Understanding the writing process

Ways to scaffold your students’ writing

 Components of the writing process

• Planning (developing goals and generating ideas).

• Drafting (creating a preliminary version of the text).
• Sharing ideas or drafts with the teacher and peers.
• Evaluating and revising (rereading the text and consider
changes, reorganisation of ideas, adding or removing
things, etc)
• Editing (reviewing grammar and spelling and make the
text readable
• Publishing (produce the final product to be shared)
 Before writing

• Activate background knowledge.

• Help students determine audience and purpose.
• Help students list ideas for writing.
• Make lists of words and phrases that students
can use in writing.
• Keep a word wall in the classroom.
• Provide real-life experiences.
• Expose students to writing so that they see what
good writing looks like (give them models).
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ae_nC
YEvOoA (pre-writing stage. Ideas on what to do before
children start writing about a story they have read)
 During writing
• Read and reread drafts with students.
• Allow students to discuss drafts with peers.
• Talk to students as they write drafts to determine
areas of need.
• Provide help with grammar and spelling when
needed.
• Share the pen and write as students dictate. You
transcribe their words into print and guide them
to realize that print consists of thoughts and
spoken words written down.
• Provide models and forms for writing.
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2FqA
nFO7RQ kindergarten group interactive
writing lesson)
 After writing

• Talk with students about what they’ve written

• Give students authentic opportunities to publish
writing.
 Different forms of writing

• Modelled writing
• Shared writing
• Guided writing
• Independent writing
 Modeled writing

• Modeled writing is the first step in teaching writing to

children. This is when the teacher is in front of the class
doing all of the writing.

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nVoEblnX5Zc
 Shared writing

• Shared writing enables teachers to make the writing process

concrete and visible to students. The teacher and students compose
text together, with both contributing their thoughts and ideas to the
process, while the teacher acts as scribe, writing the text as it is
composed.
• Shared writing can cover a wide variety of forms, purposes, and
genres. The text can serve a specific purpose governed by what is
going on currently in the classroom, or the teacher and students can
brainstorm and negotiate these decisions together.
• The purpose of shared writing is to model the thought process
involved in writing and allow students to engage in and focus on the
process.
• The teacher, acting as scribe, frees students from that aspect of the
writing process so that they can focus exclusively on the thinking
involved in writing.
 Why is it important?

• It reinforces and supports reading as well as writing

• All students are able to participate

• It encourages close examination of texts, words, and options of

authors

• It demonstrates the conventions of writing, spelling, punctuation, and

grammar.

• It focuses on composing and leaves transcribing to the teacher

 Two examples

Watch the following videos and think about the role of

students and the role of the teacher while carying out the
activity. Focus on participation, generation of ideas etc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=owZxVE1SALg
(shared writing on how to write a summary)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQ2xQnZ5zWY (writing
in kindergarten)
 Guided writing

• Guided writing is an essential component of the writing process,

providing an additional supported step towards independent writing.
Through guided writing, children are supported during the different
stages of the writing process.
• It enables the teacher to tailor the teaching to the needs of the
group.
• It facilitates the teaching and learning of individual children.
Although it’s a group activity focused on the needs of the group, the
teacher is able to observe and respond to the needs of individuals
within the group.
• It encourages the children to be active participants in discussions
about writing.
• It builds confidence.
• It allows the teacher to give immediate feedback on success and the
opportunity to discuss further areas for improvement.
 An example of guided writing
• https://www.teachingchannel.org/videos/guided-writing-
workshop
• (guided writing St Peters school) (first language)

• Watch the video and think about the following:

• What is the students’ reason for writing?
• What does the teacher do before students start to write?
• What is the role of the teacher?
• How are students organised?
 Some more examples of guided writing

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ov3jeh
Z9-iI (a short example of guided writing)
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JGCV
RWxr2LE (guided writing)
 Independent writing

• Students use the written language for their own

purposes (writing stories, reports, letters etc).
• Students use ideas from shared writing to produce their
own independent piece.
• Reference to charts and other materials to revise and
edit composition.
• This part of teaching writing to children must always
include a time to share.
 Some ideas

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ivAvsXeJAqM&feature
=related (how to write a paragraph with a song to
remember)
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9Nik16C2tM (party
invitations: Motivating students to write informatively)
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yihq8BIhL9c&feature=
related (the elephant song. To provide a context for
writing)
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zJiCqxuiipo&index=4
&list=PL38E418CF3785C6F6 (motivation for literacy
Making Teddy bears descriptive writing)
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4BEkqb_--
wo&index=8&list=PL38E418CF3785C6F6 ( using a
class blog)
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Is5CPTqiYso (the
dice game. A cooperative story writing activity)
• https://www.youtube.com/user/balancedliteracydiet/featu
red (the balance literacy diet main page you tube. Lots of
different ideas for building literacy in the classroom)
• http://www.oise.utoronto.ca/balancedliteracydiet/Home/in
dex.html (main web page balanced literacy diet)
• http://www.readingrockets.org/article/teaching-
elementary-school-students-be-effective-writers (lots of
ideas for using reading and writing)
 Some ideas for infant school children

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F4fLXUZ01r
Q (animal finger song)
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=875ee3Wup
7E (fruit vocabulary learning phonics)
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dk9Yt1PqQi
w&index=4&list=PL7295006F562A69C9
(10 little numbers)