Learning to write isn’t just about having something to say—it’s about knowing how to say it and feeling confident enough to try. That’s why modeling matters. When teachers think aloud and write alongside students, they invite students into the writing process and empower them to try it themselves.
The new Toolkit to Support Evidence-Based Writing Instruction in Grades 2–4 offers free professional development resources to help educators incorporate modeling into their writing instruction. It highlights modeling as a practice that supports two essential elements of strong writing instruction at the same time: building a writing community and teaching students to use the writing process.
Shaped by educator input and grounded in the What Works Clearinghouse practice guide , the toolkit can help teachers turn evidence-based writing strategies into classroom practice. It highlights evidence-based strategies that show not only what to teach about writing, but how to teach it in ways that motivate students and support their growth as independent writers. It offers flexible resources teachers can use throughout the school year to support their instruction, including classroom activities, lesson plan templates, self-reflection tools, and learning modules for use in professional learning communities.
Modeling to build a writing community
To build a strong writing community, teachers can intentionally create a supportive culture for writing and participate in that culture as writers themselves. Rather than serving as only instructors, teachers write alongside students, thinking aloud about their writing choices, sharing their own drafts, and acknowledging challenges and revisions. By making their writing and thought process visible, teachers show students that improvement comes through effort, reflection, and revision.
As this writing community takes shape, students are encouraged to collaborate with one another throughout the writing process by discussing ideas, giving and receiving feedback on individual pieces, or working together to develop a shared piece of writing. When teachers actively participate in these routines, they help establish an engaged classroom community in which students feel supported and grow more confident in seeing themselves as writers.
In Module 1, Session 1.2, the toolkit helps teachers create classroom conditions that make this kind of learning possible. The Accountable Talk activity, for example, helps teachers support meaningful student collaboration around writing by providing students with questions and sentence stems they can use to discuss their own writing and give productive feedback to others.
Teaching students to use the writing process through modeling
Writing well requires more than recording ideas as they come to mind. Writers think carefully about purpose, audience, and organization. They plan, draft, share, evaluate, revise, edit and often move back and forth between these steps. Modeling helps students see how this process works in real time.
In Module 2, Session 2.2 of the toolkit, teachers focus on modeling strategies for planning and drafting—two parts of the writing process. Through modeling, teachers:
- Demonstrate a specific writing strategy.
- Think aloud as they apply it.
- Explain why they make certain decisions.
- Invite students to contribute ideas or reflect.
This approach helps students understand that the writing process is flexible. Writers don’t follow steps mechanically; they use strategies separately or in combination depending on their goals.
The toolkit offers multiple ways for teachers to understand how they can use modeling to teach students the writing process. This related video offers an example of how a grade 2 teacher can model the “pick ideas” writing strategy during a creative writing lesson. Watch as the teacher thinks aloud, explains why she made certain decisions, and then invites students to contribute ideas.
As another example, the toolkit’s sample lesson plan on teaching a sentence generation strategy offers a concrete example of modeling in action.
In this grade 3 lesson, the teacher models how to draft sentences by:
- Saying sentences aloud before writing them.
- Trying multiple versions of a sentence to explain one idea.
- Choosing the version that best fits the purpose of their piece.
The teacher also models productive struggle. Students hear uncertainty in the teacher’s voice, see a sentence rejected, and watch her correct a small error. These moments show students that revising and fixing mistakes are normal—and expected—parts of writing.
As the lesson progresses, responsibility shifts. Students help generate sentences during guided practice and then apply the strategy independently using their own ideas. This modeling prepares students to work independently and with their peers.
How school leaders can support modeling across classrooms
School leaders play an important role in creating conditions that support strong writing instruction, including modeling, consistently in classrooms. The toolkit includes resources for school leaders that highlight the value of developing a schoolwide culture of writing and a shared vision for writing instruction.
Within a strong schoolwide writing culture, leaders can actively support modeling as an important instructional practice by:
- Encouraging teachers to model writing regularly, even if it feels uncomfortable at first.
- Providing time for teachers to plan, practice, and reflect on modeling together.
- Showcasing and celebrating student writing to reinforce its value.
Leaders can also support collaboration by creating structured opportunities for teachers to learn from one another. Designed for collaborative use, the toolkit includes activities and guidance that support facilitated professional learning communities and strengthen writing instruction across classrooms.
Explore the toolkit to see how modeling supports evidence-based practices to strengthen writing instruction in your classroom and across your school. To learn more or get support using the toolkit, reach out to us at RELmidatlantic@mathematica.org.
