18.09.

2020

SUMMER acrostics
Write words/word combinations about your
summer using the letters of the word. Teaching writing to young
S learners
U
M Kristel Ruutmets
M 2020
E
R

Reflection WHAT makes writing difficult? I

Finish the sentences. • The reader and writer are separated – no
immediate feedback.
I like writing in English because … • Writing is mostly planned, thus must be
logically structured and understandable for
the reader.
I don’t like writing in English because …
• Writing is characterised by greater clarity and
accuracy.
• Writing needs to be developed – it does not
come naturally.

WHAT makes writing difficult? II

• In order to write successfully one should have WHY write (in the classroom)
several skills:
• Writing provides a welcome change in the pace of a
knowledge of grammar, spelling, punctuation; lesson.
a sufficient amount of vocabulary; • Writing helps to reinforce the language that has
use of a suitable layout, style (formal/informal), been presented orally or through reading.
genre and appropriate tone; • Writing makes the progress of students clearly
ability to organise information into paragraphs / a visible.
text (coherence, linking); • Writing tasks are usually done individually and at
one’s own speed.
legible handwriting.
• Writing develops students’ creativity and self-
• Writing is time-consuming and requires effort. expression.

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Writing for learning or for

WRITING (in the classroom)
communication?
Learners write a short dialogue in pairs and then
perform it for the class. Alternatively, the learners
could produce a short narrative based on a particular
genre, picture prompts, or a set of vocabulary. • Writing for learning – as a practice tool or an aid
to learning

Learners are given give sentences each containing the • Writing for writing/communication – writing as a
second conditional. The words of each sentence are means of communication; develops students’
jumbled up and the learners have to put them into the skills as writers of real life or fiction writers
correct order. E.g. car/really/would/a/I/million/
expensive/if/had/pound/a/I/buy

Controlled writing tasks Memory check: Types of dictation

Focus on accuracy
• Straight copying • Traditional dictation
• Delayed copying • Peer dictation (Mutual / Information-gap dictation)
• Dictation • Text reconstruction (Dictogloss)
Variation: Dictogloss summary
• Controlled writing tasks
• Running dictation
• Guided/parallel writing • Gap-fill dictation (“Blank” dictation)
• Picture dictation
• Error correction dictation
Fran found fabulous flip-flops. • Join-the-dots dictation
Squishy sweet S’mores. • A dictation round
• ...
Seth sat in the sun singing summer.

Change the adjectives

TEXT LEVEL 105

5.2 Funny dictations

LEVEL 2
+
AGE 7
+
TIME 20 rninutes *

AIMS To prepare the children for writing texts about themselves; to

interview and write about others. Our 1) nice hotel is on a 2) nice beach and each
room has a 3) big balcony. Every morning you can
PREPARATION create your own gap-fiIl exercise or use the one in$Torkshe et5.2.
Make a copy for each child.

\ IN CLASS 1 Tell üe children to write the numbers 1_l4 down the page

watch the sun rise over the 4) nice blue ocean and
and then tell üem what üey need to write, for example, in
Worksheet 5.2:
Number one is aperson's name.
Number two is the name of a place.

go for a 5) nice swim before eating a 6) good

Number three is ayear,for example, 19--20_.

From: Reilly, J., & Reilly,

Numberfour is a me.n's name.
Numberfiaeis ajob.
Number six is a u)oman's name.

W. (2005). Writing with

breakfast in the hotel restaurant. If you like 7) old
Number seaen is a job.
Number eight is a coloun
Number nine is a colour.
Children. Oxford: OUP. Number ten is a number.

buildings and 8) old places, you can visit the local

Number eleaen is a number.
Number twelae is an adjectiae to describe people.
Number thirteen is an animal.
Numberfourteen is a name.

town which also has a 9) good market where you

2 Now give each child a copy of üeW'orksheet.Theywrite üeir
words in the spaces in the text.

can buy some 10) nice presents for friends at

3 once they have finished, they read their text and üen exchange it
with oüer children.

COMMENTS This is usually humorous as the children have to write üe words

home.
before seeing the text and they tend to choose words they like, so
üeymay end up wiü a text like the following:

Myfather, Brad Pitt, is a policeman and my mother, Julia Roberts,

is an electrician. l've got pink eyes and blue hair. I have ten
brothers and four sisters. They are all very small. I have a pet
hippo called Dolores.
FOLLOW.UP The children write a paragraph about themselves using the same
model. collect the texts and read out the information, omitting the
child's name.The class try to guess who you are reading about.

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Some creative/freer writing tasks

• stories (based on a given stimulus: title, picture, first
or last sentence, cartoon, music), including
collaborative tasks like a story circle.
• personal anecdotes
• dialogues
• letters, postcards, emails, messages, diaries/blog
entries
• poems and rhymes
• short descriptions and reports, e.g. based on an
interview, a newspaper report, a short paper
providing information on a person, event, etc.
• responses to literature, e.g. a book, play or film
review

Using poetry frames and shapes Authentic writing

• to a person:
I like … Who is going to read what I’ve written?
I like …
I like … • for a reason
But I don’t like … because … What effect am I trying to achieve by writing?
How could anyone like …?
• with an expected response
How is s/he going to respond?

