LD Teaching Strategies for Your Classroom: Writing

Steve Schmidt

abspd.appstate.edu

“Many adults do not like to write. Consider the example of a New York cab driver who explains why he carefully avoids hitting pedestrians: ‘I always try to avoid hittin’ ’em because every timeya hit one, yagotta write out a long report about it’ ” (Lerner and Johns, 2009 in Learning to Achieve).

Dysgraphia Warning Signs

  • Tight, awkward pencil grip and body position
  • Illegible handwriting
  • Avoiding writing or drawing tasks
  • Tiring quickly while writing
  • Saying words out loud while writing
  • Unfinished or omitted words in sentences
  • Difficulty organizing thoughts on paper
  • Difficulty with syntax structure and grammar
  • Large gap between written ideas and understanding demonstrated through speech.

Source: LD Online

AWriter with Dysgraphia Says . . .

“Writing is definitely the worst task of all. It was just way too hard to remember all the things I need, like periods and capital letters. And then it's almost impossible to think about how to spell words when I'm busy trying to think about the story. It's so hard to remember what I'm writing about . . . I figure it’s easier to write just a few sentences. That doesn’t hurt my hand so much either. My teachers complain, but I just keep writing very short stories. After all, teachers don’t understand what it’s like to struggle and struggle to write and still have the paper turn out sloppy and full of mistakes. They always tell me how messy my papers are. They just can’t understand how hard I try. No matter how carefully I work, the words don’t look the way they look for other [students]. Sometimes I know how I want the word to look, but it just doesn’t turn out that way.”

(Regina Richards quoted in Learning to Achieve, 2010)

Writing Frames

Frames are outlines of words or key phrases with plenty of blank lines that provide a structure so learners can focus on what they want to say.

Frames remove the, “I don’t know where to start” problem and help students gain confidence in

their ability to write.

As students become more confident writers, we can provide them with less structure over time by reducing or removing frames.

Adapted from Corley (2012)

An Example Frame:

I am going to describe howto ______

______

______.

I start by ______

______

______.

Then I ______

______

______.

Finally I ______

______

______.

ABC Frame

Writing Prompt

What is the most interesting thing you learned about ______from the reading?

Answer the Question

______is the most interesting thing about ______.

Back it Up with Evidence to Support Your Answer

The author said that ______

OR

The author said, “ ______

______.”

This means ______

______.

Make a Comment or Connection

This would be interesting because ______

______.

It reminds me of ______

______.

Putting It Together

Put all your sentences together in a paragraph:

______

______

______

______

______

______

______

______

______.

Telling the News

What is the topic of the news you will tell? ______

When did it happen? ______

Who created the news? ______

Where did the news happen? ______

______

What happened? ______

______

______

______

______

Why did it happen? ______

______

______

______

Graphic Organizers

Graphic organizers help students represent their ideas visually. Use direct instruction to show your students how to use graphic organizers.

Somebody Wanted But So

Somebody
(Who?)
Wanted
(What did they
want to do?)
But
(What was the problem?)
So
(How was the problem solved?)

Key Questions Graphic Organizer

Technology

Use a computer for word processing to help with:

  • Spelling
  • Grammar
  • Editing
  • Word meanings (dictionaries)

Tech Tools:

  • In Google Docs, use Voice Typing, a speech to text feature. Find it under:

Tools

Voice Typing

Click on Microphone and then speak

(Note: You must be using a Google Chrome browser for Voice typing to work)

  • Etype.com (free download) will do autocomplete (suggest words after one types the first few

letters)

  • Voice Notepad ( is a free program that converts voice into text
  • Grammarly ( ) is a free program that helps make writing more clear
  • Chromebooks can be purchased for under $150
  • Voice Memo (free app on iPhone under the Extras icon) or Voice Recorder (free app on Android phone) can record lectures.

Writing Feedback

Avoid bloodshed! Focus on one writing error at a time and give the red pen a break!

Other Tips

  • Find out which errors students are making
  • Show them how often they make those errors in their writing
  • Then present the grammar or writing rule within the context of improving their work
  • Help them to learn the rule, identify the errors in context, and correct it
  • Read both versions to show them the difference
  • Grade content and mechanics separately

Source: Stewart

Resources

National Institute for Literacy (2010).Learning to achieve. Washington DC: US Government Printing

Office.

Payne, N. (1994). Building learning power for children and adults who have special learning needs: A

Collection of instructional strategies & adjustments.Olympia WA: Payne and Associates.

Stewart, C. (2017). Understanding students with learning disabilities and disorders. COABE 2017

Presentation.

Page 1