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Interactive Writing

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Shared Writing

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The writing process.

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Giving students time to write.

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Often children ask how to spell a word, but teachers should help them think about how it can be spelled rather than spelling it for them.

During shared writing the teacher guides the discussion and models the writing, but the children assist in deciding what to write.

Kaufman, M. (2002). Putting it all together: from one first-grade teacher to another. (Teaching Ideas). The Reading Teacher, 55(8), 722+. Retrieved from http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA87011328&v=2.1&u=lom_marygrove&it=r&p=AONE&sw=w&asid=2cd0083316722f1955d7062f7e58f7f0

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Putting it all together: from one first-grade teacher to another. (Teaching Ideas)

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Through collaboration with other teachers I have learned that it is important to take an idea, make it work for you and your children, reflect and evaluate why it works, and be consistent. Many of the ideas here can be implemented or modified to meet the needs of your own children.

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Interactive writing can take on many different forms and is used in a variety of ways in the classroom. This type of writing helps build a bridge
between writing and all other areas of the curriculum. In this process, students and teachers collaborate in the construction of text while building onprior knowledge.

Clemens, J., Patterson, E., & Schaller, M. (2008). A closer look at interactive writing. The Reading Teacher, 61(6), 496+. Retrieved from http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA176867796&v=2.1&u=lom_marygrove&it=r&p=AONE&sw=w&asid=f0270639fa6121ffdbdb41ad9715b72a

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Interactive writing can be used in a variety of ways in the classroom. In addition to the aforementioned examples, we use interactive writing for retelling stories, sequencing events, making story maps, and responding to literature. Writing is integrated with math by having students contribute to class graphs, lists, and word problems. In science, students label diagrams, create charts, and construct projects.

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...many teachers continue to search for ways to teach writing mechanics in context and in engaging ways to make sense to students. Interactive writing lessons, when used along with focused minilessons during writer's workshop, can meet this need.

Wall, H. (2008). Interactive writing beyond the primary grades. The Reading Teacher, 62(2), 149+. Retrieved from http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA187694275&v=2.1&u=lom_marygrove&it=r&p=AONE&sw=w&asid=814715f6d1aa110ed9854edd1f1d156b

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Interactive writing beyond the primary grades

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In my classroom, interactive writing served to provide a shared text around which class discussions of grammar, punctuation, and writer's craft revolved. Interactive writing can provide students in the upper elementary grades a chance to apply and experiment with new and more advanced writing concepts with the help and support of their peers.

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Common Core emphasizes writing as communication.

Push students to get feedback from peers so they'll learn how to

effectively communicate with an audience. Kids are great storytellers. A visual prompt helps them get past the blank page and unlocks their imagination.

A picture's worth ... (2012, August). Instructor [1990], 122(1), 26. Retrieved from http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA301557254&v=2.1&u=lom_marygrove&it=r&p=AONE&sw=w&asid=4d66029a2581076621397dfe26513909

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ACTIVITY: Riley, the arts integration specialist, uses a website called Storybird (storybird.com) to help kids to create rich characterizations and narratives. "Storybird allows kids to write their own piece based on illustrations," she says. First, students find an illustration they connect with and figure out what happened beforehand.

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Like Smolev, I turned to writing as a way to

help make sense of these otherwise unexplainable

loses.

Bovenmyer, K. (2014). The word on Art & Words. Poets & Writers Magazine, 42(3), 11. Retrieved from http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA365982023&v=2.1&u=lom_marygrove&it=r&p=AONE&sw=w&asid=def31e45a1cd518b157dd4d359e3c5ac

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I am a writer who participated in the show described in Christie Taylor's "Art & Words Inspires Writers, Artists" (March/April 2014) in 2012 and 2013. What a blast! I loved seeing my words transformed into art, and writing a story for what the artist drew was a challenge, but a welcome change from other projects I was working on.

