Purposefully Connecting Reading and Writing Through Thoughtful Assignments

By Dr. Pearl Garden, Elementary ELAR Consultant

As an elementary English language arts and reading consultant, I often hear teachers say they don’t have enough time to teach writing and are unsure how to incorporate writing instruction into their school day. I also observe reading instruction that includes a lot of isolated practice, which often means that if time is allocated to writing, it is also treated as isolated practice.

The elementary schools here in Texas have 90 to 120 minutes dedicated to literacy instruction each day. Teachers must decide (or are provided a structure for) what to teach, when, where, and how as it relates to reading and writing. We have gone through (or maybe are still going through) the movement to make our literacy instruction Science of Reading-ish, meaning that we should rely more on what research has proven to work with literacy instruction.

With that said, here is something to consider: reading and writing are reciprocal processes; they support and strengthen each other and depend on some of the same skills. So, why is our reading instruction separated from our writing instruction? Especially when we don’t have as much instructional time as we would like to spend on each subject. I will share some ideas for integrating writing with reading instruction so they strengthen and reinforce each other.

First, let’s focus on what research says about effective writing instruction. Research supports giving students time to write every school day, teaching the writing process for various purposes, helping students develop fluency in foundational writing skills, and creating an active, engaged community of writers where you, the teacher, write with and alongside your students. Read more here: WWC | Teaching Elementary School Students to Be Effective Writers. But what does this look like in your classroom, and how can we combine both subjects? Let’s examine each point separately, and I will share ideas and resources.

Daily Time to Write

Starting in first grade, students should spend about an hour each school day writing. For kindergarten, it’s shorter — about 30 minutes. That might seem like a lot, but we can break that time into manageable chunks. Think of that hour as two 30-minute chunks or, for kindergarten and younger, two 15-minute chunks. One chunk involves a gradual release approach with direct instruction, where you explain, model, and guide instruction, both shared and interactive, so students can eventually practice each skill independently. The other chunk is dedicated to students practicing writing authentically, aligning with that instruction. The key to making this effective is spreading that hour throughout the school day, not just during the reading block. That is the best way to “fit” writing instruction in.

As a teacher, you can create opportunities for students to write across all subjects daily. Here is a resource that can help: Making Room for Writing | Reading Rockets. Also, remember those reciprocal processes I mentioned earlier? Every reading assignment can be an assignment where we write and vice versa. For example, during (or after) a lesson where students practiced reading for comprehension, students can write to respond to comprehension-type questions. Students should respond to text they read or hear as early as first grade. The responses in kindergarten would look different, but would rely more heavily on you doing modeled, shared, and interactive writing with them (with adult support). During whole-group or small-group reading instruction, students can write dictated sentences that allow them to continue practicing the phonics skills focused on in each lesson.

Making time for writing can be as simple as having a sign-in sheet for students to “check in” at the start of the school day. They can practice printing or writing their name in cursive (foundational skills practice). They can write directions to and from the cafeteria or draw a diagram of their lunch plate showing what they will have for lunch that day. In math, they can discuss a word problem they create and then write it down for a classmate to solve. Here is a resource with more ideas: Writing Across the Day

Teaching The Writing Process for a Variety of Purposes

The Texas standards require students to work through the writing process “with adult support” starting as early as kindergarten. Even pre-K students are expected to “discuss and contribute ideas for drafts.” Students need to understand that writing is a process they go through to develop a formal piece of writing. They also need to realize that sometimes they get to write just for fun. We will talk about this more when we discuss building a writing community.

When intentionally teaching writing, we should have our students “think” like authors. So, when teaching reading (there it is again), we focus on the author’s craft, purpose, and text features. We do this to give students good examples of effective writing to emulate. We can use this time to show students how authors do it so they can write like that. This truly is another opportunity for students to “write while reading.”

We can teach students the attributes of each reading genre and then have them craft a piece of writing based on the genre. For example, after reading a story like Silly Sally by Audrey Wood (predictive text), your class could add a line or several lines to the story that match the predictive text.

