Literacy Focus on writing

1. Literacy Focus on writing How to write like a… mathematicianlinguistscientistdesignermusiciancritichistorian philosophergeographerjudgemanagerartist

2. Focus on writing Discuss how pupils can be a good writer in your subject area. Bullet point the main ideas. With colleagues, try to come up with a common list;when teaching writing, what are our common goals? Identify what is ‘unique’ about writing in your subject area: what ‘genres’ of writing do they need to be able to use?

3. TEACHING WRITING – good practice • There should be a focus on authentic or ‘real’ writing • We should be modelling writing, and sharing construction • We should allow talk time before independent construction • We need to use a common language when sharing conventions and expectations

4. Dependence Explore conventions Demonstrate Share composition Scaffold it Independence Including ‘bad’ models TEACHING WRITING – a teaching sequence Show students the process of writing Correct/change/improve www.geoffbarton.co.uk Make it collaborative / talk time Move from small to larger sections

5. ‘This came courtesy of science teacher extraordinaire, Darren Mead. It’s abundantly clear from this scrawled snapshot that while Mr Mead may not value presentation, he puts a lot of thought into designing success criteria which focus on both how and why students are being asked to write like scientists. Why can’t every piece of writing students are expected to do be as carefully considered?’ www.learningspy.co.uk

6. TEACHING WRITING – key ingredients • Identify the topic, audience and purpose in the task • Explore layout (headings, paragraphs, bullet points, italics, quotations etc.) • Look at structure and chronology • Decide on the formality (abbreviations, technical words) • Decide on impersonality (should pupils use ‘I’, opinion or third person) • Think about vocabulary (expert/technical words, spelling)

7. TEACHING WRITING – top tips • Use short and long sentences – use short sentences at the beginning and end of paragraphs for clarity • Use paragraphs – as a rule-of-thumb three to five paragraphs a page • Vary sentence openings for interest • Use connectives appropriate to the type of writing • Use key vocabulary • Use punctuation for clarity

10. Writing mats • Use the examples and other writing resources to work collaboratively on developing a writing mat template. There are more examples of writing mats saved in the staff area.

11. Ways forward • Is it possible to come up with a common template for departments to use? • What can we focus on, as a whole school, that will have an impact on pupil progress in their writing?