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Zumbrunn, S., & Bruning, R. (2013). Improving the writing and knowledge of emergent writers: the effects of self-regulated strategy development. Reading and Writing, 26(1), 91+. Retrieved from http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA321805117&v=2.1&u=lom_marygrove&it=r&p=AONE&sw=w&asid=c3a50fc2de8acd0db888552e13b76b6c

‘‘To be a good writer, you have to make sure you add a period when you’re done
with a sentence.’’ Almost all students mentioned substantive processes in their
responses at baseline, agreeing that including details and exciting words was
important in a good composition. Camden captured this well, ‘‘You want your
reader to feel like they’re there. You want your story to reach their heart.’’
Following instruction, all students mentioned substantive processes in their
responses and still agreed that details were important; however, five of the six
participants also mentioned SRSD components or procedures in their responses.
Specifically, students mentioned including all seven essential story components,
including MDWs, and monitoring their writing. Nathan said during the postinterview,
‘‘Good writers always re-read and make sure they have everything—you
know—all of the parts [essential story components].’’

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Improving the writing and knowledge of emergent writers: the effects of self-regulated strategy development

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The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of implementing the Self-Regulated Strategy Development (SRSD) model of instruction (Graham & Harris, 2005 Harris & Graham, 1996) on the writing skills and knowledge of six first grade students.

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"This brilliant insight into the transformative power of excellence chimes beautifully with the importance of modelling and the potential power of ‘shared writing’ when it produces writing of real excellence." Quigley, A. 2013. Shared writing: Modeling mastery. Retrieved from the link

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Most of my posts are about teaching strategies, the curriculum or the odd political rant. I have written very little on the subject of behaviour management. I

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"Students can learn to select and use writing strategies through a gradual release of responsibility."
U.S Department of Education. 2012. Teaching students to use the writing process for a
variety of purposes. Retrieved from the link

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"We know many things count in writing: craft, structure, significance, knowledge of genre, voice. We also know many strategies to teach those things. Unfortunately volume can be a hurdle in the way of our students reaching those goals."
Teachers College. 2014. Five easy tips for increasing volume in writing workshop. Retrieved from the link

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Adapted from The Quick Guide to Reaching Struggling Writers By Colleen Cruz

When many of us picture our ideal writing workshop classrooms, we imagine students spread about, heads bent to the task, writing utensils filling page after page of writing, perhaps with some soft music playing in the background. We imagine conferring and pulling small groups in order to teach rich strategies and to give encouragement.

Our realities can look somewhat different than that. We might see students who can't seem to get past their second sentence. Others who write one quick paragraph and call themselves done. And others still who, during the entire writing period, put nary a speck of writing on the page. When we go through our students' notebooks and folders we'll find students who have hardly any writing.

We know many things count in writing: craft, structure, significance, knowledge of genre, voice. We also know many strategies to teach those things. Unfortunately volume can be a hurdle in the way of our students reaching those goals. If there is not much writing on the page, it can be very challenging to teach into some of our loftier writing goals.

Following are five quick, easy strategies for increasing volume in your writing workshop classroom:

5. Change furniture and seating arrangements

This might not have been one of the ideas you expected first on the list. However, one of the first things occupational therapists ask about when discussing a student's writing is about their positioning. Where is the student sitting during writing time? Is the student able to write with both feet firmly touching the ground? Is the writing surface easy to reach for the writer - not to low, not too high? Has the writer tried writing on an elevated surface like a writing wedge or slant board? Odd as it may sound, sometimes the reason the writer is not producing as much volume as we'd like is that the writer needs his furniture to be more conducive to the way his body works to productive writing. By simply swapping out short chairs for tall chairs, lowering or raising tables, or having some students try writing on a raised surface, we might see a boost in volume.

4. Schedule writing time every day (even just a little)

When we expect something is happening regularly, we think about it all the time. If we know we always go to the movies on Friday night, we think about which movie we'd like to see all week. When we know we'll be having coffee from the same shop every morning, we start to get ourselves ready for what we'll order next time, even as we're finishing our last sip of today's cup. Writing is no different. When we make sure that writing is scheduled predictably, and students know that they will write every day, they start to live their lives differently. They start to think of how to fill up pages even before they sit down. Even if you can't manage to fit writing workshop into your schedule five days a week, even offering a quick writing activity as a 'Do Now' or as part of morning routine can let kids know that this is a class where we write every day and they will live accordingly.

3. Try quick writes

You might already be familiar with quick writes as a strategy for getting over writer's block. Writers take a short time (1-10 minutes, on average) and write as much as they can, fast and furiously, about anything. They don't worry about structure, content or even conventions. Instead, the idea is to simply record the writer's stream of consciousness. They are great for showing kids that one of the best ways of getting past writing road blacks is to write through them. Also, use quick writes to work on writing volume. Typically start with five minutes and coach the kids as they write to keep their pens moving. Then, when the time is up have them draw a line under the entry and count all the words they wrote. They celebrate with a partner all of the writing they managed to do in just five minutes. Then, in a little while, maybe a week, maybe two, do another quick write, challenging the students to try to write even more. Then have them compare their word counts. By doing this regularly, students see how this strategy can help them warm up their writing muscles, but also help them gage their writing fluidity and efficiency.

