Guided WritingGuided Writing

Claire Ridsdale, Teaching & Learning Adviser (Literacy

Intended OutcomesIntended Outcomes

• To understand the purpose of guided writing

• To know how guided writing fits into the teaching sequence

• To identify the features of effective guided writing and how these can be used to support groups of pupils in school

TaskTask

What are the features of effective guided reading?

Write each idea on a post-it note

Why Guided Writing?Why Guided Writing?• Allows tailoring to the needs of the group• Facilitates the teaching and learning of individual children• Allows the teacher to observe & respond to the needs of individuals

within the group• Provides the teacher with the opportunity to extend and challenge• Encourages children to be active participants in discussions about

writing• Builds confidence as all are grappling with the same issues• Allows immediate feedback to be given - on successes - on further areas for improvement

How Do You Do It?How Do You Do It?Assess and identify the learning needs of the class using SSW and other

relevant information

Group children with similar needs

Identify targets for the group linked to the AFs (relate to curricular targets)

Plan a series of sessions to address the learning focus

Structure each session using the teaching sequence

Review progress, assess and identify next steps

The Teaching Sequence:The Teaching Sequence:Unit of workUnit of work

Exploration of the text through quality experiences that support the transfer of patterns, structures and cadences of the text into their spoken language

Sometimes referred to as ‘talk for writing’

The Teaching Sequence:The Teaching Sequence:Guided WritingGuided Writing

Activate prior knowledge

Modelled writing

Shared writing

Independent writing

Reflect and review

Planning & OrganisationPlanning & Organisation

• The number of groups in a class will vary but must be manageable• The number of children in a group will usually be 6 to 8• Groups should be flexible • Guided writing may be used to provide support at different stages of the writing process• Different ability groups will require support with different elements

• As children develop their independent written work 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

Before WritingBefore Writing

Support children’s planning and drafting of their work• Support as children formulate their ideas, (may incorporate drama or role-

play)• Review objectives for writing and targets;• Teacher modelling the process of planning and drafting • Develop sentence construction and punctuation• Re-tell a known story in the correct sequence and as a writer• Plan a piece of writing drawn from a model discussed in the shared session• Oral rehearsal: in particularly for those children who have poor literacy or

poor language skills

At the point of writingAt the point of writingSupport provided to groups as they begin to write or when they havealready started to write independently

• Write the first or next paragraph of a text and read it aloud to the group• Re-read for clarity and purpose• Use alternative vocabulary• Use greater precision: choice of phrases, complex sentences• Use greater cohesion: connectives, consistency of tense, time, person• Assessing writing against the success criteria• Acknowledge and praise in order to facilitate constructive discussion with

the intention of improving the writing

After WritingAfter Writing

Feedback sessions

• Pupil peer and self assessment of their writing• Support to check their writing against success criteria• Edit, proofread and reflect on the impact on the reader• Review progress and targets• Discuss next steps in writing (set new targets where appropriate)

AA

Links with AfLLinks with AfLCreating the conditions for learning that will support AfL• Routines and behaviours established – children clear about organisation for

guided writing and how to learn as part of a group

Using curricular targets• 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• 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

Links with AfLLinks with AfL

Day-to-day assessment strategies• Effective use of 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

DVDDVD

Watch the Y3 guided writing lesson

• What strategies does the teacher use?• Which are most effective?• What are her expectations of the children like?• What learning takes place throughout the lesson?

DVD - Group TasksDVD - Group TasksGroup 1The children have completed their story, they are working with response partners using the school drafting code and a checklist to redraft their own writing.

Group 2Middle ability group. The children are secure, independent writers but the sentences in the opening of their story are repetitive, beginning either with ‘The’ or ‘John’, the main character’s name. They have previously worked with powerful verbs but they are not yet applying this knowledge in their independent writing.

Group 3The children in this group are in the middle of their story. The focus of the previous day’s drama lesson was to dramatise verbs and adverbs and to understand their role in describing character. Today this group are to go back over their work, looking at their use of verbs and adding an adverbto support character description.

Our Results 2007Our Results 2007

Level 2b+Level 2b+G BG B

Level 3Level 3G BG B

Level 4+Level 4+G BG B

Level 5Level 5G BG B

EnglishEnglish

ReadingReading

WritingWriting

PlenaryPlenary

Think about the Wave 2 children in your class (working just below national expectations)

• What does your assessment show the children are struggling with?

• How is your curricular target layered for this group?

• At what point of the writing process would they most benefit from support?