Literacy

Literacy - Writing Policy

‘What the child can do in co-operation today he can do alone tomorrow.’

(Vygotsky 1934).

Introduction

As part of PRSD the principal has researched issues related to the performance of boys within schools. There is a real need to focus on their performance in the area of Literacy generally and on writing per se. However, this focus will address the performance of all pupils, as writing is a core learning skill and is at the heart of all areas of study.

It is important that we review annually our standards of writing and the children’s test scores at the end of KS1/2 on a whole-school basis.

A specific focus on guided writing, will support staff and help them to improve the teaching of writing across all key stages.

Belvoir’s Guided Writing Aims:

to help define clear messages about the assessment, planning and teaching of writing;

strengthen a focus on teaching methods specifically for guided writing;

illustrate effective classroom practice in the teaching of writing.

Why focus on Guided Writing in Belvoir?

Guided writing is an essential component of a balanced writing curriculum, providing an additional supported step towards independent writing.

Through guided writing, children are scaffolded during the various stages of the writing process.

It should be carefully targeted towards groups of children according to their current targets or specific needs.

Guided writing would normally follow on from shared writing, though not necessarily during the same session.

Teachers should consider carefully the purpose of the guided session and select the children accordingly.

The aim is to provide support that is going to help children to improve their writing and to work with increasing independence.

Guided Writing

Guided writing enables the teacher to match their teaching to the needs of the group and facilitates the teaching and learning of individual children.

Although guided writing is a group activity focused on the needs of the group, the teacher is able to observe and respond to the needs of individuals within the group.

It provides the teacher with the opportunity to extend and challenge more-able groups of children.

The focus encourages the children to be active participants in discussions about their writing.

It helps builds confidence because the group are all grappling with the same issues.

Crucially, it allows the teacher to give immediate feedback on success and the opportunity to discuss further areas for improvement.

A Teaching Sequence for Writing in Belvoir

One of the key ways to facilitate and support the teaching of writing is through a structured approach to planning. We must provide a model of planning for learning across longer, extended units of work where reading, planning and writing occur in the context of a rich and varied curriculum.

We will use a structured sequence to planning where the children and teachers began by:

familiarising themselves with a text type;

capturing ideas for their own writing;

followed by scaffolded writing experiences resulting in independent written outcomes.

The planning model can be used to support learning across a short, five-day unit or longer units of four to five weeks.

Time spent on a unit depends on the text type and the needs of the children.

Improvement in writing follows quality teaching in Belvoir

Engaging the children as readers in a quality text type/genre at the outset of the short-term plan provides a critical reference point throughout the subsequent learning experience.

By developing personal responses to texts and understanding how they as readers have been manipulated, the children extend their understanding of the patterns and cadences of the

text type/genre.

Typical approaches used by teachers at the familiarisation phase in the planning process include:

reading for pleasure and enjoyment of the text;

learning the reading skills required by the format and medium of publishing, such as reading onscreen;

higher order comprehension reading skills, for example, to identify the author’s intent;

reading as a writer to identify structures, vocabulary and techniques for use in their own writing.

The process of capturing ideas begins once the children are secure with a text type/genre.

At this stage in the writing process the children explore the text type/genre through quality experiences that support the transfer of patterns, structures and cadences of the text into their spoken language.

This process is sometimes referred to as ‘talk for writing’.

The Writing Ladder

Familiarisation with the genre/text

Capturing ideas

Teacher scribing

Supported writing

Independent writing

The process of capturing ideas can include:

role-play;

drama;

visualisation;

small world play;

planning approaches such as drawing, maps, diagrams, flow charts and photographs.

While familiarisation with a text type/genre and capturing ideas are valid learning processes in their own right, they also provide the models and content that can be drawn on throughout the writing process.

As the writing ladder above shows, a combination of learning and teaching approaches can be combined to enable the children to write independently in the chosen text type/genre at different stages in the writing process.

