BackgroundRAFT is a writing strategy that helps students understand their role as a writer, the audience they will address, the varied formats for writing, and the topic they'll be writing about. By using this strategy, teachers encourage students to write creatively, to consider a topic from a different perspective, and to gain practice writing for different audiences. Students learn to respond to a writing prompt that requires them to think about various perspectives (Santa & Havens, 1995):
- Role of the Writer: Who are you as the writer? A pilgrim? A soldier? The President?
- Audience: To whom are you writing? A political rally? A potential employer?
- Format: In what format are you writing? A letter? An advertisement? A speech?
- Topic: What are you writing about?