A Complete Writing Curriculum Designed to Support North Carolina Students

Strategy #1

Dedicated Writing Time

Although applying writing skills naturally happens in other subject areas, studies support having a dedicated writing time where students can receive adequate practice and instruction in writing.

Graham, S. (2019). Changing How Writing Is Taught. Review of Research in Education, 43(1), 277–303.

Strategy #2

Strategy-Focused Direct Instruction

Strategy-focused instruction is one of the most effective approaches to improve writing skills. It teaches developing writers strategies that give them executive control over their writing processes through direct instruction, modeling, and scaffolded practice.

Lopez, P. (2017). Effects of Direct Instruction and Strategy Modeling on Upper-Primary Students' Writing Development. Frontiers Psychology.

Strategy #3

Teacher Modeling & Exemplar Usage

We provide age-appropriate model texts for every unit that reflect the elements of the writing genre students should replicate. Research shows students in the Models group received significantly higher scores than students without models.

Charney, D., & Carlson, R. (1995). Learning to write in a genre. Research in the Teaching of English, 29, 88–125.

Strategy #4

Teacher Clarity

Teacher clarity goes beyond simply writing standards on the board. We provide clear purpose, success criteria, and learning goals for every lesson — a logical pathway from where students are to where we want them to be.

Hattie, J. (2010). Visible learning: A synthesis of over 800 meta-analyses relating to achievement. Routledge.

Strategy #5

Graphic Organizers

Graphic organizers provide a necessary visual element for ELL and visual learners. Students using a concept- mapping learning strategy do better and retain learning longer than those limited to text-only strategies.

Harris, K. R., & Graham, S. (1996). Making the Writing Process Work: Strategies for Composition and Self-Regulation.

Strategy #6

Consistent & Timely Feedback

Feedback is the cornerstone of revision. Alongside peer and teacher feedback strategies, we include many self-assessment opportunities built around the principle that "where to next" comments are necessary for student improvement.

Hattie, J. A., & Clarke, S. (2019). Visible learning: Feedback. Routledge.

"We chose Simplify because it had great structured lessons. I was also happy to see the same mentor text for the entire unit! Our writing has improved so much with our students. The structure and the familiarity with the program from year to year has helped students become successful. When I compare my students beginning-of-the-year writing with the end-of-year writing, I have always seen huge growth, especially when it comes to the length of their writing and their details. It has been so fun to see them be able to use their creativity to write. I think that the curriculum is also set up well to support all writers and gives lots of opportunities for support and extension."

Ashley D.

Indian Trail, NC