A writing session may begin with the teacher using shared writing to demonstrate how to engage a reader at a critical stage in the writing. In the same session the children use supported composition to practise and apply new skills.

Teaching strategies to improve writing on the following pages outline of the various approaches.

As the children develop their own independent written work over a number of sessions they should be supported to:

transfer ideas from plans into writing;

apply strategies and skills gained as readers to meet the needs of an audience;

draft their writing for meaning and content.

When appropriate for the text type and the audience, the learning and teaching approaches also support the children in proofreading and publishing their writing.

At all phases of the planning process drama, role-play, ICT, media and speaking and listening approaches can be drawn on to support the children to achieve the learning objectives.

When approaching a unit plan the following points need to be addressed to ensure the unit meets the learning needs of the pupils.

Successful planning to support writing includes:

identification of children needs, based on effective AfL and linked to curricular targets;

an understanding of the prior learning required to undertake a unit of work;

making decisions about the number and structure of phases and the anticipated number of days

required to secure the learning at each phase;

at various points during the unit, adjusting the plan to provide opportunities to revisit and secure aspects of the children’s learning;

intervention through guided writing sessions that are identified to address specific learning needs with groups of children.

Strategies to improve writing.

Teaching Strategy	Key Principles	Advantages	Examples
Modelled writing Demonstration	Teacher, as the expert, demonstrates the writing process. The teacher articulates the process and emphasises specific teaching points related to the lesson objectives.	Gives children the opportunity to understand the choices a writer makes during the process of writing.	I’m beginning my story with the setting, I want it to be gloomy so I’m going to start by writing, ‘The sky seemed as though it was weeping…’ When we write an explanation we have to start with an opening sentence that tells us what we are trying to explain so I’ll start like this…
Shared writing Scribing	Teacher involves the children in composition by asking for their ideas and structuring discussion. Teacher takes children’s ideas and refines them Before scribing.	Allows children to concentrate on composition without worrying about transcription. Offers further opportunities to be active participants in the writing process.	We are writing a recount about our visit to the zoo. Talk to your partner and decide on a good opening sentence. I have written the first paragraph but I don’t think it emphasises how strongly I feel about the new motorway. Can you give me ideas how I might improve it?
Shared writing Supported composition	Used during or after shared writing. Children work in pairs to discuss choices. Objective is precisely structured.	Allows teacher to immediately assess understanding. Revises and consolidates shared work.	Talk to your partner for two minutes and compose a question to ask the author. We have been looking at how a verb can show how a character moves or speaks. On your whiteboards, change the verbs in this sentence to illustrate character.
Guided writing	Children are grouped on the basis of ability and need. Teacher analyses writing, prioritises a focus and sets targets for each group.	Teaching is tailored to specific needs of the group. Builds confidence and encourages children to be active participants in writing conferences.	I have looked at your writing and today I want to show you how you can make your writing more interesting to the reader, by changing the word order of some of your sentences. I’ll begin with this sentence from Jack’s work…

Assessment for Learning and Guided Writing.

Guided writing is underpinned by effective AfL.

Guided writing sessions provide opportunities for ongoing assessment.

Teachers identify the learning needs of children based on their assessments; they set precise writing targets that will address the needs of each group.

The teacher explains the targets to the group and regularly reviews them with the children using WILF.

Feedback is provided at every stage; this may take the form of self-assessment, peer-assessment or teacher-assessment.

Key characteristics of AfL	Effective practice in guided writing
Creating the conditions for learning that will support AfL	The learning environment is supportive of AfL. Secure rationale for ethos and attitudes to learning in place. Routines and behaviours established – children clear about organisation for guided writing and how to learn as part of a group.
Using curricular targets	The process of curricular target setting is well established in the school. Group curricular targets are informed and identified by analysis of children’s writing and through discussion. Children are fully aware of their targets and understand the process of reviewing them.
Designing opportunities for learning: planning	There is a clear focus on learning objectives, which feed into curricular target setting. Success criteria are clear and understood by the children. Teaching is adjusted to take account of ongoing assessment.
Day-to-day assessment strategies	Effective use of the following strategies is in place during guided writing: questioning; observing; discussing; analysing – marking and assessing writing with the children; checking children’s understanding.
Feedback on learning	Providing effective oral and written feedback to children in the group. Developing peer-assessment. Developing self-assessment. Ensuring children are clear about the next steps needed to improve their writing.