Home assignment
I Find two writing tasks suitable for younger learners.
Write down the following:
WRITING as a product
- What is the aim of the task?
- Is it an individual or a collaborative task?
- How controlled (focus on accuracy) or free (focus on fluency, • focus on the aim of a task and text itself
creativity) is the task?
- How authentic is the task? • usually one draft which is submitted, corrected
- Who is the writing addressed to? / Who is going to read the and graded
writing?
• mostly individual
- What is the genre of the writing?
- What is the language level necessary for the writing task? • focus on accuracy and appropriacy
- What might be a suitable pre-writing and a post-writing activity
related to the task?
II Be ready to introduce your tasks to the fellow-students.
III Include the tasks along with the answers to the
questions in your portfolio.

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WRITING as a process I WRITING as a process II

(for writing stories, reports)
• aims at creativity in writing and arriving at the Typically consists of:
best possible product going through various • generating ideas – brainstorming, using questions,
stages of writing visuals, making notes (e.g. a mindmap)
• more than one draft • planning – discovering main ideas, considering purpose
(why?), audience (who?) and form (what?)
• collaborative in nature (using the help of peers
• drafting – writing the first version
and the teacher)
• evaluating – assessing the draft (peers, teacher),
responding to it
• reviewing - editing, rewriting, proof-reading
• writing the final version

Requirements of the NC I Requirements of the NC II

Forms 1-3 (1st school stage) A1.1 level
- knows the alphabet of the language; Forms 1-3 (1st school stage) A1.1 level
- is able to copy the phrases and
sentences learnt; Recommendations:
- can write personal data (e.g. on an - copying tasks and parallel/guided
exercise book); writing.
- is able to write short sentences based
on the models given.

Requirements of the NC III

Forms 4-6 (2nd school stage) A2.2 level Requirements of the NC IV
- is able to write short descriptive stories
about one’s experiences and surroundings; Forms 4-6 (2nd school stage) A2.2 level
- is able to write short personal letters, Some recommendations:
messages, postcards; - different types of dictations;
- can fill in a short questionnaire; - parallel/guided writing (e.g.
- applies the orthography rules studied (e.g. messages, postcards, short letters).
using capital letters, punctuation marks);
- uses the textbook glossary or a school
dictionary as aids while writing.

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Meaningful integration of technology Check your knowledge

Instant messaging – e.g. SMS, WhatsApp, WeChat difficulties related to (teaching) writing;
Creating newsletters & posters – e.g. Smore, different ways of classifying writing tasks;
Glogster, Canva writing tasks suitable for developing accuracy and
Creating digital books – e.g. Book Creator creativity/fluency;
Making clips and comic strips – e.g. the difference between writing as a product and
www.voki.com, powtoon.com as a process;
Class or learner blogs ways of integrating technology in teaching writing
Social networks (Facebook, Twitter) skills;
E-portfolios for storing writing tasks requirements of the national curriculum related to
teaching writing skills.

Sources used Some useful resources in our library

Harmer, J. (2012). Essential Teacher Knowledge. Harlow: Pearson
Education Ltd.
Harmer, J. (2004). How to Teach Writing. Harlow: Pearson Education Edge, C. (2015). How to Write Your Best Story Ever.
Limited. Oxford: OUP. (textbook and notebook)
Hughes, J. (2014). Etpedia. 1,000 Ideas for English Language Teachers.
Hove: Pavilion Publishing and Media Ltd.
Lindstromberg, S. (Ed.) (1997). The Standby Book.
Keaveney, S., & Lundberg, G. (2014). Early Language Learning and Cambridge: CUP. (See Chapter 8)
Teaching: A1-A2. Lund: Studentlitteratur. Lindstromberg, S. (Ed.) (2004). Language Activities
Kärtner, P. (2000). Kirjutamisoskuse arendamine. Tallinn: TEA. for Teenagers. Cambridge: CUP. (See chapter 6.)
Põhikooli riiklik õppekava. Ainevaldkond “Võõrkeeled”. (2011).
https://www.riigiteataja.ee/aktilisa/1290/8201/4020/1m%20lisa2.p
Reilly, J., & Reilly, V. (2005). Writing with Children.
df#. Oxford: OUP.
Stanley, G. (2013). Language Learning with Technology. Cambridge: CUP. Wright, A. (1997). Creating Stories with Children.
Walker, A., & White, G. (2013). Technology Enhanced Language Oxford: OUP.
Learning. Oxford: OUP.
Watkins, P. (2014). Learning to Teach English. Peaslake: Delta Publishing.
White, R., & Arndt, V. (1991). Process Writing. Oxford: Longman.