Guided Writing In First Weeks Of Reception

[Guest]

Hi

Had my class in today for the first day and had a lovely day!

I was hoping to assess the children over the next couple weeks before introducing writing/reading and phonic adult led activities but my Lit Co is coming to observe a guided writing session (small group) next week I am struggling to think of a suitable activity as I don't know what the children can do yet! Any ideas would be greatly appreciated

thanks

[Susan]

Something very simple that you can use towards your assessments. Something that illustrates what you do to start the writing process.

 

Drawing a picture and writing their name sound appropriate at this point in time. Differentiating between the picture and the writing and knowing that the writing has meaning are all appropriate before you can move them on.

 

Or maybe writing a name label for a self portrait. I always used to read Elmer as a starting point for explaining to children the need for a label and their portraits (not with a mirror). Sue Palmer states clearly in Foundations of Literacy that children who do not have defined bodies in their poeple are not ready to write. (I have had very immature portraits and very neat handwriting so it doesnt always correlate!)

 

Good luck.

[Guest]

I am wanting some basline 'writing' but am trying to think of a real purpose for getting them to write, we are planning to make apple crumble this week - with all my windfall apples from these gales - and I have asked our school admin officer to come into classroom and rave about the smell - and taste - of our apple crumble and ask how we made it, so the children then have a reason to 'write' instructions, or at least talk about their role in the process and hopefully produce some sort of emergent writing/mark making....we'll see how it goes...I usually display this first writing - everyone's - it varies so much from odd letters to shapes to squiggles (very few phonemes), add in a few photos of the crumble making too.

[Guest]

Thank you for your ideas - I think I might ask chd to draw a picture of their family and then chd can label which will give differentiation as chd can just write their name or words like mum and dad.