Writing Instruction in the
Language-Based
Classroom
Caitlin Parker, M.S. Ed.
Landmark Outreach Program
Language Demand
Receptive
Expressive
(Processing)
(Production)
Listening
Speaking
Oral
Internal
Language
Reading
Writing
Written
Moving on to Writing
So why is it so hard for our students?
● Pace
● Volume
Generating Ideas - where do they come from?
Organization - how to know what goes where?
Details and Elaborations - how to expand and enhance writing?
● Complexity
Voice - what is an “inner voice? how to choose the right words?
Word Choice - how to use higher-level vocabulary?
Writing’s “Hidden Demands”
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Comprehension
Study Skills
Critical Thinking
Organization
Text Structure
Voice
Oral Rehearsal
Hidden Demand - Comprehension
● Writing or Oral Prompts
○ What are they being asked to do?
● Literature Analysis
● Topics / Main Ideas / Supporting Details
○ start big & break down → start small & assemble
Hidden Demand - Study Skills
● Time
● Information
● Materials
Hidden Demand - Critical Thinking
● Bloom’s Taxonomy →
○ Evaluation, Analyze, Explain, Compare, Differentiate,
Evidence, Create, Apply, Examine, Interpret, Summarize,
Predict, Identify…
● Abstract vs. Concrete
● “Reading between the lines”
Hidden Demand - Organization
Topic Sentence
Detail
Elaboration
Detail
Elaboration
Detail
Elaboration
Conclusion/Transition
Hidden Demand - Text Structure
Narrative
Sequential
Enumerative
Cause and Effect
Compare/Contrast
Simple Process
Descriptive
Hidden Demand - Oral Rehearsal
Hidden Demand - Voice
Discussion can sometimes fall to the wayside, but it is
needed to:
● informal, narrative, storytelling → complex, expository, essay
writing
● assignments become more objective and academic as students
move through grades
● need to learn new writing structures each year
● can not use personal references anymore
● catch mistakes early in the process!
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promote thinking
practice analytical skills
clarify concepts
identify new information
link topics together
organize thoughts
increase collaboration
access background knowledge
Areas of Difficulty to Expect
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Planning
Form and Structure
Organization Skills
Mechanical Skills
Demands of Language
Fine Motor Skills
Spelling
Higher Levels of Language
Areas of Difficulty Form & Substance
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Topic and thesis development
Supporting evidence
Transitional words and phrases
Forming conclusions
Order and flow
Areas of Difficulty Mechanical Skills
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Phonetic spelling and spelling rules
Spellcheck
Interior punctuation
Sentence structure
Proper nouns
Proofreading checklists
Areas of Difficulty - Planning
Our students want to skip this stage:
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just start writing...
can be resistant to templates
stream of consciousness style
leads to a lack of focus and substance
All academic writing needs planning!
Areas of Difficulty - Organization
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Staying on topic
Going on tangents
Details w/corresponding elaborations
Examples that are relevant
● Words → Sentences
● Sentences → Paragraphs
● Paragraphs → multi-paragraphs
Areas of Difficulty Language Demands
Higher Level Language
● Remember how much we are asking of students:
○ READING & LISTENING
○ SPEAKING & WRITING
● Limited vocabulary → may not follow along
● Applying rules (grammar, sent. structure, etc.)
Area of Difficulty - Fine Motor Skills
● Handwriting
● Keyboarding
● Writing may be less detailed or thoughtful because the
physical act of putting words on paper is too strenuous
○ templates
○ e-mails
● Misinterpretations:
○ poor communication
○ less motivated
Guiding Principles for Writing Instruction
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Oral to written
Word, sentence, paragraph progression
Use of thematically related language - do we want to do this?
Explicit teaching of sentence structures from simple to complex
Teach limited number of organizers
Write for expression first, mechanics separately
Sentence Frameworks
1.
ART + NOUN + VERB
2.
ART + NOUN + VERB + WHERE PREP. PHRASE
a.
a.
3.
The dogs ran down the street.
ART + ADJ + NOUN + VERB + WHERE PHRASES
a.
4.
The dogs ran.
The fast dogs ran down the street.
ART + ADJ + ADJ + NOUN + VERB + WHERE PHRASE + WHEN PHRASE
a.
The fast barking dogs ran down the street on a cold afternoon.
Area of Difficulty - Spelling
● Students will choose easier words when they can not
spell the ones they want
● Lack of sophistication in their writing
● Lack of effectiveness in their writing
● Support: phonetically, spell check, write for expression
first
As their LB teachers, we need to...
