.

Discussion questions:

Activity:

Ask the learner to choose a small project they might do in daily life (for example: planning a birthday party, writing a letter, or organizing a garden).

Have them briefly answer the same six planning questions shown in the diagram.

This exercise helps learners see that planning is not only for websites or large reports. It can be used in many everyday tasks.

The steps for planning a document are summarized in the Researching and Gathering Information Chart and the Organizing Information Table from: Markel, Mike. Technical Communications, Bedford/St. Martin's, Boston, MA 2010.