Students are never too young to write. It should be a focus of early education to instill a love of literacy in students. We generally get from our students what we expect. With that being said, I am sharing with you a few tips for your ELA classrooms in Elementary and even Primary schools. (Much has already been said about the upper grades in previous posts.)
- Teach, teach, teach the writing process.
- Write EVERYDAY at least 45-60 minutes actively…
- It really is as easy as PIE: Persuade, Inform, Entertain
- Review the Traits of Writing.
- Be familiar with the writing standards.
- Have high expectations for all.
- Develop routines and classroom management.
- Conference with all students. Conferencing can be as simple as sitting down and talking 2-4 minutes about the writing. Students can move to you, you may go to students, or you may just rove about the class and stop for impromptu conferences. Students can share what they are writing, you can ask questions, or you can read parts of the papers. Always leave students with something to try or revise.
- Decide how you will keep writing records. Find something that works for you. Schedule a few conferences daily. Devote any extra time to struggling students.
- Read, read, read to and with students. Talk about the reading. Journal about the reading.
- Teach important vocabulary words. Use research-based strategies to teach.
- Revise, revise, revise the writing. (See Cleaning-up-the-Mess posts.)
- Writer’s Workshop (Writing Workshop) still works.
- If you are using the Daily Five approach, remember that the writing center is only part of the suggested writing time. There is also a recommended writing block that is often ignored…
- Get creative. Buy funky writing utensils and paper. Have them use thin white paper plates as paper. Write on cardboard. Do whatever it takes.
- Research is available that supports using paper and pencil over word processing. Balance is the key.
- Think. Reflect. Organize. Start with a clear learning and writing goal. Give short, direct writing assignments with real-life applications. Model writing as thinking.
- To facilitate spelling:
- Word wall with pictures when appropriate
- Books, books, books
- Poems
- Charts
- Posters
- Writing
Who’s to blame if a student doesn’t master a standard if we are not teaching it?
Happy writing.