2. Find a student's go-to topic or strategy

[img src="http://readingandwritingproject.com/public/themes/rwproject/images/articles/5easytips2.jpg" alt="Boy Writing">Most of us teach students a repertoire of strategies for gathering and developing ideas in writing. For most students this is great because it gives them options and choice. Other students can be paralyzed by the choice. Alternately, some kids are singularly passionate about one particular topic. It's tempting sometimes for teachers to emphasize variety of strategy or topic. However, that can create an obstacle for students who shine when they are allowed to be single-minded. We can try to help students locate that one strategy or topic that works best for them by looking through their writing for the spots where they were the most successful. We can then name that topic or strategy for them so they know that the next time they get stuck, they can use what has worked for them in the past. We might say, "Lin, I notice that when you write about people that matter to you, you just can't stop writing. Maybe the next time you get stuck in your writing you can turn to that strategy - whether it's essay or poetry or whatever." Or, "Tom, I've noticed that whenever you write about basketball your writing seems to go on for pages. I'm thinking that might be a topic for you to turn to whenever you're writing and need some fresh ideas."

1. Swap writing utensils

Of all the tips that occupational therapists have given over the years, the one that makes the biggest difference the fastest is: students should not be writing long pieces in pencil. Graphite can be hard to push across the page. It requires a certain amount of pressure that can become tiring after awhile for those of us with strong fine motor skills, let alone those who struggle with them. When students write with pen, especially felt tip pen, several things can happen that can help increase volume. First of all, pens are easier to push across the page. Secondly, since the pens will bleed and not go if too much pressure is applied, the writer learns self-modulation of pressure. Third, the color of the ink stands out, making it easier for students to see their own writing, and easier for them to spot spelling and punctuation errors. Also, with pen, since students no longer can erase their work, but will instead learn to cross out with one line - precious data that shows their attempts at spelling, word choice, etc. will be preserved. As an added bonus, there's no more pencil sharpening, pencil breaking or repeated erasing.

It's also worth noting that for some students, the best path to writing volume will not be a pen, but rather technology. Whether this is access to a laptop or tablet, or else scribing technology, some students will be best served by learning how to use technology to record their writing and using it often.

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Teachers College Reading And Writing Project

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Five Easy Tips for Increasing Volume in Writing Workshop

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Adapted from The Quick Guide to Reaching Struggling Writers By Colleen Cruz When many of us picture our ideal writing workshop classrooms, we imagine students spread about, heads bent to the task, writing utensils filling page after page of writing, perhaps with some soft music playing in the background.

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"Young or inexperienced writers need to both observe knowledgeable writers at work and participate in writing events in authentic and well-supported ways."

Gibson, S. 2014. Shared writing. Retrieved from the link

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"Shared and interactive writing engages students in the writing process as well as to continue thinking about what it means to think and read as a writer."

Marie, M. 2010. The reading seed. Retrieved from the link.

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Content Writing
Combining writing with content-areas is a great way to have students practice and sharpen their writing skills as well as learn content-area knowledge through nonfiction texts. Not only do students get to use the information they are learning in nonfiction in a purposeful way, they are also able to see what it is like to "talk like a scientist" and "talk like a historian", etc. When students use their learned knowledge in a practical and real-world way, they begin to see the connections between what they learn in school and what goes on in the world around them. When students are young and still in school, they may seem to forget about the world around them and focus on the immediate: their friends, classmates, school, and home. However, when educators incorporate learned knowledge from nonfiction texts with writing strategies that aim at real-world issues or real things in the world... the knowledge comes alive.

Reading/writing strategies are just as important as the content-area knowledge being taught. It is these strategies that enable students to participate in and actively create their own knowledge. High levels of scaffolding are first needed when students are beginner writers or still struggling with writing. Before students are expected to connect the real-world with learned content-area knowledge, they must use reading and writing strategies with teacher aid. This process of steps ensures that the student understands the procedures of the strategy and utilizes them to translate content-area knowledge into meaningful and purposeful activities.

