WEEK 4 TEYL – TEACHING WRITING

1. WEEK 4 TEYL – TEACHING WRITING

2. What is writing?

3. Differences in written and oral language (1/2) Speaking: • Impermanent. • Immediate (unplanned). • Variation / Casual. • Low lexical density. • Communal activity. • Universal. Writing: • Permanent. • Delayed (planned). • Conventional / Stylized. • High lexical density.. • Solitary Activity. • Learned.

4. Differences in written and oral language (2/2) Speaking: • Simple sentences. • Voiced. • Pronounce. • Feedback . • Pause / Intonation. Writing: • Complex sentences. • Thought / Read. • Spell. • No feedback. • Punctuation.

5. Points to Remember: • Reading and writing develop together, not separately. • Models, collaboration, and choices promote writing. • Intentional teaching of writing develops young writers. Karen Bromley, 2000

6. Kinds of writing activities • 1. learning to write • 2. writing to learn

7. Stages of Writing • Drawing • Scribbles • Letter-like Forms • Letter Strings • Copying Environmental Print • Invented Spelling • Conventional Spelling

8. “If children are provided with marking tools, a suitable surface on which to write, and a safe place to play, they begin to make marks at quite an early age.” Judith Schickendanz, 2000

9. During scribbling, children learn to distinguish writing from drawing. Scribbles start out as random marks and transform to marks with meaning!

10. Stages of Writing • Drawing

11. Stages of Writing • Scribbles

12. Stages of Writing • Letter-like forms

13. Stages of Writing • Letter strings (letters reversed)

14. Stages of Writing • Copying environmental print

15. Stages of Writing • Invented spelling and conventional spelling (first name)

16. What kinds of activities do children need to participate in to develop the fine motor skills that will help them “prepare to write”? Object-handling activities that emphasize motor control, precision, and accuracy of movement.

17. Water play Writing in shaving cream/fun foam Lacing cards Tweezers games Play-dough Scissors Using a hole punch Clay Eyedroppers Pegboards Cotton swabs Sorting games Clothespins Puzzles Paintbrush and water Tearing paper Stringing beads Easel painting Writing with different tools Self-help skills Finger-painting Puppets Chalkboard writing Finger plays Suggested Activities

18. Stationery Note pads Order forms Receipts Calendars Chalk boards Dry erase boards Theme-shaped paper Post-it notes Unlined paper Variety of paper Clipboard with paper Ready-made books Paper plates Old forms Junk mail Etch-a-sketch Magnadoodle Textured paper Lined paper Things to Write On:

19. Chubby markers Thin markers Pencils Colored pencils Crayons Ball point pens Chalk Sidewalk chalk Dry erase markers Alphabet stamps Paint Gel pens Things to Write With:

20. Marker stand Tape Envelopes Writing caddy Ruler Stamps Magnetic letters Ink pad Index cards Stencils Yarn Scissors Wallpaper samples Magazines Catalogues Journals Word cards Sentence strips Accessories and Tools:

21. Kinds of Writing Activities include: • Journals • Message boards • Letters, cards • Lists • Write the room • Response to literature • Dictation

22. Journal Writing • Gives children opportunities to practice writing. • Develops the concept that writing has a purpose. • Provides opportunities for self-expression. • Is an activity you can do with your students by keeping your own journal, too.

23. Letters & Cards • Technology has led to less communication by handwritten letters. • Revive the lost art of letter-writing by sending letters or cards to friends for special events and holidays. • Let your students write a portion of the letter, or at least sign his or her name. • Help your student send thank you notes after receiving presents; it increases literacy and reinforces good manners.

24. Lists • We write many types of lists on a regular basis, including grocery lists and to-do lists. • Before going to the grocery store, let your student write his or her own list. • During the shopping activity, let your student be in charge of marking items off the list; this increases literacy.

25. Write the Room • Give your student a clipboard, paper, and pen or pencil. • Let your students go around the school /classroom and write the words that he or she sees.

26. Response to Literature • After reading aloud, choose a writing activity to respond to the story in some way. • Examples: write a new ending to the story, write a letter to a character in the story, write a list of characters in the story.

27. Dictation • Dictation is writing down the exact words your student tells you. • Dictated activities: • Demonstrate that what we think/say can be written. • Provide a model for writing. • Encourage children’s use of language. • Values children’s words.

28. Why is writing important? Writing is a: • form of output; thinking made evident; “thinking with a pencil”. • means of building fluency. • way of developing accuracy (in grammar, vocabulary, etc.). • premier way in which children think and express their ideas. • way children express creativity, uniqueness, and indicate what they want. • critical skill for academic or professional success.

29. What knowledge does a writer need in order to write?

30. Four kinds of knowledge that we need in order to write (1/2) Knowledge of language: • Spelling, Punctuation. Grammatical structures, Lexis, Cohesion and coherence Discourse types Knowledge of topic, i.e. knowing what we are writing about.

31. Four kinds of knowledge that we need in order to write (2/2) • Knowledge of audience i.e. knowledge of who we are writing to. • Stored writing plans: Background knowledge (schemata) e.g. formal schemata: formal, organisational structures of different types of text and content schemata: background knowledge of the content being written about.

32. Activity 1 [2]

33. Stages in the process of writing • Gathering information. • Generating ideas (making notes of the ideas you feel are relevant to the topic; the ideas you generate will be limited by the audience you have in mind). • Goal setting (deciding what you want to do with all the material you have generated, deciding on the main messages you want to send). • Organising (grouping the ideas you have generated and deciding on the order you want to present them, it will also involve thinking about the links between different sets of ideas).

34. Stages in the process of writing (2/2) • Making a first draft. • Reading your work and redrafting. • Editing • Final version.

35. Flowchart of the Writing Process (Hyland, 2008, p. 100)

36. Writing: The Neglected Skill in EFL • “My classes are too large.” • “I don’t have enough time for writing.” • “What can beginners write about?” • “I’m not a good writer. How can I teach writing?”

37. Problems with writing tasks in textbooks (1/2) • They are mainly accuracy-based. • They are designed to practise a certain target structures. • There is insufficient preparation before the writing stage. • There is no sense of audience. • There is no sense of authenticity.

38. Problems with writing tasks in textbooks (2/2) • Students are given ideas to express rather than being invited to invent their own . • There is no opportunity for creative writing, particular for expressing unusual or original ideas. • Many of them are test-oriented.

39. Writing activities should: • Help develop learners' writing skills. • Help them understand that writing has a purpose - to communicate thoughts and ideas. • Stimulate and encourage ‘creative’ writing.