Learning to Write Well

Learning to Write Well

Ways Parents Can Help At HomeDeveloped by

Donna Altuna and Johnett Scogin

Texas School for the Deaf

Today’s Session

• What We Know About Early Writing Development

• 10 Myths About Learning to Write • Ways to Help With Writing at Home• Painless Ideas to Encourage Writing • Q and A Time

What We Know About Writing in the Early Grades

• Reading and Writing Develop Together– Children interact with their world, including

print.– They expect print in their environment to

make sense or be “in context.” – Because of this, children’s earliest efforts

to read and write reflect meaning. – They are not “blank slates.”

Egawa, K., The National Council of Teachers of English. (http://www.ncte.org/prog/writing/research/113328.htm)


• Written Language– Writing develops along a known continuum:

• Scribbles (2-3 year olds)• Mock letters and drawings (3-4 year olds)• Invented spellings (4-6 year olds)• Conventional written language (5-7 and up)

– There is overlap in the steps of this process.– From the earliest stages, children write in different

forms such as notes, lists, letters, journal writing, stories and surveys.



• Children are more likely to be good writers if:

– Substantial time is devoted to writing

– They are given multiple opportunities to write

– Writing is tied to reading development

– Writing is used as a tool for thinkingEgawa, K., The National Council of Teachers of English. (http://www.ncte.org/prog/writing/research/113328.htm)


• According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), students achieve higher scores when teachers have students:– Plan their writing in class– Save their work in folders or portfolios– Write more than one draft of a paper– Talk to them about what they were writing– Use computers for writing and revision

Boss, Suzie. “ Permanent Ink: Learning to Write Is a Lesson That Lasts a Lifetime. But What Brings Out the Best in Young Writers?” Northwest Education Magazine. Winter 2002, NW Regional Educational Laboratory. http://www.nwrel.org/nwedu/08-02/issue.asp


• Writing as Cultural Practice– Recent research in writing and language shows that

students’ knowledge reflects the communities in which they participate.

• ALL families engage in literacy. Finding ways to bridge home and school experiences increases student success.

– “For all language users, the mastering of multiple social discourses allows for increased power and access to opportunity.”

• Language is a form of “cultural capital”. Some forms of language have more power in different societies.

• The ability to read and write well holds great cultural capital in western societies.


10 Myths About Learning to Write(from the National Council of Teachers of English)

1. Kids hate to write.2. Real writers get it right the first time.3. Kids have nothing interesting to say.4. You have to know what you are going to say before

you begin writing.5. If you can’t spell well, you can’t write.6. Writing is built one sentence at a time.7. Only great writers can be creative.8. Good writers work alone.9. You can spot a good writer at a glance.10. Poor marks make good writers.

What Good Writers Do

• Plan their ideas

• Keep the audience and purpose in mind

• Spend enough time writing

• Reread their writing often

• Make changes to their writing

• Check their work for accuracy

• Ask for feedback from others

How can I help with planning?

• Talk with your child about the topic

• Look for books and resources

• Take notes on post-its and arrange them in categories

• Look at how others have organized their writing

How can I help with audience and purpose?

• Talk about the reason for writing

• Who will read the writing?

• Is it formal or informal?• Are you writing to

inform, persuade, explain, entertain, or just write to help organize your thinking?

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How can I help with spending enough time?

• Defining “enough” depends on the project

• Planning and research is time well-spent

• Decide if multiple drafts are needed

• If the writing needs to be polished, budget time for editing and rewriting

• If working on a longer project, be sure to start early and divide work over several sessions



How can I help with rereading?

• Ask your child to read you what she’s written so far

• Ask her to reread parts that you have questions about

• Encourage her to reread often for clarity as well as word choice



How can I help with making changes?

• Determine how much help you need to give

• Give some prompts that will help him self-monitor

• Use technology appropriately

• Remind him that ideas are the most important part of writing



How can I help with checking for accuracy?

• Accuracy of content– Can she tell you where

her ideas came from?– If they came from other

sources, are they written in her own words?

