Our Six Writing Friends Reboot!

Our Six Writing Friends' Roots

Our Six Writing Friends began in my 3rd grade classroom in Gilbert, Arizona. My students struggled to understand the 6 Traits of Effective Writing. One day, while they were at recess, I quickly drew some rough sketches of cartoon characters to help my class understand the characteristics of each trait. This is when Ida Ideas, Oliver Organization, Veronica Voice, Wendy Word Choice, Simon Sentence Fluency, and Carlos Conventions were born. I went on to publish magnetic visual aids and train teachers how to use Our Six Writing Friends in classrooms nationwide. The characters graduated from magnetic visual aids to interactive whiteboard files that teachers could easily share with their colleagues. It was then that I transitioned my career path from teacher training to educational leadership. Now, in 2025, Our Six Writing Friends are getting a reboot and are still helping students with effective writing in our new age of AI!

How do we teach effective writing in the age of AI? The answer is to embrace AI as a tool without losing your sense of self! 

AI cannot replace your Ideas!

AI cannot replace your Voice!

and we know what a disaster it is when AI experiments with Word Choice!

Teaching students to utilize AI while coming back to the roots of effective writing (The 6 Traits) is the key. Our Six Writing Friends can help!

Read the article Our ‘Six Traits’ Roots and Rescue Revision Can Save Personalized Writing in Our New Age of AI

Check out the free download of Our Six Writing Friends Rescue Revision Checklist, PowerPoint file, and PDF file.

Happy Writing! 

LaRae Kendrick, M. Ed., Creator of Our Six Writing Friends.