Teaching Beginning Writers

An essential "how-to" primer, this book examines the process of learning to write and shares evidence-based instructional strategies for the primary grades. With an emphasis on explicit instruction and scaffolding students' learning, the authors explain when and how to teach handwriting, spelling, foundational skills such as sentence formation and editing, and composition in specific genres. They present clear-cut techniques for assessment, differentiation, and supporting struggling writers. The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) for Writing are used as a framework for setting instructional goals. Reproducible assessment forms, checklists, and rubrics are provided; purchasers get access to a Web page where they can download and print the reproducible materials in a convenient 8 1/2" x 11" size.

David L. Coker Jr., EdD, is Associate Professor in the School of Education at the University of Delaware. His research focuses on writing development, early writing assessment, and effective approaches to writing instruction. Dr. Coker’s interest in writing stems from his experiences as a classroom teacher. He has been the principal investigator of a federally funded study to examine the impact of writing instruction on first-grade literacy outcomes and has published articles in leading educational journals.

Kristen D. Ritchey, PhD, is Associate Professor in the School of Education at the University of Delaware. Her research focuses on assessment and intervention for elementary-age students with reading and writing disabilities. Dr. Ritchey’s recent work includes the development of screening and multi-tiered interventions for fourth and fifth grade students with reading disabilities, and the development of early writing curriculum-based measures. She has published articles in several leading journals.

1. Introduction
2. How Writing Develops
3. Teaching Handwriting
4. Teaching Spelling
5. Teaching Sentence Construction
6. Genre-Specific Writing Instruction
7. Teaching Students to Write Book Reviews
8. Teaching Students to Write Narratives
9. Teaching Students to Write Descriptions
10. Supporting Students with Writing Needs
11. Conclusion: Meeting the Challenges of Early Writing Instruction
Appendix A Letter-Writing Assessment
Appendix B Sound-Spelling Assessment
Appendix C Rubrics for Narrative Texts
Appendix D Rubrics for Opinion Texts
Appendix E Rubrics for Informative/Explanatory Texts