Early Writing Experiences
Calkins (1983, 1986) states that as children move through the developmental stages of writing, they experience the powerful discovery that print carries meaning. Tolchinsky (2014) emphasizes that children learn to write by consistently engaging in the act of writing and experimenting with print.
Although a large body of research supports the importance of children engaging in meaningful early writing experiences, a recent study conducted by Pelatti, Piasta, Justice, & O'Connell (2014) shows preschool children typically engage on average in less than one minute of writing per day. Also, preschool writing instruction focuses primarily on procedural knowledge such as fine motor skills and letter formation rather than the meaning-making processes
involved in writing (i.e., interpersonal communication, graphic representations, and recording ideas; Molfese et al., 2011). For example, learning to write names or form individual letters are frequent activities in preschool classrooms (Diamond, Gerge, & Powell, 2008; Levin, Both-DeVries, Aram, & Bus, 2005).
Although a large body of research supports the importance of children engaging in meaningful early writing experiences, a recent study conducted by Pelatti, Piasta, Justice, & O'Connell (2014) shows preschool children typically engage on average in less than one minute of writing per day. Also, preschool writing instruction focuses primarily on procedural knowledge such as fine motor skills and letter formation rather than the meaning-making processes
involved in writing (i.e., interpersonal communication, graphic representations, and recording ideas; Molfese et al., 2011). For example, learning to write names or form individual letters are frequent activities in preschool classrooms (Diamond, Gerge, & Powell, 2008; Levin, Both-DeVries, Aram, & Bus, 2005).