Writing+Best+Practices-+Guided+Writing

Writing Best Practices- Guided Writing

Guided writing is for students that need targeted support in a more effectively in small groups. Here students are grouped by reading and writing levels. Students are able to deepen their understanding of the writing process and ability to write is developed in a more complex, broader manner. Placement of guided writing groups will require an assessment that takes a sample of their writing and the instructions will align with the students' level of development. First the teacher must determine the students developmental stage/scoring guidelines much like the one found in //Assessing and Correcting: Reading and writing difficulties// by T. G. Gunning (2010), Figure 13.2


 * 1) The Emerging Writer-
 * 2) Little to no topic development, organization, and/or detail
 * 3) Little awareness of audience or writing task
 * 4) Errors in surface features prevent the reader from understanding the writer's message
 * 5) The Developing Writer-
 * 6) Little to no topic development, organization, and/or detail
 * 7) Little awareness of audience or writing task
 * 8) Errors in surface features prevent the reader from understanding the writer's message
 * 9) The Focusing Writer-
 * 10) Topic beginning to be developed. Response contains the beginning of an organization plan.
 * 11) Limited awareness of audience and/or task.
 * 12) Simple word choice and sentence patterns.
 * 13) Errors in surface features interfere with communication.
 * 14) The Experimenting Writer-
 * 15) Topic clear even though development is incomplete. Plan apparent although ideas are loosely organized.
 * 16) Sense of audience and/or task.
 * 17) Minimal variety of vocabulary and sentence patterns.
 * 18) Errors in surface features interrupt the flow.
 * 19) The Engaging Writer-
 * 20) Topic clear and developed (development may be uneven). Clear plan with beginning, middle, and end 9beginning and/or ending may be clumsy).
 * 21) Written for an audience.
 * 22) Experiments with language and sentence patterns. Word combinations and word choice may be novel.
 * 23) Errors in surface features may interrupt the flow of communications.
 * 24) The Extending Writer-
 * 25) Topic fully elaborated, with details. Organization sustains the writer’s purpose and moves the reader through the piece.
 * 26) Engages and sustains the reader’s interest.
 * 27) Creative and novel use of language and effective use of varied sentence patters.
 * 28) Errors in surface features donot interfere with meaning.

Here is a link to readwritethink strategy guide for guided writing []

There are a couple of good programs or literature for this form of instruction such as Daily 5[|™] by Gail Boushey & Joan Moser, you can visit their site here []



This book has the latest for guided writing instruction by Lori Oczkus

References Gunning, T. G. (2010). //Assessing and correcting: Reading and writing difficulties// (4th ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon.