Purposeful Conversations To Assist Young Writers


The conversations teachers conduct with young learners have the capacity to greatly influence writing development. The art of conversation and the posing of meaningful questions is a skill educators would do well to mindfully develop. The potential of these interactions to influence attitudes writing and outcomes should never be underestimated. The way we talk to young learners influences the very climate within the classroom. Open  up your classroom to authentic dialogue. It will deliver a little sunshine...

    Opportunities to initiate writing conversations arise daily, throughout every writing workshop. Like all skills we hone, our abilities to ask questions through mindful actions benefit from regular practice. 

    Such conversations may take place during roving conferences, during strategy groups, check in groups, during individual writing conferences/conversations and also during share time. They can be facilitated between peers or a peer group. 

    You can shape conversation prompts to encourage these essential conversations among young writers in any of these classroom scenarios. 

    The aim is to further develop the metacognitive writer and encourage reflection, self regulation, self efficacy and a sense of agency.

    Such interactions support young writers to think quite consciously about their individual writing process and the effect this may have on their writing development if embraced.

    The aim is to discover what lies below the surface. Let's work to conduct conversations promoting the growth of fully engaged, independent, self-directed writers.

    Here are a few conversation starters to spark the thinking of young writers. Please use it as a springboard for your own conversation launchers. 

    


• Tell me about a part of your writing that you really like

• Can you tell where your writing could be improved?

• What do you need help with? What do you need to work on to make it better?

• What kind of revisions have you made?

• Why did you write about this topic?

• Why is it important to you?

• What writing strategy did you use to lift the quality of your writing?

• Tell me one you have learned about good writing that you will continue to use in your writing

• How have you improved as a writer?

• Tell me what you are going to do next?

• How does talking help you as a writer

• Is there a text or a writer you are using as a model for your writing?

• What have you learned from looking at the writing of others?

• Tell me something you think is important to do as a writer

• How about we take a look at your piece and I’ll describe what I think you’re doing as a writer…

• I notice you’ve crossed out a section of your writing. Can you tell me about that?

• What is something you want to be able to do as a writer?



Alan j Wright

Education Consultant

Author/poet

alanjwright@bigpond.com




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