Caitlin Sadecky Painter
Graduate Student
Slippery Rock University
Many people think that children learn to read through writing
and learn to write through reading. If this is the case,
educators need to look into the way that they teach writing
with their children. By using children's literature, educators
will provide students with a model of what good writing
looks like. Bringing new practices into the classroom will
forge a bridge between the writing process and reading.
 Writing allows for free expression of ideas.
 It allows for a way to gather information on the child.
 It can be used as a means of communication.
 It can be used to relieve tension from the monotonous routine of
other classroom activities.
 It develops children into strong writers.
(Stewig, 1990)
With writing, children have the ability to write about whatever
they like. They are able to reflect on experiences, express their
feelings, jot down their ideas, and focus on their thoughts.
They are able to take risks with their writing.
They are engaged in an authentic writing experience.
When children write, they “invite us to share their worlds and
their ways of living in the world.” (Calkins, 1994)
We can see the child’s strengths and weaknesses with writing.
We can learn the child’s interests.
Oral language and written language come to children naturally.
(Lindfors, 2008)
Writing is used as a way of communication throughout everyday
life.
Children will use writing to communication with family and
friends through notes and letters.
Worksheets and tests become tiring over time.
Children need a chance to make some choices in their education.
With writing, children have the opportunity to express
themselves freely without the constraints that other activities
might have.
Writing will become more fluid with the more children write,
which eventually leads to stronger writing. (Elliott, 2008)
Just like anything, the more a child practices, the better they will
become at writing.
It is important to build on the skills of writing early, so in the
future, they will have a stronger connection with writing.
This is a way to get children constantly writing.
Children will have the opportunity to write
anything meaningful down in here.
Pictures, drawings, artifacts, and other items
may be added to their writing.
This is an activity that they “own”, because they
have freedom of expression.
Picture from: http://twowritingteachers.wordpress.com/2007/11/20/a-twist-on-heart-maps/
Children “collect seeds by recording bits
and pieces of their lives.” (Elliott, 2008)
This should be a safe haven for writing,
so that children may take risks.
(Fletcher, 1996)
The notebook “encourages young
writers to live like writers do.”
(Elliott, 2008)
Picture From: http://sciencefiction.tumblr.com/post/138012164/just-found-this-pictogram-in-my-childs-notebook
 Children should pick out a notebook that they like.
 The notebook should be carried everywhere.
 Each entry should start on a new page, to leave room if more
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wants to be added to a previous entry.
Dating entries is suggested, so you can refer back to them.
Erasing items messes with the flow of writing, so scratching
out is encouraged.
The notebook should note be read, unless given permission.
This is a place for children to take risks.
(Elliott, 2008)
This should be used in a community of
care and respect as children will work
with others.
Children will work through all areas of
the writing process.
You should refer to children, in a way
that encourages them to be authors.
(Calkins, 1994)
Picture from: http://www.jmeacham.com/images/writers.workshop/writing.gif
Children will create rough drafts, revise their
writing, edit their writing, confer with others,
and publish their works. (Lindfors, 2008)
They will have discussions about their works
with other children and the teacher.
They will go through the writing process in an
authentic experience.
Picture from: http://quest.carnegiefoundation.org/~dpointer/jennifermyers/jmyersstills/sm/ww_wall.jpg
Writing Notebook
Writer’s Workshop
 Use literature to spark children’s
 Develop stories from writer’s
imagination
 Have children look at illustrations
to write
 Have children write down
questions to ask authors
 Have children write letters to
others or themselves
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notebook
Use genres to model conventions
Use books as a mentor text
Use autobiographies to aid in
writing memoir-stories
Use different genre texts to aid
with the writing of that genre text
 By reading books to children, they are given
the opportunity to make predictions, ask
questions, and talk about books. (Lindfors,
2008)
 With read alouds, good writing is modeled.
 Read alouds can inspire a child to be a writer.
(Calkins, 1994)
 Olivia tells the story of a young pig’s
everyday life. The story goes through
different things she does in a normal
day.
 This book can be used to compare
Olivia’s activities with their own.
 After reading this book, children can
write about typical days in their own
lives.
 This story is about a young girl who enters
a “different” world when she is painting.
She gets immersed in her paintings, and
eventually returns to her normal life when
she stops.
 With this book, children can be
encouraged to enter a “different” world
when they are writing.
 It also shows children that different things
that can inspire a child’s imagination.
 This is the story about a town that had
food for weather. One day, the
weather turn bad and they work to
solve the problem. In the end they find
a new land and utilize the food for their
homes.
 Children can be encourage to write
about what food they would want for
weather.
 They could also write an alternate way
of solving the town’s problems.
 This is the story about a lion who helps
out at the library. One day he roars to
help out the librarian, but leaves
realizing he broke the rules. However,
in the end, sometimes there is a reason
to break the rules.
 Children could write about the
importance of rules in their notebook.