Interactive and Shared writing are just two strategies that teachers can use with their students to begin to grow competent writers. They both have an element of scaffolding and are great ways to open the doors of writing to young or struggling students.

Shared & Interactive Writing
Shared and interactive writing engages students in the writing process as well as to continue thinking about what it means to think and read as a writer. Students in shared and interactive writing are the writers. The teacher does not write for the students, but rather, she plays the role of "expert" as she writes with the students. In shared and interactive writing, the students practice making decisions and solving problems as writers do with a high level of scaffolding.

The topic of the writing, type of writing, and focus of the piece may be selected by the students, depending on their age and grade level. In most cases, the teacher makes these decision, especially if doing shared and interactive writing for the first time. When scaffolding younger students, all aspects of writing need to be touched upon. Such as: how to hold the pen, concepts of print, conventions of print, how to form letters, how to space, how to sound out words for spelling, and directionality of print.

Shared and interactive writing can be about virtually anything. It can be anything from compiling and writing a grocery list, recipe, letter to the president, letter to the principal, scientific observations, daily journal entry or description of an event. Remember that tying in content-area knowledge is best so that students see the connections between what they are learning about and how it relates to the real world and themselves.

Differences Between Shared & Interactive Writing
The main difference between shared and interactive writing is who is holding the pen. In shared writing, the teacher holds then pen and serves as the scribe. The teacher also serves the roles of: summarizer of ideas, questioner, and prompting for quick decisions on spelling and print concepts. The teacher must be sure to write the student's ideas quickly so that they may stay on task and not lose their ideas. With this out of the student's hands, they are able to focus more time and energy on language, features, and the style of writing that they want to achieve.

In interactive writing, the teacher and the student write together; it is a jointly written piece. The students engage in all the aspects of shared writing but now, additionally, they are the scribe as well. The teacher decides which students will write. Usually, the teacher chooses students that he knows need practice or will benefit from the interactive writing experience as well as students that will teach their peers something. The teacher can write words that he knows the students already know and understand such as "and" or "the", that way energy is focuses on unfamiliar or difficult words or ideas in the text.

Explore shared and interactive writing some more!:

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Content Writing Combining writing with content-areas is a great way to have students practice and sharpen their writing skills as well as learn content-area knowledge through nonfiction texts. Not only do students get to use the information they are learning in nonfiction in a purposeful way, they are also able to see what it is like to "talk like a scientist" and "talk like a historian", etc.

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"Interactive writing is used in teaching the early phases of writing, primarily with students in pre-kindergarten, kindergarten, and grade levels 1 and 2. In the interactive writing method the teacher and student share the pen, writing to each to each other in letters, dialog journals or using a message board. Kids choose their own topics and how long the text will be."

Teaching Resource Center. 2009. The interactive writing method. Retrieved from the link.

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"Students should understand the purpose of each genre (to describe, to narrate, to inform, or to persuade/analyze) so that they can select the genre best suited to their writing task."

Graham, S. 2012. What works clearinghouse. Retrieved from the link.

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The recommendations in this guide cover teaching the writing process, teaching fundamental writing skills, encouraging students to develop essential writing knowledge, and developing a supportive writing environment. All of these practices are aimed at achieving a single goal: enabling students to use writing flexibly and effectively to help them learn and communicate their ideas.
Download full practice guide >
Recommendation 1: Provide daily time for students to write

Level of evidence: Minimal

Providing adequate time for students to write is one essential element of an effective writing instruction program. However, recent surveys of elementary teachers indicate that students spend little time writing during the school day. Students need dedicated instructional time to learn the skills and strategies necessary to become effective writers, as well as time to practice what they learn. Time for writing practice can help students gain confidence in their writing abilities. As teachers observe the way students write, they can identify difficulties and assist students with learning and applying the writing process.

How to carry out the recommendation

The panel recommends a minimum of one hour a day devoted to writing for students, beginning in 1st grade (For students in kindergarten, at least 30 minutes each day should be devoted to writing and developing writing skills.). The hour should include at least 30 minutes dedicated to teaching a variety of writing strategies, techniques, and skills appropriate to students' levels, as detailed in Recommendations 2, 3, and 4 of this guide. The remaining 30 minutes should be spent on writing practice, where students apply the skills they learned from writing-skills instruction.