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use high interest topics and themes
tap into student’s background knowledge
provide templates and models
spend lots of time on oral rehearsal
teach how to add details
set clear expectations
use cueing techniques - gestural, pictorial, semantic, phonemic,
graphemic
- provide regular practice of skills to ensure automaticity
- layer teacher language on top of student language
Sentence Syntax - Compound and Complex
Sequence for Sentence Combining
1.
(NOUN + VERB) and (NOUN + VERB)
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2.
(NOUN + VERB) + (but clause)
3.
(NOUN + VERB) + (because clause)
4.
(NOUN + VERB) + (adverbial clause)
a.
a.
a.
a.
The dogs barked and the cats ran.
The dogs barked but the cats did not run.
The dogs barked because they were excited.
The dogs barked when they ran down the street.
(Adverbial clauses express when, why, where, opposition, and conditions)
This is when we can layer
in the sentence
frameworks for higher
grades… look at #4 and
add an expanded kernel
sentence →
“The loud barking dogs
quickly ran down the empty
street as the cats hid
because they were
scared.”
Process Writing
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Establish a topic that is familiar to your students (this can be a collaborative
process)
Use a specific writing plan
Use templates
Include plenty of oral rehearsal
Create specific proofreading checklists (capitals, omitted words, punctuation,
spelling, generic words, repeated words, etc.)
Write multiple drafts
Build multi-paragraph compositions from combinations of paragraph types
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Inserting adjectives and adverbs
a. color, size, shape, number
Producing compound subjects and objects
Producing compound sentences
a. FANBOYS → for, and, now, but, or, yet, so
Producing complex sentences and sentences with adverbial clauses
a. because, after, when, until
Producing sentences with relative or adjective clauses
a. who, that, which, when, where, why, what kind, how many, which one
Process Writing - A Writing Process
Younger Grades 1-5
Older Grades 6-8+
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read the prompt/question
underline key words/ideas
write a topic sentence
brainstorm 5 ideas, pick 3
write the body
write a concluding sentence
proofreading
rewrite
brainstorm
template
rough draft
edit
final draft
Personal Narrative Sequence (PNS)
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about a specific event that has been personally experienced
uses clear transition words to mark sequences
- first, then, next, after that, finally
written in the 1st person
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slightly less formal than an expository essay
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teacher should model this first, then move to a whole class model
Topic Sentence Strategy
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When:_____________________________
Who:______________________________
What:_____________________________
Where:____________________________
WHEN + WHO + WHAT + WHERE
ENTIRE CLASS → SMALL GROUP → INDIVIDUAL
Details and Elaborations
Prewriting and Planning
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Ex. On a chilly fall day, my grandparents and I went to the farm to pick apples in
Southern New Hampshire.
create mini-events based on the topic sentence
helpful to create a timeline
do this in class so you can guide the process
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Paragraph Strategy - Detail Circle
Semantic Cohesion
noun - synonym - pronoun balance
Original Noun
Synonym
NOUN
Pronoun
Why
- “Why did you go apple picking?” … because I wanted to make apple crisp
Who
- “Who did you go with? Just your grandparents?” … my grandparents, and
their dog, Bailey
What
- “What orchard did you go to?” … Fosters Orchard
Where
- “Where was Bailey while you were there?” … he was running all around
the trees
When
- “When did you finish apple picking?” … we left around dinner time so that
we could go home and eat with my parents
Synonym
Last winter, my family and I went
on a vacation to Key West in
Florida. I saw several sharks
swimming in the ocean. These
scary fish were swarming all
around our tour boat. They had
large pointed fins on their backs.
The largest of the sea creatures
hung around the boat all afternoon,
even after the other sharks left.
Overall, it was a memorable
experience to get to see such great
predators up close.
Creating Flow
Creating More Flow
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Adding an Inference Sentence with WHY
a. The kids baked an apple crisp because it was their mother’s birthday.
Adding basic facts
a. We picked 4 different kinds of apples.
Adding adjective Detail
a. The apples were bright red with chocolate brown stems.
Adding a Quotation
a. My grandmother said, “How are we going to carry all these apples?”
Adding a Simile
a. The rows of trees looked like a beautiful painting.
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PSN Templates
Adding a FOR INSTANCE sentence
a. There were many kinds of apples we picked, like McIntosh, Gala and
Red Delicious.
Adding a HOW TO sentence
a. We climbed up the ladders, used our hands to pick, and then handed the
apples to my grandfather.
Adding Humor
a. It was funny when an apple fell on his head!
Contrasting Idea
a. Last year, we didn't get to go apple picking because we were away.
Adding inference/probability sentence with HOW
a. We picked lots of apples so we would have enough to make a big apple
crisp.