Free writing CPD materials – covering all aspects of writing teaching

Hello and welcome to our free professional development page!

Please treat this webpage like you would a professional development book. Consider each heading as a book and within each book there a number of chapters you can read. Take a look around… We’ve tried to cover all the major aspects of writing teaching here.

Any of these articles would be useful to share and discuss with colleagues as part of a CPD staff meeting. Simply choose an area you know your school needs to work on and find an article that suits you best.

If you have any questions, or you are looking for advice on a particular aspect of writing teaching, please feel free to contact us at: hello@writing4pleasure.com

Happy teaching and happy writing!

Ross & Felicity

Whole-school development

14 ways to improve the writing teaching in your school [LINK]
Evidence-based recommendations for teaching writing [LINK]
Visualising the science of writing: The writing map explained [LINK]
The writing map & evidence-informed writing teaching [LINK]
Articles & resources to help you develop a cohesive approach and progression for writing in your school [LINK]
Writing: Articles and resources to help you with your school’s action plan [LINK]
What is a Writing For Pleasure pedagogy? [LINK]
The importance of a whole-school vision for writing [LINK]
The writer(s)- within- community model and improving the teaching of writing across a school [LINK]
What writing ambitions do schools have for economically underserved pupils? [LINK]
Asking writers: What subject knowledge do teachers need to teach writing? [LINK]
How we can support children as they are writing [LINK]
Which writing model would best guide us to raise writing standards in our school? [LINK]
What does a knowledge-based writing curriculum involve? [LINK]
Guidance on teaching writing and the new Ofsted framework [LINK]
How can we ensure children are writing independently every day? [LINK]
How to teach writing in Key Stage One [LINK]
Programme of study and progression documents [LINK]
Progression document for poetry writing: EYFS-KS2 [LINK]
Progression document for nonfiction writing: EYFS-KS2 [LINK]
Progression document for narrative writing: EYFS-KS2 [LINK]
The Children As Writers survey [LINK]
Supporting children writing at home [LINK]

How to plan a great writing unit

The principles of planning effective class writing projects [LINK]
The components of an effective writing unit [LINK]
How to co-construct success criteria with your pupils for class writing projects [LINK]
How to get success criteria right in the writing classroom [LINK]
When writing success criteria goes wrong [LINK]
What are children doing as they produce writing? [LINK]
Trust the process: setting process goals [LINK]
Using focus groups to teach writing [LINK]
Planning a class writing project with the greater-depth standard as the standard [LINK]

How to teach a brilliant writing lesson

The components of an effective writing lesson [LINK]
Getting your writing instruction right [LINK]

Assessing writing

What the KS1 STA teacher assessment writing statements really mean and how to achieve them [LINK]
What the KS2 STA teacher assessment writing statements really mean and how to achieve them [LINK]

Teaching writing in the early years

How to teach writing in the EYFS [LINK]

Early writing development and our book-making approach [LINK]
How do children start learning to write before they start school? [LINK]
How can you teach children to write before they know their letters? [LINK]
Developing motivated and successful writers in the EYFS [LINK]
Research-based writing practices specific to the EYFS [LINK]
A sensible (centralist) approach to early writing teaching [LINK]
The writing processes of children in the early years [LINK]
“This is when we play writing!”: Writing and play in the EYFS [LINK]
The unrealised promise of emergent writing: Reimagining the way forward for early writing instruction [LINK]
The effects of preschool writing instruction on children’s literacy skills [LINK]
Translating ideas into writing: High‑impact strategies to nurture children′s writing in early childhood classrooms [LINK]
Drawing first, writing after: A winning strategy for early writers [LINK]
Let’s use ‘kids writing!’ [LINK]
Teaching encoding [LINK]
Underwriting: Should teachers do it? [LINK]
The different perspectives you can take on teaching early writing [LINK]
How should teachers use books to inspire and guide EYFS pupils in creating their own non-fiction texts? [LINK]
How can non-fiction writing be taught in the EYFS to inspire and develop children’s writerly knowledge and confidence? [LINK]
Supporting at-risk writers in Nursery and Reception [LINK]

Helping children to generate and plan their writing ideas

The cognitive and motivational case for inviting children to generate their own writing ideas [LINK]
You’re their writer-teacher! Supporting children to find fruitful writing ideas [LINK]
It’s OK! Don’t panic! You can give children agency and structure in the writing classroom [LINK]
‘This isn’t my real writing’: The fate of children’s agency in narrow writing schemes [LINK]
Teaching children how to plan their writing in the EYFS and KS1 [LINK]
Teaching children how to plan their writing in KS2 [LINK]

