Beyond the Pencil: Expanding the Occupational Therapists’ Role in Helping Young Children to Develop Writing Skills

Occupational therapists (OTs) play an important role in early childhood classrooms as vital members of the educational team, particularly for young children’s writing development. Children’s emergent writing is a foundational literacy skill, which begins to develop well before they enter elementary school. However, early childhood classrooms are lacking in supports for early writing development. OTs are experts in guiding the development of early writing skills in young children and, therefore, should be considered as critical members of the early literacy curriculum team. This paper identifies the critical role emergent writing plays in early childhood literacy development and how to effectively assess young children’s writing ability. Practical guidance is provided to identify specific ways that OTs can merge their occupation-centered approach with their expertise in writing to serve as a key resource for classroom teachers and enhance the writing development of all children. Specific strategies are included for encouraging OTs to expand their approaches to writing beyond handwriting

Analyzing Student Writing: A Multiple Case Study Exploring Kindergarten Teacher Knowledge of Early Writing Development

The developmental nature of early writing warrants targeted instruction in writing concepts and skills in kindergarten classrooms. Given the complexity of writing and early writing development, research into kindergarten teacher knowledge of early writing development and how this influences instructional practices is appropriate. To conduct this research, data was collected from an online questionnaire, a semistructured interview, and student writing sample analysis tasks of five kindergarten teachers. Qualitative data analysis was conducted and provided descriptions of individual teachers’ instructional practices for writing and an in-depth description of the proposed teacher-student interactions from the student writing sample analysis tasks. Findings revealed that influences other than knowledge of early writing development exist and impact instructional practices of writing

Scribbling Stage Sebagai Basic Writing Step Untuk Mengembangkan Kemampuan Menulis Anak Usia Dini

The development of writing skills in early childhood plays a significant role in preparing children for more structured writing abilities in the future. One of the initial stages in the development of writing skills in early childhood is the scribbling stage, where children make random marks and lines. The scribbling stage is often seen as a fundamental step in developing writing skills in early childhood. This literature review aims to explore the importance of the scribbling stage as a basic writing step in developing early childhood writing skills. In this study, we collected and analyzed various literature sources discussing the scribbling stage and its impact on the development of writing skills in early childhood. The findings indicate that the scribbling stage serves as a crucial foundation for developing writing skills in early childhood. During this stage, children begin to familiarize themselves with writing tools, develop creativity, gain initial understanding of writing concepts, and enhance fine motor skills. Scribbling activities also help children express their thoughts, ideas, and feelings while strengthening the coordination between the brain and hand. This research also highlights the significant implications of the scribbling stage in language development, visual perception, and problem-solving abilities in children. Support from parents and educators is crucial during the scribbling stage to establish a strong foundation for further writing development in children

Writing because I want to, not because I have to: Young gifted writers’ perspectives on the factors that “matter” in developing expertise

The study reported on here sought to better understand the development of writing talent from the perspectives of a group of gifted adolescent female writers. Recent shifts in how giftedness and talent are conceptualized has led to an increased focus on domain-specific abilities and the importance of understanding how specific talents can be identified and supported. Gagné’s Differentiated Model of Giftedness and Talent (DMGT) (see Gagné, 2000; 2003; 2007; 2008) distinguishes between gifts and talents. Gifts represent the potential for outstanding achievement, while talents are the manifestation of this potential. Of particular interest to teachers and parents are the conditions that are influential in gifts being realised as talents – what Gagné refers to as catalysts. The participants in this study were asked to reflect on the development of their interest and ability in writing over time. Emerging from their feedback were two categories of catalysts: the intrapersonal and the environmental. For this group of students, intrapersonal catalysts were more influential to the realisation of their writing talent than environmental catalysts. This intrinsic motivation to write, and from an early age, is consistent with studies of eminent adult writers. Parents and teachers featured as important environmental catalysts. The participants in this study valued the input and support of teachers, particularly during the early years of their schooling. However, as they moved through the school system, these students felt the nature of the curriculum, and assessment practices increasingly threatened their intrinsic motivation for writing and diminished the satisfaction gained from writing at school. An unexpected outcome of this research was the important influence of music on their current writing

Best Practice for Developmentally Appropriate Kindergarten Handwriting Instruction

Handwriting is a significant component of literacy development in young children. It is a foundational skill that will influence students’ reading, writing, language use, and critical thinking. A review of the literature finds the following themes of high importance when presenting writing instruction in an early childhood classroom: automaticity of transcription skills through repeated practice, letter writing fluency before compositional fluency, writing as a critical step in overall literacy development, the role of explicit instruction as intervention for writing difficulties, and the lack of proper preservice training or professional development for teachers to integrate appropriate early writing practices into kindergarten classrooms. In this document, best teaching practices for handwriting instruction in kindergarten are offered and recommended as part of a balanced age-appropriate early childhood literacy program

The Effects of Modeled Writing on Early Literacy Development in Preschool Children

The purpose of this thesis was to investigate the impacts on early literacy development in preschool children by engaging them in writing activities that were intentionally modeled within their typical classroom setting. Twenty-five typically developing children 3 to 5 years of age participated in the study. The Picture Story/Word Story,” a preschool writing strategy described by Paulson, et al. (2001), was used to model the developmental levels of writing for the subjects two times a week for 10 weeks. The experimental group engaged in writing activities, which included intentional modeling of the stages of writing development that were just above the children’s level of skill development. The same writing activities were provided for the control group with only conventional writing as a model. Pre and post levels of early literacy development were established using the Emergent Literacy Screening (Paulson, 2001) at the beginning and end of the study. General trends in the data suggest greater early literacy skills in children who engaged in modeled writing instruction of the developmental stages of writing

Writing Development in Struggling Learners

In Writing Development in Struggling Learners, international researchers provide insights into the development of writing skills from early writing and spelling development through to composition, the reasons individuals struggle to acquire proficient writing skills and how to help these learners.; Readership: Academic libraries, graduate students; post-graduate researchers; literacy researchers; educated lay persons; literacy specialists; primary/secondary educators