Effective Writing Instruction

for Struggling Writers

Developed byRegion IV Education Service Center

In collaboration with theTexas Education Agency

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News Flash

“Children want to write. They want to write the first day they attend school. This is no accident. Before they went to school, they

marked up walls, pavements, and newspapers with crayons, chalk, pens or pencils…anything that makes a mark. The

child’s mark say ‘I am’.”

Graves, 1983

“Children want to write. They want to write the first day they attend school. This is no accident. Before they went to school, they

marked up walls, pavements, and newspapers with crayons, chalk, pens or pencils…anything that makes a mark. The

child’s mark say ‘I am’.”

Graves, 1983

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Struggling Writers

• Compose very little considering time allocated for writing

• Lack awareness of how to organize the writing and produce less coherent papers

• Leave out critical information

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Struggling Writers

Are not fluent writers

Experience difficulty with word choice, handwriting, mechanics, identifying

and correcting errors

Have difficulty adding detail

to the composition

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Struggling Writers

Have difficultyselecting topics and

generating ideas

Lack procedural knowledge about

the writing process

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Struggling Writers

Are unaware of audience, purpose, and form demands

Do not understand that writing is a means of conveying a message

Do not monitor their own progress

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Good News

“We have made more progress in written expression for students with

disabilities than in any other academic area.”Vaughn, Gersten, and Chard (2002)

“We have made more progress in written expression for students with

disabilities than in any other academic area.”Vaughn, Gersten, and Chard (2002)

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Components of Effective Writing Instruction for Struggling Writers

A classroom climate that motivates

students to write

An emphasis on the writing process

Continual monitoring of

student progress

Specific instruction and strategies to meet the needs of

the struggling writer

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Motivation

• Serves as a critical element in all learning

• Focuses or energizes student’s attention, emotions, and activity

• Plays a central role in the writing process

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Create a Classroom Climate that Motivates Students

Provide sufficient time with quality needs-based

instruction

Provide sufficient time with quality needs-based

instruction

Invite students to learnInvite students to learn

Base all instruction on the TEKS

Base all instruction on the TEKS

Support student learning through scaffolded instruction

Support student learning through scaffolded instruction

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An effective classroom teacher’s actions and words

will meet students’ needs and desires for

Invitations to Learn

C.A. Tomlinson, 2002

AffirmationAffirmation

ContributionContribution

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Invitations to Learn

An effective classroom teacher’s actions and words will meet students’ needs and desire for

C.A. Tomlinson, 2002

Purpose Challenge Power

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Sufficient Time with Quality Needs-Based Instruction

“Writing taught once or twice a week is just frequent enough

to remind students that they can’t write and teachers that

they can’t teach.”Graves, 1983

“Writing taught once or twice a week is just frequent enough

to remind students that they can’t write and teachers that

they can’t teach.”Graves, 1983

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Sufficient Time with Quality Needs-Based Instruction

Teachers need to create

as many opportunities as possible to teach writing.

Students should be

working on pieces of

writing all of the time.

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“Struggling writers require more time and more extended,

structured, and explicit instruction to develop skills and strategies essential for

writing.” Catts & Kamhi, 1999

“Struggling writers require more time and more extended,

structured, and explicit instruction to develop skills and strategies essential for

writing.” Catts & Kamhi, 1999

Sufficient Time with Quality Needs-Based Instruction

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All educators serving a struggling student must meet regularly and have purposeful discussions about the instructional needs of the student.

All educators serving a struggling student must meet regularly and have purposeful discussions about the instructional needs of the student.

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TEKS-Based InstructionVertical Alignment of TEKS

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Scaffolded Instruction

Scaffolded instruction is the temporary support that allows a

student to move from his/her current knowledge and skills to a higher level

of competence, moving from dependence on the teacher/others to

independence as a learner.

Scaffolded instruction is the temporary support that allows a

student to move from his/her current knowledge and skills to a higher level

of competence, moving from dependence on the teacher/others to

independence as a learner.

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Scaffolded Instruction to Support Student Learning

Substantial support is given early and the support is gradually reduced as the

student gains independence

Explicit instruction is provided at the initial

level of student proficiency

The design or use of the instructional

strategy is adapted

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Continuum of Teacher Support for Writing

Adapted from Fountas & Pinnell, 1996

High support

Moderate support

Low/No support

Dependent

Teacher-directed Student-directed

Unprompted assistance

Instruction Integration

Prompted assistance

Struggling Writer Skilled Writer

Independent

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Scaffolded Writing Instruction

• Modeling

• Mini-lessons

• Conferences– Teacher/student– Student/student

• A variety of grouping patterns

• Technology use

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Support Provided Through Teacher Modeling

Modeling or demonstrating is an important part of all good instruction,

Including mini-lesson instruction.