Helping children to revise and proof-read their writing

The rationale for revision checklist sessions [LINK]
Enhancing students’ writing: The power of revision checklist sessions [LINK]
Children proof-reading and cognitive overload [LINK]
The secret to children doing great proof-reading [LINK]
Eight tips for developing great proof-readers [LINK]
Top tips when talking to children about editing [LINK]
More top tips when talking to children about editing [LINK]
Helping children proof-read their spellings [LINK]
How to keep students motivated to proofread: Practical strategies for the classroom [LINK]

Connecting reading with writing

Write to read, read to write: Reimagining the writing classroom [LINK]
Bringing pleasure to reading lessons through writing [LINK]
How to teach your pupils to read as writers [LINK]
What does the research say about reading in writing lessons? [LINK]
Reading for pleasure’s impact on writing for pleasure [LINK]
Issues with the book planning approach and how they can be addressed [LINK]
The book-planning 2.0 approach [LINK]
What is a high-quality text in the context of the writing classroom? [LINK]
Learning to read as writers: The role of authentic class writing projects [LINK]
Intertextuality. The glue that binds reading for pleasure and writing for pleasure together? [LINK]
The relationship between reading and writing on children’s compositions [LINK]
Reading different types of fiction in the writing classroom [LINK]
Reading different types of nonfiction in the writing classroom [LINK]
Being a reader-writer-teacher [LINK]
Writing is one of the best ways to teach reading… [LINK]

Developing children’s talk for writing | Oracy development

Developing children’s talk for writing [LINK]
Comparing children’s oral and written storyretelling: the role of ideation and transcription [LINK]
Friends and authors: The benefits of children co-authoring [LINK]
Dialogic writing. How to support peer feedback conversations [LINK]
A quick guide to class sharing and Author’s Chair [LINK]

Developing children’s understanding of purpose and audience

Establishing publishing goals for class writing projects [LINK]
Understanding why people write: Making writing authentic for children [LINK]
Aiming for authenticity: successes and struggles in increasing authenticity in the writing classroom [LINK]
Real-world writing: Making purpose and audience matter [LINK]
Reigniting young writers: Supporting authentic class writing projects [LINK]
Authenticity and children’s engagement with writing [LINK]
Does ‘perspective taking’ matter for students’ writing? [LINK]
Bringing purpose & audience to the centre of our writing classrooms [LINK]
Keeping it real: Valuing authenticity in the writing classroom [LINK]
Who is going to read the story that I have written? The role of audience when planning, drafting and revising [LINK]
How can we encourage children to think about their readers as they are writing? [LINK]

Developing children’s writing fluency

What is writing fluency? [LINK]
How do we develop writing fluency? [LINK]
The relationship between writing fluency & writing quality in 5-8 year olds [LINK]
Building up to extended writing projects [LINK]

Teaching grammar

The components of effective grammar instruction [LINK]
Teaching grammar: our viewpoint [LINK]

Teaching at the sentence-level

The Writing For Pleasure Centre’s Sentence-Level Curriculum [LINK]

No more: They don’t know what a sentence is! [LINK]
The components of effective sentence-level instruction [LINK]
Guidance on teaching at the sentence-level [LINK]
Sentence-level instruction: Our viewpoint [LINK]
Guidance on what NOT to do when teaching at the sentence-level [LINK]
Where’s the research on teaching at the sentence-level? [LINK]

Teaching handwriting and spelling

Spelling and handwriting provision: A checklist [LINK]
The impact of supplemental handwriting and spelling instruction with first grade students who do not acquire transcription skills as rapidly as peers [LINK]

Handwriting

Want to improve children’s writing? Don’t neglect their handwriting [LINK]
The research on handwriting [LINK]
Early alphabet instruction [LINK]

Spelling

The effects of ‘informed spelling’ on children’s reading and writing achievement [LINK]
Encoding and ‘informed spelling’ [LINK]
Early spelling development [LINK]
Effective spelling instruction [LINK]
Teaching spelling: Powerful evidence-based practices [LINK]
Teaching and learning spelling [LINK]
Improving the spelling of rule-based words with explicit or implicit practice [LINK]
Does spelling still matter—and if so, how should it be taught? [LINK]
Effectiveness of spelling interventions for learners with dyslexia [LINK]
A systematic review and meta‐analysis of the effectiveness of spelling instruction and intervention [LINK]
How words cast their spell: Spelling instruction focused on language, not memory, improves reading and writing [LINK]
Does spelling instruction make students better spellers, readers, and writers? A meta-analytic review [LINK]
What should teachers know about spelling? [LINK]
Helping children proof-read their spellings [LINK]

