I have tried numerous "methods" for teaching composition at various grade levels, and I have learned something from each. Yet, I always had a nagging feeling that something was missing, and I think I have discovered that missing element: theory. I have been using methods without much theoretical base. Nor do I think I am alone. Many teachers with whom I have come in contact continue with the same method year after year because "it works," or they think their method works. Some do not even have a method they can define, and many do not have a theory on which to base their methods. Sometimes those "methods" can be effective, but it may be wise to consider what two teachers have said about old methods: "[c]onsistency, foolish or otherwise, may become mere persistence when significant trends in one's field are ignored."