• Accuracy with mechanics– Try some mnemonics– Use (or make) a

thesaurus– “Scaffolded Writing”



Try some mnemonics

• C.O.P.S.– Capitalization– Organization– Punctuation– Spelling

• P.L.A.N.– Preview the assignment– List the main topics– Assign an order– Note ideas in sentences

• P.O.W.– Pick my idea– Organize my notes– Write and Say More

• W.W.W.– Who– When– Where

• T.R.E.E.– Topic– Reasons (3 or more)– Evidence– Ending

Scaffolded Writing• Start by talking

– Discuss ideas first then talk about how to write them down

• Repeat what the child wants to write– In ASL first, then show how the sentence translates to English– Use signs and fingerspelling to be as clear as you can

• Make a highlighted line for each English word that needs to be written– Show short words with short lines and long words with long lines

• Reread the sentence together using the lines– You may need to reread several times

• Have the child write each word as he rehearses it– Help with spelling only as much as you need to– Write the first or first and last letters of hard words

• Reread the completed sentence and review the ASL translation.

How can I help with giving feedback?

• Celebrate all the good stuff

• Limit suggestions for change

• Show your enthusiasm

• Let him know you want to read what he writes



The role of praise• Parents have a critical role in

encouraging young writers. One author who had to stay at home for most of a year due to illness wrote about his beginnings as a writer. He read hundreds of comic books, and began to experiment with writing his own. After several tries, he showed his first “original” work to his mother.

• “She said it was good enough to be in a book,” the author reported. “Nothing anyone has said to me since has made me feel any happier.”

(2000) Stephen King. On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft

Scribner Publishers

Ideas forGetting Kids to Write

• Exchange Post-it notes with your children. Put the notes on pillow cases or mirrors, or in lunch boxes, books, or any surprise location.

• Help children assemble photo albums of family events and write captions for the photos.

• Ask children to put their wishes and wants into writing and to suggest how they may work toward or contribute to getting what they want.

• Help children create a family newsletter or website to share with family members near and far.

• Suggest that your children write postcards to themselves when they are away from home. When they receive their own postcards in the mail, they will have a souvenir of their trip.


• Find reasons for your child to write. Make writing practical and useful by having children write grocery and task lists, reminders and phone messages, instructions for caring for pets, or directions for getting to the park.

• Ask children to find a “golden line” in their reading - - a sentence that especially attracts them and makes them aware of what clever or colorful writing looks like.

• Don’t worry about spelling mistakes. It’s more important that they write and share their thoughts. They can always go back and edit/revise.

• Make a writing kit by finding a box or basket to fill with paper, crayons, books, pens and pencils. Have him or her add things to the box. This makes it easy to find all the things your child needs to practice writing.


• Be your child’s #1 fan. Show you care about your child’s homework and writing assignments. Ask your child to read aloud what she or he has written. Be an enthusiastic listener. Give your child encouragement. Writing is hard work! Give him or her the courage and motivation to keep trying.

• Drawing is an important part of the literacy process. Children read pictures to understand, make pictures to tell what they mean, and write the pictures into words. Continue to use drawing past those early years not only helps students to make personal connections with their writing, but also results in more natural writing and a greater range of writing genre. (See Drawing on Experience: Connecting Art and Language, by Karen Ernst daSilva)


• Have your child create a book. Make a book by folding pieces of paper in half and stapling them together. By second grade, your child should be able to write his or her own stories, with different sentences on each page. Ask your child to add drawings to the book. Put it (and your child’s other writings) where everyone can see them.

• Read together every day. Read with your child for at least 15 minutes each day. Experts say this is one of the most important things you can do! Make reading together a warm and loving time.

Q and A

Thank You for Coming!!

Johnett Scogin Donna Altuna Curriculum Coordinator K-3 Literacy Coach (512) 462-5205 (512) 462-5499 Voice/TTY Voice/TTY

[email protected] [email protected]

Learning to Write Well

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