A participant observation study of a primary grade classroom, in which three first grade students were selected as case study subjects, illustrates the range of workstyles of beginning writers. Primary grade teachers are often concerned that their students are not producing writing comparable with their capabilities, but educators' conceptions of what very young writers should be doing are too narrow, not accounting for children's varied workstyles. The three subjects, a mixed Black/Anglo boy, a Hispanic boy, and a White girl were observed as they wrote and drew pictures in their journals over a year. The first boy relied heavily upon social contact as he drew, "talking" his stories as he drew and then writing about what he had drawn. He worked at a moderate pace and learned to spell a number of frequently repeated words. The second boy, interested in writing "adventure stories," spent much more time producing careful pictures and longer stories that made more narrative sense than the first child's work. The girl produced more stories and pictures than either boy, was careful and neat in her work, but the stories lacked variety, always centering on friends and family. While teachers do need to assess students' workstyles and what they produce, such variety in workstyles suggests that teachers must also be flexible to meet the needs of their students. (Three pages of references are included.) (JC)