Time for writing practice can occur in the context of other content-area instruction. In science, for example, lab reports require detailed procedural writing and clear descriptions of observations. Students also can write For students in kindergarten, at least 30 minutes each day should be devoted to writing and developing writing skills. imaginary diary entries of people from the time period they are studying in social studies. Additionally, students can write before, during, and/or after reading, to articulate what they already know, what they want to know, and what they learned. When teachers integrate writing tasks with other content-area lessons, students may think more critically about the content-area material.
Download Recommendation 1 >
Recommendation 2: Teach students to use the writing process for a variety of purposes

Level of evidence: Strong

Writing well involves more than simply documenting ideas as they come to mind. It is a process that requires that the writer think carefully about the purpose for writing, plan what to say, plan how to say it, and understand what the reader needs to know. Instruction should include the components of the writing process: planning, drafting, sharing, evaluating, revising, and editing. An additional component, publishing, may be included to develop and share a final product.

Teach students the writing process

1. Teach students strategies for the various components of the writing process

Students need to acquire specific strategies for each component of the writing process. Students should learn basic strategies, such as POW (Pick ideas, Organize their notes, Write and say more), in 1st or 2nd grade. More complicated strategies, such as peer revising, should be introduced in 2nd grade or later. Many strategies can be used to assist students with more than one component of the writing process. For example, as students plan to write a persuasive essay, they may set goals for their writing, such as providing three or more reasons for their beliefs. Students should then devise a plan for periodically assessing their progress toward meeting these goals as they write. As students evaluate their draft text, they may reread their paper to determine whether they have met the goals they articulated during planning. If not, students may revise their writing to better meet their goals.

2. Gradually release writing responsibility from the teacher to the student

Writing strategies should be taught explicitly and directly through a gradual release of responsibility from teacher to student. Teachers should ensure that students have the background knowledge and skills they need to understand and use a writing strategy. Then, teachers should describe the strategy and model its use. Teachers also should articulate the purpose of the strategy, clearly stating why students might choose to use it as a way of improving their writing. Teachers then should guide students to collaborate in small groups to practice applying the strategy. Once students demonstrate an understanding of the strategy, the teacher should encourage students to practice applying it as they write independently. Teachers should make sure they do not release responsibility to students too early.

3. Guide students to select and use appropriate writing strategies.

When students initially learn to use writing strategies, teachers frequently should discuss when and how to use the strategies throughout the writing process, as well as why the strategies are helpful. Once students learn to use a variety of strategies independently, through the gradual release process, teachers should help them understand how to select appropriate strategies and use them across a range of writing tasks.

To help students select the appropriate writing strategy, teachers might consider posting strategies on a wall chart in the classroom. One column of the chart might include a list of all the strategies, and another column might provide a list of situations in which these strategies could be used. Once students are able to use a strategy effectively and independently, they can identify and add situations to the chart. Students also can identify opportunities to apply strategies in different content areas.

4. Encourage students to be flexible in using components of the writing process

Writing requires flexibility and change. Once students have acquired a set of strategies to carry out the components of the writing process, they need to be purposeful in selecting strategies that help them meet their writing goals. They also need to learn to apply these strategies in a flexible manner, moving back and forth between different components of the writing process as they develop text and think critically about their writing goals. For example, plans and already written text may need to be revised and edited numerous times to communicate more effectively, and writing must be polished to make it suitable for publication.

Teach students to write for a variety of purposes: How to carry out the recommendation

1. Help students understand the different purposes of writing

Students should understand the purpose of each genre (to describe, to narrate, to inform, or to persuade/analyze) so that they can select the genre best suited to their writing task.

2. Expand students' concept of audience

Writing for different purposes often means writing for different audiences. To help students understand the role of audience in writing, it is important to design writing activities that naturally lend themselves to different audiences. Otherwise, students may view writing in school as writing only for their teacher. When discussing writing purposes, teachers and students can generate a list of potential audiences for a given writing assignment. Students then can choose the audience that best fits their writing topic.

3. Teach students to emulate the features of good writing

Students should be exposed to exemplary texts from a variety of sources, including published or professional texts, books and textbooks, the teacher's own writing, and peer samples. Exemplary texts can illustrate a number of features, including text structure; use of graphs, charts, and pictures; effective word choice; and varied sentence structure.