A part of the text says, “Silly Sally went to town walking backwards, upside down.” This part repeats, but the verb changes. Students can write from a sample sentence and add their own verb. So, their sentence could say: “Silly Sally went to town skating backwards, upside down.”

As teachers, we guide (as I mentioned before, modeled, guided, shared, interactive, independent) students through every part of the writing process, from planning to drafting, revising, editing, publishing, and sharing. We must help students understand that this process is repeated as often as necessary to produce the best “published” work. Using a good mentor text as an exemplar and reminding students that authors use a process to write can be done while students are reading those texts.

Building Fluency in Foundational Writing Skills

Students with low cognitive energy are more prone to behavioral issues and learning difficulties because frustration can arise when trying to master grade-level skills. For instance, if students struggle with writing the letter M or spelling a specific word, they will likely use much cognitive energy, leaving little for developing ideas in stories and even less for sentence construction. We should dedicate time to helping students build foundational skills to become fluent. This includes skills like handwriting, cursive writing (if you teach it), spelling, keyboarding (for high-stakes testing), and sentence construction, which should not be overlooked.

Therefore, part of your writing instruction should focus on practicing foundational writing skills. Consider reducing emphasis on handwriting and spelling during students’ initial drafts. Establish routines and have scaffolds in place to ensure students are willing and able to continue writing. For example, if students work on letter formation, provide alphabet charts to help reduce frustration. Also, approximations in spelling during early drafts should be accepted, as they can serve as informal assessments to determine which spelling patterns students have mastered or need to revisit in whole-group or small-group instruction. A chart of words and spelling patterns taught can also be a helpful tool for writing instruction.

We should intentionally prepare students for writing time, especially in the early grades when students may not yet have mastered the foundational skills necessary to be effective writers.

An Active and Engaged Community of Writers

Although reading and writing are connected, writing is a more complex skill. Students need both the ability and motivation to write. We must create a safe space where students feel comfortable attempting challenging tasks like writing. I tell the teachers I work with that we should give students choice. I like to say, “Sometimes, we have to write; other times, we get to write.” We can provide choice by varying the paper types, writing tools, and other resources to make writing enjoyable.

We can also reduce the cognitive load involved in writing by actively engaging with students by writing with them (letting them see how you work through mistakes in writing), offering scaffolds and support, and sharing examples of good writing by sharing mentor texts.

We can inspire students to want to write by giving them opportunities to share their work with different audiences. Students practice reading aloud by sharing their writing with classmates, peers, an older buddy, or an adult. If students are hesitant to read their work in front of the class, they can record their reading or have another student or you, the teacher, share it. You can also take it a step further by publishing your students’ writing by uploading student writing to some type of electronic or cloud-based storage and sharing it via QR code or another way.

Creating space for students to discuss what they are working on is also important. A writing conference is a good way to have one-on-one or small group discussions with students about their work. This communicates that their ideas are important and valuable. The conference also lets students see their writing progress and receive helpful feedback.

To close, reading and writing are interconnected skills that enhance each other. With deliberate focus, we can combine them to offer meaningful, everyday opportunities for students to participate as readers and writers, strengthening their ability to do both.

Thank you for reading.

Pearl Garden, Ed.D., is a Literacy Coach and Elementary ELAR Consultant at the Region 10 Education Service Center. With 27 years of experience, Dr. Garden has worked in elementary classroom instruction, teacher education, and has held adjunct professorships at Paul Quinn College, East Texas A&M University, and Hartwell University. She has published articles in several reputable journals, including The Journal of Teacher Action Research, the Texas Association of Literacy Education (TALE) Yearbook, and the International Literacy Association’s “Literacy Today” publication. Additionally, she has contributed blog posts for McGraw Hill’s Art of Teaching. Dr. Garden is the author of a blog titled “Literacy Pearls,” where she shares best practices and valuable insights into literacy education. Her dissertation research focused on developing effective vocabulary instruction practices for early-grade teachers. Dr. Garden is passionate about supporting new and novice educators and helping them address the achievement gap through her research findings.

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