Instructional+Strategies+to+Enhance+Writing+for+Culturally+and+Linguistically+Diverse+Students

Introduction: All students have ideas, it is our job as educators to support students in getting their ideas on paper. Here we present writing through the ages, three writing examples are critiqued from 1st, 4th, and 6th grade. We have looked at similarities and differences and researched instructional strategies to enhance their writing.
 * SIMILARITIES || DIFFERENCES  ||
 * * The first and fourth graders did not use capital letters
 * at the beginning of the sentences. However, they both capitalized the proper nouns in their stories. || * The sixth grader used good story structure.
 * The sixth grader displayed proper punctuation. ||
 * * All three students wrote lengthy stories. || * The fourth grader did not attempt punctuation while the first and sixth grader did. ||
 * * Both the fourth grader and first grader left out word endings.
 * The sixth grader and fourth grader spelled most words correctly.
 * The sixth and fourth grader used good sentence structure. || * The sixth graders handwriting is not consistent, which makes it hard to read.
 * The sixth grader followed a strict story sequence supplied by the teacher that made the story flow logically from beginning to end. ||

Types of literacy scaffolds may include: (Peregoy, S. F., Boyle, O. F., & Cadiero-Kaplan, K. (2008). //Reading////, writing, and learning in ESL: A resource book for teaching K–12 English learners// (5th ed.)//.// Boston, MA: Pearson Education). || http://www.k8accesscenter.org/training_resources/ writingdifferentation.asp || __Conclusion__: All three students have more similarities than differences. As a result the sixth grader displayed more refined writing skills than the first and fourth grader due to more experience with the writing process. According to writing strategies and research, teachers need to provide literacy scaffolds, oral interactions, direct explicit instruction, and differentiated instruction to support English language learners.
 * Instructional Strategies to Enhance Writing ||  Research to Support these Strategies  ||
 * Provide literacy scaffolds to improve writing.
 * dialogue journals
 * buddy journals
 * clustering || Literacy scaffolds provide students with the temporary support and framework they need to construct or comprehend a written message
 * Oral discussions with peers in small groups prior to producing their writing. Students should work in:
 * Collaborative
 * Cooperative
 * Peer response groups. || Oral interactions allow students to organize ideas and provide helpful vocabulary for English language learners. Informal exchanges of language provide a safe and non-threatening place for students to experiment and practice with language ( Peregoy, S. F., Boyle, O. F., & Cadiero-Kaplan, K. (2008). //Reading////, writing, and learning in ESL: A resource book for teaching K–12 English learners// (5th ed.)//.// Boston, MA: Pearson Education). ||
 * Direct explicit instruction in the writing process which includes:
 * Prewriting
 * Drafting
 * Revising
 * Editing
 * Publishing || Research indicates second language learners are similar to first language writers. They use background knowledge to develop ideas and use the writing process similar to those of first language learners. The writing process breaks down the writing tasks into smaller steps. Students can focus on what step at a time when writing ( Peregoy, S. F., Boyle, O. F., & Cadiero-Kaplan, K. (2008). //Reading////, writing, and learning in ESL: A resource book for teaching K–12 English learners// (5th ed.)//.// Boston, MA: Pearson Education). ||
 * Tiered Assignments to allow for differentiated instruction. Instruction may be differentiated by:
 * Amount of time to complete the task
 * Amount of instruction given in the writing process
 * Amount of writing options given to the students || The Access Center Improving Outcomes for all Students k-8.