Direct Writing Instruction

Direct Writing Instruction

Examples of Good Writing

Examples of Good Writing

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Mini-Lessons

• Are of short duration (10–20 minutes) • Demonstrate important aspects of

the writing process with clear, powerful examples

• Focus on a specific writing principle or procedure

• Are interactive and meet students’ needs

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Points out specific positive aspects in the

writing and reinforces strengths

Points out specific positive aspects in the

writing and reinforces strengths

Helps the writer, not the writingHelps the writer, not the writing

Teacher/Student Writing Conferences

The teacher

Identifies specific instructional needsIdentifies specific instructional needs

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Teacher/Student Writing Conferences

Learns how the writer is progressing in his/her application of the writing process and concepts

taught during mini-lessons

Assists students in setting goals

The teacher

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Peer Conferences

Give students real and immediate audiences

for their work

Give students real and immediate audiences

for their work

Improve student writing

Improve student writing

Help develop effective oral communication skills

Help develop effective oral communication skills

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Peer Conferences

Enhance student

self-esteem

Assist students in becoming

self-evaluators

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Grouping Patterns

Type of Group Instructional Focus Instructional Strategy

Whole Group

Introduce new concepts

Practice concepts not mastered by approximately 2/3 of the class

Review concepts

Mini-lesson Modeling

Small Group (same ability)

Instruction targeted to specific students’ needs

Mini-lesson Modeling

Pairs/Partners Practice concepts

already introduced Peer conferences

One-on-One Instruction targeted

to a specific student’s need

Teacher/student conference

Type of Group Instructional Focus Instructional Strategy

Whole Group

Introduce new concepts

Practice concepts not mastered by approximately 2/3 of the class

Review concepts

Mini-lesson Modeling

Small Group (same ability)

Instruction targeted to specific students’ needs

Mini-lesson Modeling

Pairs/Partners Practice concepts

already introduced Peer conferences

One-on-One Instruction targeted

to a specific student’s need

Teacher/student conference

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Technology and Writing Instruction

Computers• Are enjoyable to use• Encourage risk-taking• Allow for revision and editing• Give professional results

When students compose on computers, they write more and both the quality of their writing

and their attitude toward writing improve.Bangert-Drowns, 1993

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Technology Use

Provides assistance for• Organizational assistance• Grammar correction• Speech synthesis• Visually highlighting words• Word cueing and word

prediction• Voice recognition

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The Writing Process

Shifts emphasis from a product-driven approach to a process-driven approach

Shifts emphasis from a product-driven approach to a process-driven approach

Provides effective writing instructionProvides effective writing instruction

Enforces the process all writers go through as they develop their compositions

Enforces the process all writers go through as they develop their compositions

Helps develop positive attitudes towards writing

Helps develop positive attitudes towards writing

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Stages in the Writing Process

PrewritingPrewriting

DraftingDrafting

RevisingRevisingEditingEditing

PublishingPublishing

ReflectiveReflective RecursiveRecursive

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Using the Writing Process with Struggling Writers

• Allows students to be involved in writing regularly for meaningful purposes and real audiences

• Focuses on meaning first and then skills in the context of meaning

• Accommodates individual differences allowing students to work at their own level and pace

• Involves collaboration

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Using the Writing Process with Struggling Writers

Provides opportunities for

generalization and transfer of

learning

Helps establish independent

problem-solvers both in writing and in the classroom

in general

Creates writers

Gives student control of their

writing

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Using the Writing Process with Struggling Writers

“The reason writing helps children with learning disabilities is that they do

far more than learn to write; they learn to come to terms with a new

image of themselves as thinkers—thinkers with a message to convey to the world.”

Graves, 1991

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Prewriting

• Helps the writer explore the possibilities in the writing task

• Stimulates and enlarges the writer’s thoughts• Moves the writer from the stage of thinking

about a writing task to the act of writing• Develops a plan to help the writer choose the

topic, purpose, audience, and form or structure

Do not overlook prewriting activities!