4. Teach students techniques for writing effectively for different purposes

Students also must learn to use techniques that are specific to a purpose of writing. When developing a persuasive essay, for example, students can use the TREE (Topic sentence, Reasons-three or more, Ending, Examine) technique, whereby they make a plan for their paper that includes what they believe, reasons to support their beliefs, examples for each reason, and an ending.
Download Recommendation 2 >
Recommendation 3: Teach students to become fluent with handwriting, spelling, sentence construction, typing and word processing

Level of evidence: Moderate

When basic writing skills become relatively effortless for students, they can focus less on these basic writing skills and more on developing and communicating their ideas. However, younger writers must typically devote considerable attention to acquiring and polishing these skills before they become proficient. Spelling skills can affect the words students choose because they may be less likely to use words they cannot spell. Students also need to be able to generate strong, interesting sentences that vary in length and complexity in order to convey their intended meaning and engage readers.

When a student's writing contains spelling mistakes and poor handwriting, it can be difficult for the reader to understand what the student is trying to convey. Word processing programs can make many aspects of the writing process easier for students, including assisting students with spelling and handwriting difficulties to write more fluently.

How to carry out the recommendation

1. Teach very young writers how to hold a pencil correctly and form letters

Early writing instruction should begin with demonstrations of how to hold a pencil comfortably between the thumb and forefinger, resting on the middle finger. Teachers also should show young writers the most efficient and legible ways to form each letter, regardless of whether print or cursive script is used. Teachers also should show young writers the most efficient and legible ways to form each letter, regardless of whether print or cursive script is used. Because handwriting is a motor skill, it works best to practice in multiple short sessions. Students also should apply their handwriting skills in sentences and in authentic writing activities.

2. Teach students to spell words correctly

A relatively small number of words (850) account for 80 percent of the words elementary- grade students use in their writing. Teachers should help students learn to spell words they commonly use. Although many elementary schools have an explicit spelling curriculum, teachers should connect spelling instruction with writing as much as possible. Students should be encouraged to learn words they frequently misspell, as well as words they wish to include in their writing. Teachers also should help students acquire the skills they need to generate and check plausible spellings for words.

3. Teach students to construct sentences for fluency, meaning and style

Students should learn to write strong sentences that convey their intended meaning and engage readers. Teachers should focus sentence-level instruction on sentence construction, encouraging students to consider the meaning and syntax of the sentences they develop. Teachers also should explicitly demonstrate how sentence construction and sentence mechanics, such as punctuation and capitalization, interact to form strong sentences. Students also need instruction on how to use a variety of sentence structures in their writing.

4. Teach students to type fluently and to use a word processor to compose

Students should be introduced to typing in 1st grade. By 2nd grade, students should begin regular typing practice. By the end of 2nd or 3rd grade, students should be able to type as fast as they can write by hand. Instruction in typing should be accompanied by instruction in how to use a word processor.
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Recommendation 4: Create an engaged community of writers

Level of evidence: Minimal

Students need both the skill and the will to develop as writers.97 Teachers should establish a supportive environment in their classroom to foster a community of writers who are motivated to write well. In a supportive writing environment, teachers participate as writers, not simply instructors, to demonstrate the importance of writing. By taking part in writing lessons and activities, teachers convey the message that writing is important, valued, and rewarding.

How to carry out the recommendation

1. Teachers should participate by writing and sharing their writing

Teachers should model how the ability to write affects their daily lives, demonstrate the importance of writing to communicate, model the perseverance required to create a good piece of writing, and express the satisfaction that can come from creating a meaningful text. For example, a teacher could draft a letter or an email to a friend in front of students, thinking out loud to make the invisible act of composing - which occurs internally for experienced writers - more visible to students.

2. Give students writing choices

Teachers should provide opportunities for student choice in writing assignments - for example, choice in selecting writing topics or the freedom to modify a teacher-selected prompt.One way to foster choice is for students to keep a notebook in which they record topics for writing. Teachers also need to provide instruction and opportunities for students to practice writing to prompts.

3. Encourage students to collaborate as writers

Teachers can encourage students to collaborate throughout the writing process by brainstorming ideas about a topic, responding to drafts in a writing group, or helping peers edit or revise their work. Collaboration also can take the form of collaborative writing, whereby students jointly develop a single text.

