ABSTRACT
This chapter explains link between assisted writing and independent writing and emphasizes the power of scaffolding for lifting children’s writing to a higher level. Independent writing gives children personal opportunities to apply recently demonstrated techniques and strategies. In order to follow children’s progress effectively and instruct them according to their needs, teachers must be able to analyze and interpret change over time in children’s writing development. Heenman identifies five developmental writing stages that young children go through when they write: Scribble stage; isolated letter stage; transitional stage; stylized sentence stage; and writing stage. Gentry and Gillet identify five stages of spelling development (precommunicative stage, semiphonetic stage, phonetic stage, transitional stage, and correct stage) that are closely aligned with the stages of writing development. The teacher has a chance to observe how the children use their skills, strategies, and knowledge on their own. An apprentice works alongside a more knowledgeable person who assists him to successfully carry out carefully structured tasks.
