Reading is seen by many as an essential ingredient for learning to write. Is the relationship between reading and writing reciprocal? Does the path to better reading involve becoming a good writer? The answer to these questions presents a paradox. One does not have to learn to write in order to learn to read, as learning how to write or type words…

Based on the Writer(s)-within-Community Model, this article focuses on the role of handwriting in writers' composing process. With the goal of highlighting the importance of researching and promoting handwriting, we provide an extensive summary of current evidence on the topic. It is well established that an important condition for skilled writing…

The ability to write effectively and use writing as a tool for learning is essential for students' success in the middle grades--and beyond. This practice guide highlights several research-based practices that can be used school-wide to help middle grades students become better writers. This paper presents four questions middle grades educators…

Students with disabilities often find writing extremely challenging (Harris & Graham, 2016). Special educators can, however, promote tremendous gains in students' ability to write by understanding common challenges students face and mastering specific teaching techniques. Students' writing success depends on reducing how much attention and…

Learning to write is critical in today's world, yet many students are not developing the writing abilities they need to use writing as a powerful tool for learning and for showing what they know. Research indicates that failure to acquire strong writing abilities restricts opportunities for both post-secondary education and employment. This…

The famed playwright Harold Pinter, having just been introduced as a very good writer, was once asked by a six-year-old boy if he could do a "w." The author suspects that "w" was a difficult letter for this young man, and he judged the writing capability of others accordingly. This student's assumption--that being a "good…

In this article, we present an argument for consideration by those researching and promoting new learning environments (NLEs). We believe advocates of NLEs should consider the literature and research base indicating effective instruction is not based on a forced dichotomy between theoretical perspectives, but rather a thoughtful, pragmatic…

This article describes implementation of the Self-Regulated Strategy Development (SRSD) approach to help students learn a specific essay writing strategy in preparation for a state writing test. It also reviews the theoretical and research bases for using SRSD to teaching writing strategies. (Contains references.) (DB)

The Directed Spelling Thinking Activity (DSTA) is a method of teaching spelling to students with learning disabilities by encouraging active thinking and analysis of word patterns. With DSTA, students compare and contrast words that fit different but related spelling patterns. Words illustrating 37 spelling patterns are listed. (Author/DB)

A model of the teaching-learning process to promote learning disabled students' mastery of basic academic skills is presented. The model considered psychological and social conditions of learning and reflects classroom environmental complexity. The central tenet of the model is that learning is a direct result of students' activities and pursuits.…

Learning to write is a complex process that depends on mastering a variety of processes and skills, including how to plan compositions and regulate writing behavior. One approach that has been used successfully to teach both good and poor writers such processes is Self-Regulated Strategy Development (SRSD). With SRSD, students are taught…

Mastering sentence-construction skills is essential to learning to write. Limited sentence-construction skills may hinder a writer's ability to translate ideas into text. It may also inhibit or interfere with other composing processes, as developing writers must devote considerable cognitive effort to sentence construction. The authors examined…

Teachers using the self-regulated strategy development approach instruct students in task-specific strategies along with more general strategies for regulating the students' strategy use and the learning process. Examines the components, stages, and characteristics of such an approach, along with its effectiveness in helping students with learning…

The benefits of a self-regulated strategy development approach for teaching elementary school students with learning disabilities how to write opinion essays are discussed, and the steps of the POW plus TREE strategy of instruction are outlined: develop background knowledge, discuss, model, memorize, support it, and perform independently.…

This response to Gersten and Dimino (EC 606 357) uses a case study to illustrate how a special education teacher integrated strategy instruction into a fifth-grade classroom where a whole-language approach to writing was already in place. Instruction in story grammar is presented as a seven-stage process. (DB)