 Children can also write about why
rules may sometimes be broken.
 When Wendell visits his cousin Sophie,
he bosses her around. She can’t wait
for him to leave. By the end of the
story, Sophie finally gets some say in
what they do, and she is sad when he
leaves.
 Children can write about a time that
they might have had trouble with a
friend.
 They can be encouraged to write how
they solved the problem.
• Chris Van Allsburg
• Kevin Henkes
• Jan Brett
• Patricia Polacco
• Eve Bunting
• Jon Scieszka
• Eric Carle
• Maurice Sendak
• Doreen Cronin
• David Shannon
• Ian Falconer
• Mark Teague
• Denise Fleming
• Judith Viorst
• Mem Fox
• Karma Wilson
 Children can write stories on top of the
illustrations.
 These books act as a scaffold for the children, as
they go through and add a story on top of the
illustrations. (Stewig, 1990)
 All of the following books can be used to
encourage writing of a story as a class or an
individual.
 The pictures depict a little girl and her experience at the ocean.
 Illustrations depict the adventures of a boy and his pet dog and their
experience trying to catch a frog.
 The pictures tell the story of a young boy’s experience building a
snowman and the magical world when the snowman comes to life.
 A young boy’s experience finding a camera washed up in the tide and the
background behind it is displayed in this book.
 Every picture depicts the window of a girl’s room from a baby to an
adult.
• You’re a Good Dog, Carl by Alexandra Day
• Yellow Umbrella by Jae-Soo Liu
• Pancakes for Breakfast by Tomie DePaola
• Bubble, Bubble by Mercer Mayer
• Oops by Arthur Geisert
• Frog on His Own by Mercer Mayer
• Lights Out by Arthur Geisert
• One Frog Too Many by Mercer Mayer
• Un-Brella by Scott E. Franson
• Frog Goes to Dinner by Mercer Mayer
• The Red Book by Barbara Lehman
• Good Night, Gorilla by Peggy Rathmann
• Museum Trip by Barbara Lehman
• Peter Spier’s Rain by Peter Spier
• Rainstorm by Barbara Lehman
• Deep in the Forest by Brinton Turkle
• Trainstop by Barabra Lehman
• Free Fall by David Weisner
 Different books can be used to help children with
writing stories. They can act as mentor texts.
 These books can help a child find out the important
elements of different stories. For example, reading a
mystery book to find the elements of a mystery.
 It is important to vary genres used in the classroom,
because you will reach the interests of more
children.
 Poems can be used in a series with
poetry writing. Different types of
poetry can be used.
 This book can be used teach about
rhyming.
 Children can make lists of rhymes or
their own poem about life.
 This is an autobiography about
James Howe.
 It is part of the “Meet the Author”
series.
 This book can be used to teach children
about writing autobiographies.
 This is an Algonquin Indian Cinderella
story.
 This book can be used to teach
children about writing fairy tales and
legends.
 Children can compare this story with
the popular version of Cinderella.
 This story goes through what happens
when you give a moose a muffin.
 This is a predictable book, that goes
through an “if-then” situation.
 Children can use this book to make
their own “if-then” story.
 This is a story about what happens
when you cut down the rainforest.
Different animals are effected by one
small act.
 This book can be used in a science
class.
 Children can engage in a small
research paper after reading this book
about saving the rainforest.
• Biography
• Use books about presidents, authors,
scientists, and other areas they are
interested in. Have children write
their own biography about someone
after.
• Mystery
• Find series of mysteries or the choose
your adventure stories. Children can
then write alternate endings.
• Non-Fiction
• These books can be used as a research
project or a fact sheet.
• Fables
• Use as a guideline to teach morals in a
story. Have children write their own
morals.
 A student or local author can come to the classroom.
 Children can write questions to authors. Many
authors have emails and snail mail options to contact
them.
 Allow students to explore author websites, to find out
more about them.
 A good website to spark discussions about authors, is
www.readingrockets.com. This site has many famous
author interviews.
 This is a great book to show the
process an author and illustrator goes
through.
 Children will see how tough it can be
to write one story.
 This book can be used with the
writer’s workshop, showing each step
that needs to be completed.
 This story is written like a four year
old looking back on her youth.
 This book can be used to discuss
things that might inspire an author to
write a memoir.
 Children can use this book as a
guideline for writing memoirs.
 This is an autobiography written by
Cynthia Rylant.
 It is part of the “Meet the Author”
series.
 This book can be used to teach
children about writing
autobiographies.
 This can also teach children about the
author’s process of writing.
 This is a story written in an
autobiographical way.
 This book can show students how
events in the author’s life can shape
their stories.
 Children can be encouraged to write
about memories they have had.
 This book goes through the life of Ted
Geiser and his eventual fame as Dr. Seuss.
 Children can discuss the books Dr. Seuss
wrote and his unique non-sense words.
