TALK 4 WRITING

A N A P P R O A C H TO W R I T I N G BYP I E C O R B E T T A N D J U L I A S T R O N G

WHAT IS TALK FOR WRITING?Talk for Writing, developed by Pie Corbett and supported by Julia Strong, is powerful because it is based on the principles of how children learn.

Talk for Writing enables children to imitate the key language they need for a particular topic orally before they try reading and analysing it.

Through fun activities that help them rehearse the tune of the language they need, followed by shared writing to show them how to craft their writing, children are helped to write in the same style.

THE PROCESS: INFORMATION TEXTS

On your paper, please write a short paragraph about lions.

The “Cold” piece of writing.

TEACHER ASSESSMENT FOR DIFFERENTIATION

The class teacher will look carefully at the pieces of writing and give the children ways forward.

They may also group them according to:• Punctuation targets• Vocabulary targets• Connective targets

FEATURES AND PURPOSE OF THE TEXT TYPEChildren will now be given a wide variety of

information texts in order to discover the main features of this type of text, such as:

• Subtitles• Facts• Questions• Present tense• Illustrations• Glossary

STAGE 1: IMITATION

The children will then• Learn a text orally• Draw a text map• Rehearse specific spelling

and language patterns• Read and annotate the text

TIGERS

Tigers are huge, powerful animals that live only in Asia. Although most tigers live in warm places, they can find very hot weather uncomfortable. Tigers that live in cold areas of China have longer fur, for protection.

Tigers have striped fur that helps to camouflage them so they can stalk their prey. They are carnivores and thus possess sharp, front teeth in order to tear meat from bones. They have big appetites, eating up to 40kg of meat in one, huge meal.

Illegal hunting and cutting down forests for their wood, has reduced the number of tigers in the wild, to the point of extinction.

STAGE 2: INNOVATION - SHARED WRITING

Title

Elephants

What they are- description and habitat

Elephants are…

How they hunt

Elephants only eat…

Final issue, important or amazing fact/ point. Due to…..

This writing is self, peer and teacher assessed and ways forward given.

STAGE 3: INDEPENDENT APPLICATION

The children write their own text about an animal they have researched, paying particular attention to their targets. This is called the “Hot” piece.

The genre can be revisited, where possible, throughout the curriculum to embed the language and features.