What Works in Writing

For this self-study, I developed and presented a series of authentic writing experiences and corresponding mini-lessons for fourth graders. This study looks at my journey through the early stages of implementation of a literacy program based on writer\u27s workshop. The goal of this study was to answer the questions of which teaching methods best engage and motivate students, whether the implementation of some components of writing workshop leads to differentiated, individualized instruction in support of all students\u27 writing, and how to balance grammar instruction with workshop practices. By evaluating my lesson plans, student work, writing conference transcripts and field notes, I find that student-teacher writing conferences are especially useful, both for differentiating instruction and for developing positive attitudes about writing. The results highlight the importance of explicit instruction of the writing process in order to teach the skills needed to create an effective writers\u27 workshop