Investigating the Impact of Preschool Writing Instruction on Early Writing Development: Attention to Instructional Focus and Strategy

Purpose This study examines the contribution of teachers’ writing practices on preschool children’s early writing development.Method Participants included 54 Head Start teachers (100% female) who were racially diverse (Black, 57% and White, 43%) and 478 preschool-aged children (45% girls; mean age: 51.7 months). Three observations of teachers were conducted using the Writing Resources and Interactions in Teaching Environments scale (WRITE), with expanded coding designed to capture the instructional focus of writing interactions and the quality of teaching strategies. Children’s writing was assessed using name writing, letter writing, estimated spelling, and composing tasks. Writing samples were coded for various writing features to yield scores reflecting transcription and composing skills.Results Findings indicate wide variability in the frequency, writing focus, and instructional strategies that teachers employed to support children’s writing. Multilevel latent growth curve modeling revealed that composing focused writing interactions positively predicted children’s growth in transcription skills. Scaffolding instructional strategies positively predicted initial composing ability but were negatively related to transcription skill growth.Conclusion Findings reveal how preschool teachers’ writing practices support children’s early writing development.