 Children can write their own
Dr. Seuss-like stories, using nonsense
words and rhyming.
Official Author Websites
www.janbrett.com (Jan Brett)
www.eric-carle.com (Eric Carle)
www.jamieleecurtisbooks.com (Jamie Lee Curtis)
www.tomie.com (Tomie DePaola)
www.kevinhenkes.com (Kevin Henkes)
www.lauranumeroff.com (Laura Numeroff)
www.patriciapolacco.com (Patricia Polacco)
www.jackprelutsky.com (Jack Prelutsky)
www.seussville.com (Dr. Seuss)
Other Websites
• www.readingrockets.org
• Information and videos from different authors, as well as resources to promote reading
and writing.
• http://www.harpercollinschildrens.com/Kids/AuthorsAndIllustrators/
• Authors and books are spotlighted on this site, as well as activities.
• http://www.teachingbooks.net/vl.cgi?c=personal
• This is a list of many different children’s book authors.
• http://www.bethanyroberts.com/childrensbookauthors.htm
• Another list of many different children’s book authors.
 Children need to see what good writing looks like in
order to become better in their own writing. (Tandy
and Howell, 2008).
 Also, when children read, they gain a stronger
vocabulary to use in their own pieces. (Tandy and
Howell, 2008).
 As a teacher, books can be used to point out different
things, such as grammar, sentence structure, character
development, and other aspects of writing and stories.
 This book is the diary of a worm as he
goes through each day of his life.
 This book would be great to show
children about writing in their
notebooks.
 Each entry is dated, and the stories
the worm writes are about anything.
This can be used to encourage
children to write about anything.
 This book is written in letter form
throughout, about a dogs experience
in obedience school.
 If teaching children about writing
letters, this book can be used to show
the greeting, body, and closing.
 Children can write their own letters
to someone following the format in
the book .
 Every page of this book has a different
fear and definition depicted with
fantastic pictures. Each page has space
for a child to write their fears in it.
 By reading through these fears,
children will gain a broader
vocabulary of the things that scare
them.
 They can take this vocabulary and
write a passage about the fear in the
book that effects them the most.
 Bear gets lost in this tale and his
friends go on a search to find him.
 There is a lot of dialogue used in this
book.
 Children can write a story using
dialogue. The book can act as a
mentor text, to see how dialogue in a
story is set up.
 This simple story tells the beginning
of a friendship between two boys.
 Punctuation and expression can be
discussed using this book.
 As children are writing stories,
encourage them to use punctuation as
a way to stress different things.
Picture from; http://www.coverbrowser.com/image/bestselling-comics-2006/903-1.jpg
• Vocabulary Development
•
Giraffes Can’t Dance by Giles Andreae
•
Big Words for Little People by Jamie Lee Curtis
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The Boy Who Loved Words by Roni Schotter
• Sentence Structure
•
Almost any book can be used with this, as children’s
literature is filled with examples.
• Books about Letter writing
• Expression and Punctuation
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Yours Truly, Goldilocks by Alma Flor Ada
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Punctuation Takes a Vacation by Robin Pulver
•
The Jolly Postman by Janet and Allen Ahlberg
•
Hooper Humperdink…? Not Him! by Dr. Seuss
•
Letter to Amy by Ezra Jack Keats
•
Eats, Shoots and Leaves by Lynne Truss
 Children should have ample time to explore books.
 Children should have comfortable spaces in the room where they can
explore books.
 There should be an abundance of books available in the classroom.
 Teachers should demonstrate how to explore books.
 Children should give a choice of what they read.
 Children should be given time to discuss what they read through
writing, reading, and talking.
 (Lindfors, 2008)
Please feel free to contact me with any
questions, comments or other ideas!
caitlinpainter@gmail.com
 Every attempt was made to acknowledge sources of
ideas and images used in this presentation. Usage of
ideas and images in this presentation is believed to be
consistent with Copyright Fair Use guidelines.
 Please use the images and ideas within this
presentation in a responsible manner.
Calkins, L. M. (1994). The art of teaching writing. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Elliott, J. L. (2008). Using the writer's notebook in grades 3-8: a teacher's guide. Urbana, IL: National Council of
Teachers of English.
Fletcher, R. (1996). Breathing in, breathing out: keeping a writer's notebook. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Lindfors, J. W. (2008). Children's language: connecting reading, writing, and talk. New York: Teachers College
Press.
Stewig, J. W. (1990). Read to write: using children's literature as a springboard for teaching writing (Third ed.).
Katonah, New York: Richard C. Owen Publishers, Inc.
Tandy, M., & Howell, J. (2008). Creating writers in the primary classroom: practical
approaches to inspire teachers and their pupils. new York: Routledge.
Background of books borrowed from: http://www.thegreenwoodgallery.co.uk/images/books_main_lgt.jpg
All photos uncredited on their slide were taken by the presenter.