Supporting children with special educational needs and disabilities

Identifying and addressing children’s writing needs [LINK]
Evidence-based writing instruction for children with SEND [LINK]
Getting writing instruction right for children with SEND [LINK]
Supporting children with written expression disabilities [LINK]
The Science of Special Education Podcast: Providing research-based writing instruction [LINK]
Suggested writing practices for children with behavioural or emotional disorders [LINK]
How we can improve the confidence of struggling writers [LINK]
Supporting children who are at risk of writing failure [LINK]

Supporting English language learners

Writing strategies for English language learners [LINK]

Being a writer-teacher: modelling writing

What does effective ‘shared writing’ look like? [LINK]
Why effective writing instruction requires a writer-teacher [LINK]
Writing and using a mentor text: Example of practice [LINK]
Why ‘Writing For Pleasure’ teachers are always teaching [LINK]

Writing across the curriculum | Disciplinary literacy

Thinking through writing: writing to learn [LINK]
The effects of writing-to-learn on academic achievement [LINK]

Supporting children’s writing motivation

The ABCs of children’s writing motivation [LINK]
Mobilising children’s motives for writing [LINK]
How can we improve children’s motivation to write? [LINK]
Fostering writer identity & belonging in the classroom [LINK]
Obtain quality writing by giving children some agency [LINK]
How we can make writing feel less effortful for children [LINK]
Evidence-based practices which give children writing confidence [LINK]
Writing non-fiction with heart and voice [LINK]
Children’s reflections on ‘business as usual’ writing units and Writing For Pleasure class writing projects [LINK]
Writing For Pleasure and the role children’s emotions play in exceptional writing classrooms [LINK]

Reviews and responses to DfE, EEF and Ofsted reports and initiatives

The DfE’s Writing Framework: Our review and implications for practice [LINK]
Response to Ofsted’s “Strong foundations in the first years of school” report [LINK]
Response to Ofsted’s “Telling the story: The English education subject report” [LINK]
Response to Ofsted’s research and analysis. Curriculum research review series: English [LINK]
The Education Endowment Foundation’s “Improving Literacy In KS2 Guidance Report” Our review and implications for teaching writing [LINK]
The DfE’s Reading Framework: Our Review And Implications For Teaching Writing [LINK]
Guidance on teaching writing and the new Ofsted framework [LINK]

Opinion pieces for staff discussion and debate!

Why Johnny can’t and won’t write [LINK]
What sort of writing teacher are you? [LINK]
What’s good writing? Well, it depends who you ask [LINK]
What do we really mean by “I got my best writing…”? [LINK]
What is student agency and why is it needed now more than ever? [LINK]
Imaginative writing: Our viewpoint [LINK]
A whole generation of children have been put on ‘writers’ welfare’ [LINK]
They won’t have anything to write about: The dangers of believing children are ‘culturally deprived’ [LINK]
How writing approaches built on using stimuli are damaging children’s writing development [LINK]
What if almost everything we thought about the teaching of writing was wrong? [LINK]
The rise of ‘elaborate dictation’ and ‘writing-related simulations’ in English schools: Unethical writing teaching [LINK]
The most common misconceptions about ‘Writing For Pleasure’ debunked [LINK]

Debunking edu-myths

Debunking edu-myths: Pupils should write about the wider-curriculum subjects in writing lessons [LINK]
Debunking edu-myths: “In Reception and Year One, composition is less relevant” [LINK]
Debunking edu-myths: We must develop children’s motor skills first, and teach writing later [LINK]
Debunking edu-myths: “Children choosing their own writing topics gets in the way of teaching writing effectively” [LINK]
Debunking edu-myths: “The best way to teach pupils to write is by teaching them to master sentences” [LINK]
Debunking edu-myths: ‘Emergent writing’ isn’t necessary before teaching children to write [LINK]
Debunking edu-myths: Scope and sequences can’t coexist with responsive writing instruction [LINK]
Debunking edu-myths: Children must master sentence-level accuracy before they can write whole texts [LINK]
Debunking edu-myths: Writing errors form bad habits [LINK]

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