Understanding and helping learners
with problems in written expression
Rosemary Tannock
Peter Chaban
CANADA
Why worry about written expression?
 Communication in writing is critical for
academic success & everyday functioning
 Educators often rely on the learner’s written
product to assess their learning/knowledge –
across the curriculum
 Inclusion in youth culture (text messaging)
 Adult life requires basic writing skills
 Signing name
 Demands of the workplace
Learning to Talk is Different
Than Learning to Write
Speaking
 Social, informal
 Listener is present
 a social interaction
between cooperative,
partners.
 Co-construct meaning
in the here-and-now
Writing
 Solitary, formalized
 Reader is absent
 A solitary activity in
which the writer aims
to communicate
his/her intended
meaning
 Reader reconstructs
meaning- later
Writing is not the mirror image of reading
 Competent readers do not necessarily become
competent writers.
 In addition to recognizing letters automatically,
one must learn to produce letters automatically.
 Learning to spell is more complicated than
learning to read.
 There are many more speech- to- sound variations than
letter-to-sound variations.
 Putting ideas in writing is a more complex task
than putting ideas into words.
 Children with difficulties in speech and language
are at higher risk for writing disabilities.
Writing is not the mirror image of reading
Reading is Language by Eye
Writing is Language by Hand
Virginia Berninger et al (2002) J Learning Disabilities
Two major components of writing
Transcription
Composition
or Text
Generation
• Handwriting
• Spelling
• Punctuation
• Capitalization
• Grammar
• Planning
• Production
• Editing/revision
Common Behaviors of Learners with Writing
Difficulties
 Lack of any writing behavior – blank page!
 Slow & effortful transcription
 Struggle with mechanics of writing – slow
formation of letters, slow & poor spelling,
lack of capitalization, punctuation
 Minimal or no planning
 Short sentences; strings of unrelated
sentences, not in logical order
 Minimal or no attempts at revision; revision
tends focus on correcting mechanical errors
Key research findings
 Fluent & automatic writing, particularly
alphabet letter writing, is a
fundamental building block of writing
competence
 Best predictor of length & quality of
composition - from elementary school
through college
Graham & Harris (1997) School Psychology Review;
Conolly et al (2006) Developmental Neuropsychology
Writing progress using the Play Plan
Vygotskyan-based preschool program
improves cognitive control
(Diamond et al, Science, 2007: 318: 1387-1388)
Tools of the Mind
(Bodrova & Leong)
• Study of 140 preschoolers
randomly assigned to “Tools” or
“Balanced Literacy”
– Low-income, urban district
– 18 classrooms (plus 3/program in year
2)
• 40 activities promoting executive
function (EF)
– self-regulatory self-talk; dramatic
play; memory & attention scaffolds
• Children in Tools showed marked
improvements in EF measures &
standardized academic measures
EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTION IN LETTER WRITING
Berninger (2008)
 Handwriting should be taught explicitly, not
incidentally.
Keyboarding
 Evidence-Based Approach
&
(improves automaticity of legible letters)
Technology
 5- 10 min lessons, followed by opportunity to use
handwriting in a meaningful manner
 Practice each letter by studying number arrow cues
 Covering the letter, then writing it from memory
 Practice writing letters within words
TEACHING TIPS: Monitor progress in speed of letter writing…
•Alphabet Letter Writing Probe
• On lined paper, ask child to print (or in cursive writing) the letters of the
alphabet in order as quickly as possible; How many letters in 13 sec?
Evidence-Based Intervention for Writing
 All areas of written language should be
addressed within the same instructional
session.
 Handwriting, spelling, and composition
should be taught together, and instruction
should be explicit.
 Keep in mind the range of skills required for
writing text
Two major components of writing
Transcription
Composition
or Text
Generation
• Handwriting
• Spelling
• Punctuation
• Capitalization
• Grammar
• Planning
• Production
• Editing/revision
Skill domains involved in writing
Domain
Component skills
GRAPHOMOTOR
Form letters; pencil grip; controlled
finger/arm movement
ATTENTION
Sustained focused attention on
tasks
VISUOSPATIAL
Keeping within lines; spacing,
organization on line/page
LANGUAGE
Spelling, word order, sentence
structure, vocabulary,
WORKING MEMORY
Hold word in mind while
transcribing into written word; Hold
ideas in mind during transcription
& text generation
What is working
memory ?
A “mental workbench”
(Klingberg, 2009)
Function of the brain that helps us temporarily hold
information in mind - just for a few seconds - to
manipulate it and use it to solve a problem or task.
That is, for thinking!