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Drafting

• As the first version of writing, the purpose of drafting is to put thoughts onto paper.

• Writing’s recursive nature means that drafting will be revisited again and again and again.

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Revising

Revising means “seeing again.”

Improves the composition so that the product is more

interesting and understandable to the reader

Improves the composition so that the product is more

interesting and understandable to the reader

Clarifies meaning and expands ideas

Helps writers learn the craft of writing

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Editing

Helps the writer

• Understand that conventions convey meaning

• Make corrections to errors in the conventions of writing, including spelling, grammar, capitalization, and punctuation

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Publishing

Helps the writer focus on the communication of meaning to a real audience, thus giving a

purpose for writing efforts

Acknowledges that writing is genuine communication

Is an effective strategy for motivating writing

Practices the highest level of revision and editing skills

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Monitoring Student Progress

Formal measurements• Texas Assessment of

Knowledge and Skills (TAKS)

• State Developed Alternative Assessment (SDAA)

• Additional norm- or criterion-referenced tests

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Monitoring Student Progress

Informal measurements

Observation

Conferences

Writing samples

Anecdotal records

Checklists

Rubrics

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Specific Instruction and Strategies for the Struggling Writer

Reinforce core instruction taught to all studentsReinforce core instruction taught to all students

Provide scaffolded instruction to support use of strategies taught in core learning to struggling writers

Provide scaffolded instruction to support use of strategies taught in core learning to struggling writers

Provide deeper scaffolded instructional strategies that support the same learning

Provide deeper scaffolded instructional strategies that support the same learning

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The Reading and Writing Connection

Writers who are readers

Have a wider knowledge base to draw from for topic selection and personal connections

Have a wider knowledge base to draw from for topic selection and personal connections

Practice and study language in ways that are closely related to real-world situations

Practice and study language in ways that are closely related to real-world situations

Become cognizant of what good writing looks and sounds like

Become cognizant of what good writing looks and sounds like

Use knowledge of text organization, conventions, and elements of style to aid in comprehension

Use knowledge of text organization, conventions, and elements of style to aid in comprehension

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Writing Across the Curriculum

Writing’s greatest gift Is the ability to help us learn.

Moore, 1994

Writing• Increases recall and understanding of

information• Enhances the thinking of students• Facilitates the learning of the content

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Content Area Writing

Writing tasks should include

Journal WritingEssay Writing

Imaginative WritingInformational Writing

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Benefits of Journal Writing

Encourages risk taking

Provides a safe private place to write

Makes thinking visible

Provides opportunities for reflection

Validates personal experiences and feeling

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Benefits of Journal Writing

Promotes fluency in writing and reading

Provides a personal record for students

Promotes the development of written language conventions

Provides a vehicle for evaluation

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Strategic Writing Instruction

Can be presented to students through mini-lessons and

conferences

Can be presented to students through mini-lessons and

conferences

Makes students aware of when, where, how, and why

strategies work

Makes students aware of when, where, how, and why

strategies work

Is tailored to the needs of individual studentsIs tailored to the needs of individual students

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Steps for Writing Skills and Strategy Instruction

• Identify the skill/strategy• Preteach vocabulary or

concepts• Describe the components• Explain strategy’s use• Model while writing a com-

position• Instruct students to memorize and rehearse

strategies• Help students work toward independent

mastery

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Scaffolded Instruction in Action

Initial core instruction

Use technology

Review and reteach material

Enrich background knowledge

Give feedback

Provide opportunities for practice

Explain the task

Present new material

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Scaffolded Instruction Throughout the Writing Process

PrewritingPrewriting

DraftingDrafting

RevisingRevising

EditingEditing

PublishingPublishing

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Prewriting Difficulties

Selecting a topic

Narrowing the focus

Generating ideas

Organizing thoughts

Determining audience and purpose

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Drafting and RevisingDifficulties

• Composing very little and omitting critical information

• Developing complete sentences/paragraphs

• Developing an idea• Producing focused and

coherent papers• Writing fluently

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Sentence Structure

Sentence Structure

Grammar Use

Grammar Use

PunctuationPunctuation

SpellingSpelling

Editing Difficulties

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Invitations to Learn

AffirmationAffirmation

ContributionContribution

ChallengeChallenge

PowerPower

PurposePurpose

In a writing process classroom, how can teachers provide support

for these five areas that will motivate students to want to write?

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Remember

YOUYOUYOUYOU

The invitation to learn comes from