4.+Teaching+Writing

Teaching writing is very similar to teaching writing. There are several approaches to teaching writing however the most successful are: modelled writing, shared writing, interactive writing, guided writing and independent writing. There are many things that need to be taken into consideration when teaching a child to write. When teaching student’s in prep the teacher must begin from the very basics for example: how to hold a pencil, how the write the letters of the alphabet and writing from left to right. In a modelled writing lesson, teachers act as scribes and write in front of the children, putting words together to make meaning of print. Teachers also ‘think out loud’ and verbalize what they are doing. (Learning to Read, 2006) Shared writing is a teaching process where the teacher and children collaborate to write a text together, using a ‘shared pen’ technique that involves children in the writing. The teacher has most of the responsibility as he/she acts as the scribe. The children are invited to write the parts they know while the teacher fills in the unknown. Interactive writing is a continuation of shared writing. Once the children have worked together and decided on a topic to write about the teacher takes a step back and writes the easier words instead of the harder ones. The students will be able to attempt new words as well as sentence structure, punctuation and paragraphing. (Learning to Read, 2006) Guided writing is a teaching component designed to teach specific skills or strategies to a whole group, small group or individuals and to give children practice in writing. Each child has their own writing materials and space. The children do the writing, but are 'supported when needed by a teacher who provides instruction through mini-lessons and conferences.' (Learning to Read, 2006) In independent writing, children write their own pieces by themselves. Children need only some kind of writing tool and something to write on.