Writing is a basic tool for learning as well as for communicating with others. Writing is multifaceted in that it orchestrates thinking, language, and mechanics. Throughout their lives, students will need to use many genres and forms of writing for a wide range of purposes and audiences.” (The Literacy Quick Guide, p. 58)
Writing Development
“Students need to develop a basic knowledge of the writing process and to know how to vary the process for different genres and purposes. Preschoolers and Kindergartners can ‘make books’ by telling a story through drawings even before they can read and write formally...As they write year after year, they engage in the same basic process but at more sophisticated levels.” (The Literacy Quick Guide, p 59)
For primary students, typically between the ages of 5 to 11 years old, writing development is a multifaceted process that progresses gradually as they acquire various skills and experiences. Here are some key aspects of writing development in primary students: It's important to note that writing development is not linear and can vary greatly among individual students. Providing a supportive environment with opportunities for writing, along with targeted instruction and feedback, can greatly facilitate writing development in primary students.
Writing Process
The writing process in primary students involves a series of steps that they go through to create written compositions. While the process may vary slightly from student to student and across different writing tasks, it generally includes the following stages: Brainstorming, Planning, Drafting, Revising, Editing, Peer Review/Feedback, and Publishing.
Throughout the writing process, primary students are encouraged to engage in reflective thinking, self-assessment, and goal setting to improve their writing skills. Teachers play a crucial role in guiding students through each stage of the process, providing instruction, feedback, and support as needed.
It's important for primary students to understand that writing is a recursive process, meaning that they may revisit earlier stages multiple times as they work on their compositions. Encouraging a growth mindset and fostering a positive attitude towards writing can help students develop confidence and resilience in their writing abilities. When engaged in writing the focus is on process and not all pieces need to be formally published.
Writing Traits
Explicitly noticing and naming “the characteristics and qualities of good writing” (Culham, 1995, p. 11) includes considerations for: ideas, organization, voice of author, word choice, sentence fluency, conventions, and presentation. These traits can be emphasized during a variety of high yield routines, including mini-lessons during Writers’ Workshop, analyzing mentor texts, or individual goal-setting with students.
Writing traits provide a framework for evaluating and improving writing skills across different genres and purposes. For primary students, focusing on these traits helps them understand what makes good writing and gives them specific goals to work towards. Here are six commonly recognized writing traits for primary students.
Key Resources: What Informs Us?
Books:
 Fountas, I. C., & Gay Su Pinnell. (2018). The Fountas & Pinnell literacy quick guide : a reference tool for responsive literacy teaching. Heinemann. |  Provincial Outreach Program for the Early Years (click image to go to Popey's website) |  The Writing Strategies Book (by Jennifer Serravallo) |  Teaching Writing in Small Groups (by Jennifer Serravallo) |
 A Teacher’s Guide to Mentor Texts, K-5 (by Carl Anderson) |  Craft and Process Studies (by Matt Glover) |  Engaging Young Writers (by Matt Glover) |  A Teacher’s Guide to Interactive Writing (by Matt Halpern) |
 A Teacher’s Guide to Getting Started with Beginning Writers (by Katie Wood Ray and Lisa Cleavland) |  A Teacher’s Guide to Writing Conferences (by Carl Anderson and Katie Wood Ray |  A Teacher’s Guide to Writing Workshop Minilessons (by Lisa Eickholdt and Patricia Vitale-Reilly) |  6 +1 Traits for Writing (by Ruth Culham) |
| Printable Resources: | ||
Framework for Understanding Writing 
| We Are Writers: 5 Ways To Write  | Printing Like A Pro - Child Development and Rehabilitation Department, B.C. |