Planning and organising for guided writing

Effective teaching of writing begins with assessment and the identification of the learning needs of the class.

Using this information and other relevant information, the teacher then groups the children with similar needs.

The number of groups in any one class will vary but it must be manageable.

	The number of children in any group will also vary, usually six to eight children form a
	manageable group.

The groups should be flexible to enable each child to achieve success.

This may mean that a child attends two different guided writing sessions to consolidate a particular area of learning or to extend the child’s learning.

How does guided writing relate to shared writing and independent writing?

Guided writing follows on from shared writing and addresses the specific identified writing development needs of each group.

This may be general, for example understanding the concept of a sentence, variety of sentence structure, paragraphing.

Alternatively it might be genre specific, for example use of emotive language when writing a persuasive argument, organising a non-chronological report or use of powerful verbs to indicate character in narrative.

The session may simplify the shared session for less-confident writers or extend the shared session to challenge more-able writers.

Guided writing may be focused at whole text level, sentence level or word level.

At what stage of the writing process do I teach guided writing?

Time to work with a guided group is scarce so it must be clearly focused. Guided writing can take place at any stage of the writing process.

Before writing – to support children’s planning and drafting of their work.

This should refer back to and build on the previous shared writing session.

Activities might include:

supporting children as they formulate their ideas – this may incorporate drama or role-play;

reviewing objectives for writing and/or the children’s targets;

	the teacher modelling the process of planning and drafting (this may include rerunning part of the
	shared session for targeted groups of children);

developing sentence construction and punctuation;

retelling a known story in the correct sequence and as a writer: in complete sentences (look at speaking and listening objectives);

planning a piece of explanatory writing drawn from a model discussed in the shared session:

oral rehearsal: in particular, those children who have poor literacy skills; for children with poor language skills.

At the point of writing.

Support can be provided to groups as they begin to write or when they have already started to write independently (in order to support the revising process).

Children can be supported to:

write the first or next paragraph of an explanation text and be invited to read it aloud to the group;

reread for clarity and purpose;

use alternative vocabulary;

use greater precision – choice of phrases, use of complex sentences;

use greater cohesion – use of connectives, consistency of tense, time, person and so on;

remember objectives for writing and be supported in checking their work against the success criteria.

Throughout, these sessions should be used to acknowledge and praise in order to facilitate constructive discussion with the intention of improving the writing. The teacher will invite comments and lead the discussion.

After writing – feedback sessions.

After children have worked independently on their writing there should be opportunities for them to assess their writing – the use of peer support here is useful.

After writing, you could:

supporting children to check their work against success criteria, edit, proofread and reflect on the impact on the reader;

review progress and targets;

discuss next steps in writing and set new targets where appropriate.

Guided writing for English as Additional Language (EAL) learners

Guided writing sessions can provide highly effective support to EAL learners.

These sessions should:

be set in context, based on, linked to or in preparation for classroom work;

provide explicit modelling/articulation of writing so that attention is drawn to grammatical features, if appropriate, and/or focus for guided writing such as persuasive language – use of modals (could, would, might and so on);

provide opportunities for focused, planned talk:

paired/group talk at an exploratory level to gather ideas;

clarify thinking, reach shared understanding;

oral rehearsal of identified language required for writing;

further modelling/recasting of oral language where necessary;

address the appropriate use and extension of vocabulary. This includes understanding of the nuances and intensity of words and phrases and their use within a genre and its register;

review/assessment of writing against success criteria – language/vocabulary misconceptions addressed.

Acknowledgement

Department for children, schools& families.

"Improving writing with a focus on guided writing - Leading improvement using the Primary Framework"