4. Provide students with opportunities to give and receive feedback

Students need to know whether their writing is accurately and appropriately conveying its message. One way students can determine this is by sharing their writing and responding to written and verbal feedback from the teacher and their peers. Although teachers should provide feedback to students through teacher-student conferences and rubrics, peers also should be encouraged to participate in the feedback process. Students also need to be taught strategies and appropriate language for written feedback.
Download Recommendation 4 >

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Teaching Elementary School Students to Be Effective Writers

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The recommendations in this guide cover teaching the writing process, teaching fundamental writing skills, encouraging students to develop essential writing knowledge, and developing a supportive writing environment. All of these practices are aimed at achieving a single goal: enabling students to use writing flexibly and effectively to help them learn and communicate their ideas.

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"Writing well involves more than simply
documenting ideas as they come to mind.
It is a process that requires that the writer
think carefully about the purpose for writing,
plan what to say, plan how to say it, and
understand what the reader needs to know."

The Institute for Educational Sciences. 2012. Teaching elementary school students to be effective writers. Retrieved from the link below.

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"After all (and I can't stress this enough), writing is simply communicating, but through the pencil's lead rather than through the person's lips." Parrish, A. 2013. Retrieved from the following link.

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Editor's Note: A version of this post first appeared on Techie Teacher and Character Coach.

"But Miss Parrish, I can't think of anything to write!"

Haven't we all heard similar lines in our classrooms? We see hesitant writers sit with pencils in their hands and paper on their desks, almost as if they've been handicapped by the task we have set for them.

How is it that some students have so much to say when talking, but when a pencil is put into their hand they suddenly hesitate, struggle, and have nothing to say? How can we help these hesitant writers eliminate the barrier that suddenly appears when they're asked to write?

The answer is to have them produce ideas without writing at all. That's right, the way to get hesitant writers to produce as much writing as they do talking is to have them do exactly that -- talk.

Strategies That Work
1. Student Talks, Teacher Writes

Have your student stand up while you sit at the desk.

Pick up the student's pencil and say, "You talk, I'll write."

This usually catches students off-guard -- it takes them a moment to realize this is a real option.

2. Audio Record It & Then Transcribe It

Identify a way your students can record themselves speaking their essay rather than writing it. This could be a tape recorder, a digital audio recorder, a computer with a microphone, or an audio recording feature on a phone.

Hand the recording device to your student and say, "Step out in the hall and recite your essay using this."

They can then play the recording back and write down their words.

3. Audio Transcribe It

Pick an app or tool that transcribes speaking as text. Some options: PaperPort Notes, Dragon NaturallySpeaking, Dictation Pro, VoiceTranslator, or the text-to-speech tools that are built into many smartphones. Try one of these on your phone, tablet, or computer.

Tell your students, "Go ahead -- speak your paper."

After speaking, the students can email themselves the transcribed text and work on the draft from there.

Communication Before Craft

The sooner students (and teachers) see that writing has nothing to do with a pencil, a piece of paper, or a keyboard, and is simply communicating, the sooner they will start making incredible progress. Barriers will come down. The hesitation of putting the pencil on the paper to write will go away. In my view, writing is simply communicating through pencil marks rather than through speech.

Our concern is not whether a student communicates through a pencil and pen, keyboard, chalkboard, audio transcription device, or other means. Our real hope and goal is for individuals to capture their high-quality thoughts and convey them effectively to others. The strategies here break down the barriers between a student's mind and their audience. These strategies free up thinkers to express their thoughts without the hesitation that makes some students' minds go blank as they pick up that pen or pencil.

How have you helped students write without putting pen to paper (or pixel to page)?

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3 Strategies to Fire Up Hesitant Writers | Edutopia

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Editor's Note: A version of this post first appeared on Techie Teacher and Character Coach. "But Miss Parrish, I can't think of anything to write!" Haven't we all heard similar lines in our classrooms? We see hesitant writers sit with pencils in their hands and paper on their desks, almost as if they've been handicapped by the task we have set for them.

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"The reasons for our students’ inability to write well enough to meet our expectations are many and varied" (Schmit. D. The IDEA Center. 2010.)

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It's not that I like this idea just for organization, but it also gave me an idea for interactive notebooks for my students.

Goshert, D. 2014. Retrieved from http://www.teachingwithamountainview.com/2014/06/cutting-corners-with-interactive.html

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Teachers never stop working. I know we hear it all the time, but now I have proof! I posted a blog a little over a week ago, about The 5 Changes I made that Saved My Sanity, and that blog that I dreamt up in the middle of an early-morning shower is now the second most viewed post in the history of my blog. In the middle of summer! A teacher's job is never truly done!

