Children's Writing

Teaching intermediate grade children how to write means teaching them how to write the alphabetical letters, words, lists, phrases, sentences, paragraphs, narrative text, expository text, and writing mechanics (punctuation & grammar). Teaching writing for meaning is teaching children how to express their thoughts in writing, this is the content of their writing, hence, content writing. Teachers plan for and instruct their intermediate grade children to formulate and compose texts within the English language leading them to become proficient in English language fluency.

The Contemplation Music Writing Project is all about kids searching inner experiences while listening to music. The music soothes them inside so they can visualize events in their lives--both positive and negative--and contemplate, write about, and discuss them with classmates and teacher. The students' responses, or "contemplations," ranged the gamut from real-life experiences to fantasies, dreams, memories, and reflections. After practicing contemplation throughout the school year the kids learned to express themselves honestly, directly, and sensitively. As you read their writings, you can imagine the depth and intensity our post-discussions took. Usually we completed 100 or more contemplations by the end of the year. The children always appreciated contemplation after lunch because they knew they could chill, listen to some sounds, and write about their lives and feel inner peace afterwards. One result of this original type of writing was the effects/affects it had on the overall classroom environment--both academically and existentially. In simple terms, contemplation brought classes together.

This paper presents a case study of a young writer, a girl agedbetwen9and10overthe6-monthperiodanalyzed.Thewriteracesed KidPub,aWorldWideWebsitethataceptsstoriessubmitedbyoronbehalf of children and young people under the age of 16 and publishes them, giving each story its own Web page. With the help of a mentor, the writer published astoryviathisWebsite.Thepaperdiscusestheprocesofengagingthe writerthroughtrackinghowmanytimesherstorywasread,aswelasreading andrespondingtoreadercorespondence.Examplesofe-mailcorespondence are included.