How to Run a Writing Workshop in Elementary

Are you an elementary school teacher struggling to teach writing effectively? I’ve been there, discouraged by the blank stares I got when I said things like, “Add more detail to your story.”

I taught lessons on writing, but my students didn’t apply them. I knew something needed to change and that’s when I discovered a game-changer: the writing workshop model.

Instead of overwhelming students, I taught writing in mini-lessons and fostered a community of growing writers. This approach simplified the instruction process and was hugely effective for the students – their writing came to life, they actually enjoyed it, and their skills improved drastically!

In fact, implementation of writing workshop has been associated with significant positive effects on state ELA test scores (American institutes for research study).

What is Writing Workshop?

Writing workshop is an instructional approach that helps children become confident and capable writers through a combination of explicit instruction and student-led learning.

Although programs differ in daily execution, there are a few common components to all writing workshop programs:

• Mini-lessons
• Time for writing and conferencing
• Time for sharing

We’ll go into detail on each component later on!

Benefits of Writing Workshop

Implementing this method into your classroom will bring a heap of benefits to your instruction and your student’s performance. The Children’s Literacy Initiative states, “The writing workshop structure provides manageable amounts of direct instruction that meets the developmental needs of elementary children.”

Writing workshop…

• Can be applied to any type of writing
• Provides children with ongoing, differentiated feedback
• Fosters a sense of community in the classroom
• Encourages children to enjoy writing as a means of expressing themselves

In a study done in a first-grade classroom where the writing workshop model was implemented for seven weeks, an interviewed student commented:

“I’m a good writer now. I’m a good writer because I add more details to my story after my friends ask me questions. My friends really liked my story when it was my turn to share. They clapped and they said it was good.’’

– 1st Grade Student, Acedemia Case Study on Implementing Writing Workshop

The Components of Writing Workshop

Mini-lesson and Modeling (10-20 minutes)

The mini-lesson is a teacher-led instruction time that teaches a single skill based on the 6+1 traits of writing: ideas, organization, voice, word choice, sentence fluency, conventions, or presentation.

The lesson often includes a mentor text, such as a book or article, that showcases the skill. It also includes teacher modeling, where you model how to apply the skill in your own sample writing. The explicit teaching time concludes with directions to use the skill in their own writing that day.

Writing Time (20-40 minutes)

Writing time is the heart of the writing workshop. Children have the space to develop their ideas, engage in the writing process, conference with peers and their teacher, and apply the skills they are learning through the mini-lessons.

Conferencing (during writing time) 5-10 minutes

During this brief meeting you can get to know who your children are as writers and address their strengths and needs.

It’s also a wonderful opportunity to get to know them as people as you hear about their life experiences, passions, and thought processes. My students and I came to truly enjoy these conferences!

It’s best to have a clear structure so the conferences are productive. One such structure is RESEARCH → PRAISE →TEACH

Sharing Time (5-10 minutes)

Sharing time at the end of each writing workshop brings it full circle. It gives children the opportunity to share their writing pieces with fellow students, either in a large group or with partners.

To make it meaningful, be on the lookout during work time for students who’ve applied what was taught in the mini-lesson that day. Invite these writers to share their insights with the class.

How to Plan a Writing Workshop

All this busy, purposeful activity doesn’t happen magically! You will need to plan carefully with these steps:

1. Determine a writing genre to base your unit on.

For example, are you planning to teach narrative, opinion, or informational writing?

2. Determine which writing standards need to be addressed in the unit.

Look at this list of writing standards for your grade level.

3. Develop a list of objectives based on these standards.

Here is a free writing scope and sequence for grades 1-5 that includes a list of writing standards and related objectives.

4. Plan focused mini-lessons that help your students meet your objectives.

Be sure that the mini-lessons guide your students through the writing process: prewriting, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing, and incorporate the 6+1 traits of writing: ideas, organization, voice, word choice, sentence fluency, conventions, and presentation.

Below is an example lesson plan that introduces students to realistic fiction writing. You can see how the writing process stage is “prewriting” and the focus trait is “ideas.”

5. Compile materials to support your mini-lessons.

You’ll want posters around the room for students to refer to that explain skills taught in the mini-lessons. See this example poster for introducing realistic fiction to students.

6. Compile materials to support your students during writing time.

You can use graphic organizers to help them in the prewriting stage. See this example graphic organizer:

Skills to Cover in Writing Workshop

You might be wondering what types of skills could be addressed in a writing workshop. Below are some suggestions. Remember, teach just one skill per day in your mini-lesson!

• Brainstorm topics for a writing piece.
• Plan a writing piece with a graphic organizer.
• Use transition words to show the sequence of events.
• Add details and dialogue to strengthen writing.
• Choose vivid words to strengthen writing.
• Craft a strong beginning and ending.
• Revise for word choice, detail, and sentence fluency.
• Edit for grammar, capitalization, and punctuation.
• Publish a neat and error-free final copy.

You can get this free writing scope and sequence for grades 1-5 that lists a full year of skills and objectives for narrative, informational, and opinion writing.

Free Narrative Lessons

Interested in trying out writing workshop in your own classroom? Get started with these free realistic fiction writing workshop plans for grades 1-5. These lessons include a week’s worth of lesson plans, posters, and graphic organizers to help your students plan a realistic fiction narrative.

Full-Year Writing Workshop Curriculums

Ready to implement writing workshop and save lots of time doing it? I’ve put together full-year writing curricula for grades 1-5 that have everything you need to teach narrative, informational, and opinion writing for the year!  These CCSS-aligned curriculum bundles include all the print-and-go lessons and materials you’ll need to get started.

1st Grade Writing Workshop Bundle

2nd Grade Writing Workshop Bundle

3rd Grade Writing Workshop Bundle

4th Grade Writing Workshop Bundle

5th Grade Writing Workshop Bundle

Works Cited

Children’s Literacy Initiative: https://learn.cli.org/best-practices/writing-workshop/overview

American Institutes for Research study on efficacy of writing workshop: https://www.unitsofstudy.com/research?hsCtaTracking=c8172ccc-22b4-47bf-8dcc-5c289d814b0d%7Ce4f0d910-f186-49ab-b9b6-37abc1e6bd8d

Academia case study on implementing writing workshop for 7 weeks: https://www.academia.edu/30177673/The_Effects_of_Writing_Workshop_on_Abilities_of_First_Grade_Students_to_Become_Confident_and_Independent_Writers