A successful expository writing program (1) should develop basic writing ability and fluency, (2) should convey to students that they are informants in a communicative context that includes writers and readers, and (3) should foster student control of the writing process including thinking and organizational strategies (such as planning, organizing, drafting, and revising. Writing problems in regular and special education classrooms differ in degree but not in type, and several samples of special education students' writing illustrate some of the strategies involved in writing improvement. The teacher must establish a writing environment where students write frequently and for sustained periods, alone and in collaboration with peers. Knowledge of text structures can help children activate schemata with details from their own experiences. The use of "think sheets" on planning and organizing can aid students in writing a first draft. Self-editing, peer editing, and revision also benefit from use of think sheet criteria, which remind teachers and students of appropriate strategies for different aspects of the writing process. Such strategies are best taught when the teacher assumes an active role as a mediator who models writing strategies and who evaluates strategy acquisition by monitoring changes in children's thinking and dialogue as well as changes in their compositions. (Two tables are included, and examples of different types of think sheets are appended, as well as a list of references.) (NKA)