Writing

Writing-

When writing, children have to learn the difference between written and spoken language.There are various principles of writing, this can be seen in many childrens' early writing development. The sign principle: This is where children understand that certain forms (letters and symbols) have meaning. The flexibility principle: the knowledge that some symbols are letters and some are not. The linear Principle: Where directionality of writing is learnt. The knowledge that English writing is left to right, top to bottom. Also, the knowledge of putting spaces between words. This understanding can be quite difficult and confusing for children and, as a skill can take some time to master. The stages of children's writing can be classified as; Beginning Writing, Early Emergent, Emergent, Early Writing, Transitional and Extending. Because writing is made up of so many aspects, children can find it very difficult. Reading can be very influential in childrens' writing as it gives an exapmle of; different texts, ways words can be written, punctuation, the purpose etc...As childrens' writing develops, so, too does their knowledge of punctuation.

Awareness of different text types also aid children in their writing. The ability to understand text types and how they can be used to convey different meanings, such as; Informational texts, narratives, procedural, recount, report etc... Knowledge of the purpose of text types can expand childrens' writing skills greatly, as they can use more information and in the correct form. A great way of teaching text types is simply to expose students to a variety. It's recommended that teachers expose children to a 1/3 of information texts, 1/3 of narrative and 1/3 of other genres. (Hill 2006, p. 321)