Young children are growing up in a time when literacy practices and textual productions are in flux. Yet literacy curricula, particularly for those deemed "at risk," are tightly focused on the written language "basics." What are the potential consequences? In this article, the author considers this question, drawing on an ethnographic study of…

Using the concept of the "constructed child" to reflect on "the child writer," this paper addresses the ways in which educators make sense of what the child does when he or she writes in school. The paper draws upon experiences with 5- to 10-year-old children in a recent study of child writers, especially 8-year-old Ayesha. It…

Offers a case study of a child who used school writing activities to perform rather than simply to communicate. Finds that, although the child's language resources contributed greatly to his success with written language, they did not always fit comfortably into the writing workshop used in his classroom. (PRA)

This paper shows that constructing or writing a case study is a dialogic process, one that requires the researcher to define and redefine his or her research boundaries. The paper elaborates, first, on the process of constructing a case and, second, on the particular process of constructing cases of children learning written language. It…

Examines children's story-writing processes as they develop over a two-year period, from kindergarten through second grade. Observes that children reflect multiple worlds in their writing, including their ongoing social world, the imaginary world of their story, and the wider, experienced world of people, places, and events. (MM)

Defines the value of classroom research in terms of three paradoxes: (1) it steps back by taking an intimate look; (2) it yields a holistic view but also reveals the dynamics of its parts; and (3) it is a unique whole and a part of inquiry into language and learning. (RS)

A case study examined assumptions of current written language pedagogies, particularly the links between oral performance, literacy pedagogy, and the use of the explicit, analytic language valued in school. The subject, a young African-American child enrolled in an urban K/1 classroom, used school writing activities and the music of language to…

Samples of kindergarten children's drawings and language, especially as used in dictation, illustrate that children invent symbols for figures, objects, and events; engage in the thinking processes of organizing and abstracting as children work to portray their concepts; and communicate their ideas to themselves and others. (BB)

Presents the story of one urban, African American, third-grade girl's writing. Discusses the roles that teachers, peers, and cultural contexts play in children's growth into--and against--the life and literacy that surrounds them. (SR)

Adult ways of writing--of constructing textual visions of--children are linked to their ways of envisioning themselves and, more broadly, to their perceptions of fully "developed" adults. Thus, developmental visions have traditionally taken for granted the social and psychological worlds of privileged adults. This essay aims to make problematic…

Based on data gathered in a participant observation project that focused on young children's behaviors during school structured literacy tasks, a study examined the relationship between learning to write and learning to perform school writing tasks. (HOD)

Discusses the developmental process that allows children to use symbols to represent their experienced world and to construct imagined worlds. Emphasizes the critical role of art and play in children's growth as symbol makers. (BB)

Presents case studies of two first-grade children, examining their writing as a linguistic and social process that involves the child in an exploration of both oral and written language within the social context of the classroom. (HTH)

Focuses on young children's grappling with such themes as existence, good and evil, and knowing. Suggests that the development of language seems dependent on children's sensitivity to such abstract concepts. Suggests that children's intellectual and social lives are sustained by symbols. Offers examples of children's story-making discussions,…

Reconsiders how child writers gain control of story forms, the functions of children's story worlds in their real worlds, and the connections between form and function in literacy development. Focuses on one students' writing development to show the gradual evolution of literary perspective. (MG)