Learning+To+Write



Children need to be able to write in order to tell complex stories, and it doesn’t just involve being able to spell but also correct letter formation, learning to use a pencil, creating sentences and words in order to convey meaning. (Hill 2006, pg 279) The child goes through stages over time as they learn to write. These stages are beginning, early-emergent, emergent, early and transitional. (Hill 2006, pg283)

Spelling is essential in writing, it ensures that the ideas and information written down can be read by others. The child begins by learning high-frequency words, topic words being learnt in the curriculum followed by words they cannot spell.
 * __Spelling __**

The following is a link to Fry’s 300 High-Frequency words often used in the classroom: http://www.usu.edu/teachall/text/reading/Frylist.pdf Spelling involves the use of phonics when sounding out a word and a child will often begin playing with lines, pictures, numbers and other symbols which is called // pre-phonic // spelling. From this pre-phonic spelling the child will progress through stages from semi-phonetic, phonetic, transitional spelling to independent spelling. (Hill 2006, pg 267-269) A range of activities and strategies can be used to improve spelling such as look-cover-write-check, phonics, word building, mnemonics or memory triggers.

The following is a short movie showing ways to teach children to write some easy first words. media type="youtube" key="0aEgllNsfqM&hl=en" height="355" width="425"

When teaching writing there are four main strategies that teachers can use. These strategies are modelled writing, shared writing, guided writing, independent writing and language experience. (Hill 2006, pg 299-306) __ Modelled Writing __The teacher chooses a teaching point and holds the pen and writes therefore demonstrating to the class. The teacher talks about the thought process involved. __ Shared Writing __ The teacher acts as a scribe and responds to the ideas created by the children. The children share the planning and decision making processes with the teacher. __ Guided Writing __ Children hold the pen and do the writing in small groups or are told what to write. __ Independent Writing __ The child chooses the topic and writes about it independently. __<span style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman','serif'"> Language Experience __<span style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman','serif'"> The teacher scribes for the children but the child attempts some of the writing, for example they attempt the easy parts but the teacher records the harder parts.
 * __<span style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman','serif'">Teaching Writing __**

The following website discusses a range of strategies to teach young children how to write and read simple words and also discusses the transition to forming sentences. [|http://literacyconnections.com/Dolch.php</span]>