How to Assist Composing

Getting started

• Provide lots of ideas for the learner to include in the writing piece.
• Help your learner to get past editing to the actual creating.
• Provide a way for your learner to express her ideas even though she may have limited writing skills.
• Give your learner opportunities to share and discuss her ideas.
• Share with your learner your thoughts and feelings about writing and the process you follow when writing.
• Give your learner opportunities to practise writing on a regular basis and on a variety of projects.

Composing

• Scribe for the inexperienced writer. Use this material for reading and writing activities.
• Remember that the importance of a first draft is to “get the ideas down.”
• Allow your learner to use invented spelling (spelling the way it sounds to them).
• Allow your learner to copy other writing – it helps with learning spelling and sight words and is good for visual and kinesthetic learning styles.
• Help your learner to understand that even good writers don’t write a perfect draft the first time – or even the second!

Handout 7.4