Enough about my shock and awe and more about a simple, but incredibly useful, idea from one of my Facebook fans. It was featured in my previous blog post, but it was hidden amongst all the other brilliant ideas from my Facebook fans. This one in particular got a lot of attention on the post I put on Facebook, so I contacted the teacher who wrote the idea, and she was kind enough to give me a lot more information! Denise Goshert is starting her 29th year teaching (!!). She's taught in 2 states, 3 districts, and 6 schools teaching 4th and 5th grades as well as a gifted pull out program. Here is her original Facebook Post, in response to me asking what saved their sanity this year:

Does it drive you crazy to see your students shuffling through the notebooks trying to find their next empty page? Do they constantly leave empty pages between entries? Do YOU hate having to spend time finding the page you are looking to assess? Then, the cutting corners method will save your sanity, in just SECONDS!

In Denise's words, here is how she has used the "Cutting Corners" method with her students with great success. Thanks again, Denise!

I've used the "Cutting Corners" method (my students chuckle at the pun) for years with writing/journal spirals, workbooks.

So this year since I decided to try Interactive Notebooks in Math with my 5th grade Honor Students & 5th grade Social Studies/Science I thought it would work just a great. I have students use spirals that are on their supply list.

First, when students are labeling (or decorating) their cover, it's important that they do NOT write name (or anything important or want saved) in the upper right corner. I have students write name in lower right corner - having to grade so many, it's easier if I am able to locate name easily. Likewise, if anything is glued on the inside cover they don't write on the upper left corner. I also teach students to keep the top right margin cleared on every page. This is the corner that will get cut. Yes, the cover gets cut too.

For my interactive notebooks for SS/Sci, students write what was Learned on the Left (ie vocab, questions, etc.) and Reflect on Right for each lesson. I collect spirals 1-2x a week. Since we give letter grades on report cards I grade each lesson. After the assignment is graded, I cut the upper right corner so it's ready for next lesson.

For Math since we do standard based scoring, I collect the notebooks prior to unit test to give a rubric score for effort. Corner gets cut ready for next unit.

I also cut corners in students Writing Rough Draft spirals at their last Informal Teacher Conference.

The cutting corners makes it so easy for students to find the next available page to use. Just put thumb on the upper corner (which is the next available page) & flip. They love when I show this trick. They are in awe it's so cool to see their faces when I say ta da & flip. Then they all try it. 😊

It has even saved my most disorganized student. He/She may take moments to locate actual spiral (lol) but once found it's a cinch to get to the correct page.

For me, it's a lifesaver. Grading all those spirals - half the battle was locating the current assignment to grade. Now I just place my thumb on upper right corner, flip & ta da.

I do the cutting as it also reminds me whose I've graded in case I get distracted in the middle - yes that happens. Lol!

It works so well that quite a few of my students use this organizational method on their Assignment Books. Love it!

I set all this up with my beginning of the year routine & procedures.

1 - a great deal of little triangular scraps but I just make a pile & scoop in trash can.

2- & this one is important. There are some students who are actually dramatized when their pages get cut. It's not all students but it's happened with students who tend to be perfectionists as well as those on the spectrum. For this reason, I start with my own spiral capturing them with the ta da. Then I do spend time explaining the reason. For my perfectionist they usually get hooked on the organizational piece if it. For my students who I know have IEPs or 504s I approach respectfully, give them a chance to try my ta da. Then ask if they are ready to try theirs. These helps ease in to it. I learned this the hard way when I first started and just showed then began clipping. We went to PE & when I returned I found one of my students (just diagnosed that summer) in the trash can taking out "his" corner to tape it back. My heart sank for him. So I helped him replace it (he didn't want new spiral) & then talked to him. He smiled & went off to PE. A week later he came up to me & asked if I could cut his corner. 😊

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Cutting Corners with Interactive Notebooks

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Teachers never stop working. I know we hear it all the time, but now I have proof! I posted a blog a little over a week ago, about The 5 Changes I made that Saved My Sanity, and that blog that I dreamt up in the middle of an early-morning shower is now the second most viewed post in the history of my blog.

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Students have limited phonemic awareness when producing writing. Many writers are writing letter strings.