Writing portfolios in a fifth grade classroom were used to relate instruction and assessment more closely. A goal of the classroom instructional program was to extend writing experiences across the curriculum. Three students\u27 portfolios were examined to show this instructional emphasis. Descriptions of the children\u27s writing experiences and their portfolio entry responses are presented. This portfolio development experience indicates that the students used writing to learn in a more broad sense. They became more aware of the functions of the composition process. The students progressed from the idea that writing was stories and poems to the idea that writing is used in all areas of school, that writing is functional when used in the curricular areas