Strategies for Organization to reduce
working memory demand
• Chunk information
Prior knowledge (repeat key information)
Cue (signal what’s important)
• Categorize (part-whole relationship by membership)
• Sequence (part-whole relationship by size)
• Learned memory strategies – mnemonics,
visualization, subjective associations
Glass,Holyoak, Santa (1979)
Language’s organizational
strategies
Language is made of:
1. Sounds which form………
2. Words which result in………..
3. Meaning within……..
4.Context.
Traditional Grammar
“how words & their parts combine to make meaning”
Sentence- full unit of meaning
Clause complex- consists of one or more
clauses
Clause- consists of one or more phrases of which
one must be a verb phrase
Phrase- consists of one or more words
Words – consists of one or more morphemes
Morphemes – minimal unit of meaning
Point of Instruction
Vocabulary
Grammar
Discourse
Genre
Academic language
Meaning@ the sentence level
S. Africa will win the World Cup someday.
( agent
declarative
theme
process
Result/Circumstance(time)
judgment
rheme
Meaning
• At the clause/sentence level:
Meaning as what we represent:
-participants, process, circumstance
Meaning as how we feel:
-mood and modality
Meaning as we organize text:
-theme & rheme (cueing focus of importance)
Text organizing meaning
-theme comes at the beginning of a clause structure
- theme also organizes the text beyond the sentence
- It is everything up to the verb phrase
The Theme is often the subject of the clause.
But, conjunctions can be part of the theme.
For sure, interpersonal elements can be part of the theme.
In some cases, prepositional phrases are part of the theme.
M.Schleppegrell (2004)
Text Organization for
Old & New information
theme/rheme – natural language
mechanism of:
a) Prior knowledge or old information
b) Cueing new information
1. Inclusive teachers
2. He or she
3. They also
need to understand all children.
must be fair and reasonable.
need to teach at a sensible pace.
4.
need to lecture with a clear voice.
As well, these educators
5. And, if the children
6. they
theme
have been good all week,
should end with fun activities.
rheme
Thematic Progression
Theme 1
rheme1
Inclusive teachers
need to understand all children.
Theme 2
rheme 2
He or she
must be fair and reasonable.
They also
need to teach at a sensible pace.
Theme 3
rheme 3
Theme 4
rheme 4
As well, these educators
Theme 5
rheme 5
And, if the children
have been good all week,
Theme 6
rheme 6
they
should end with fun activities.
need to lecture with a clear voice.
Activity
1. Dogs are animals.
2. Dogs can be pets.
3. These animals can be very special.
Activity
1. Dogs /are animals.
2. Dogs /can be pets.
3. These animals /can be very special.
Topic : write about an animal
•
•
•
•
•
•
Dogs
Dogs
Pets
Hard work
It
We all
are animals.
can be pets.
can be hard work.
can be good for you.
teaches you to care for others.
should take care of each other.
Edited for style
Dogs are animals, but they can also be a
pet. As pets, they can be hard work. This
can be good for you because it teaches
you to take care of someone else. We
should all learn to care for others.
2. Cohesion
Halliday & Hasan (1976)
• Grammar at the discourse level:
Repetition & signaling to draw connections
between sentences:
1.Reference (personal & demonstrative
pronouns)
2.Word sets (synonyms & related words)
3.Conjunctions – linking (and, or,)
- logical (if, then, because)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Inclusive teachers
He or she
They also
As well, educators
And, if the children
this
theme
need to understand all children.
must be fair and reasonable.
need to teach at a sensible pace.
need to lecture with a clear voice.
have been good all week,
should end with fun activities.
rheme
Writing concerns for ADHD/LD
student
• Structuring concepts & information into
organization patterns
• Incorporating reading, research, analysis
& synthesis into text
• Editing for errors
• Sustaining focus on task at hand
AND
Just getting started!!!!!!!
Traditional solution
(accommodations)
• Ignore spelling and grammar until editing
• Use visual supports, such as paragraph &
essay format templates
• Use technology or tutor to address spelling
and grammar
Teaching the writing process
• Planning – research & organizing ideas
• Production – writing
• Editing – for style
Teaching them to use …….
1. Textual strategies (new & given
information)
2. Teach about cohesion
Topic : write about an animal
•
•
•
•
•
•
Dogs
Dogs
Pets
Hard work
It
We all
are animals.
can be pets.
can be hard work.
can be good for you.
teaches you to care for others.
should take care of each other.
Edited for style
Dogs are animals, but they can also be a
pet. As pets, they can be hard work. This
can be good for you because it teaches
you to take care of someone else. We
should all learn to care for others.
Evidence-Based Intervention for Writing
• All areas of written language should be
addressed within the same instructional
session.
• Handwriting, spelling, and composition should
be taught together, and instruction should be
explicit.
• Keep in mind the range of skills required for
writing text