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2. 2 I don’t feel like writin’

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4. 4 Context National Writing L4+ by gender since 2000

5. 5 ‘It was good during “Robin Hood week” because we didn’t have to sit in the classroom the whole time.’ (Year 5 boy) From Ofsted: White boys from low-income backgrounds: good practice in schools

6. 6 Why are we doing this?

7. 7 How do I get it right? I thought that’s what I did! My hand hurts!

8. 8 Context Yes he can: Schools where boys write well Ofsted report published July 2003 While good schemes of work and lively, interactive teaching are both pre-requisites for success, they do not guarantee it. They are not translated into steady progress in standards of writing by boys without: the ethos that makes boys want to succeed in literacy (crucial for reading as well as writing); the high quality, individual feedback that values their writing and so sustains this desire to succeed as writers; so establishing a classroom culture where ideas and their expression are both felt to matter.

9. 9 If we are to motivate young children to write, then we need to excite their imaginations and start from their interests, as all that children learn in the early years can influence their future outcomes. ‘We need to look beyond the weapon to the child holding it’ (Holland 2003:43)

10. 10 The inspiration came from a group of boys who spent all of their chosen time outside involved in lengthy ‘super hero’ play.

11. 11 They were given the opportunities to make their own stories, dress up, sing and tell parts of a whole class story. The group of boys, who had spent all of their time outside acting out their ideas, spent the entire morning at the creative table. They made detailed figures of action heroes with gritting teeth and flames firing out of their figures’ arms and mouths.

12. 12 We would begin with them choosing one of their drawings to talk about and then agree on what they would write. The boys used a wide range of vocabulary and they were confident to attempt to write with a clear purpose in mind. Their aim was to create their own hero stories and in fact they had become very competitive about their writing.

13. 13 I was amazed that as a group these boys had mastered how to write using a simple story structure (beginning, middle and end). They were able to write using initial, some medial, final and short vowel sounds. The main difference between their writing and others in the class was their creativity.

14. 14 ‘If I have not yet learned to love Darth Vader, I have at least made some useful discoveries while watching him play. As I interrupt less, it becomes clear that boys’ play is serious drama, not morbid mischief. Its rhythms and images are often discordant to me but I must try to make sense of a style that, after all, belongs to half the population of the classroom’ (Paley V G 1984)

15. 15 … whatever our personal views about the predominance of superheroes and weapons in children’s popular culture it seems clear that they can have tremendous power to motivate and inspire many children, especially boys. These examples have shown that accepting, valuing and even encouraging weapon and superhero play can be an effective way to support all children to reach their full potential. Islington Primary Strategy Early Years Team

16. 16 ‘Boys on the Margin’ CLPE Jan 2003 Teacher S: what are you two doing?T & G: We’re emailing [the character in the Sachar novel] Bradley. His worst subject is language. Our worst subject is literacy. We hate literacy. Teacher S: But what you’re doing is literacy.T & G: No it’s not.Teacher: Yes it is – you’re writing!T & G: This is different writing! Technology has changed the way children perceive and experience literacy (Goetze 2002) by making it more purposeful and, importantly, more playful. In classrooms where boys are rejecting the offered curriculum, but appear to respond positively to learning with computers, this may be because ICT offers opportunities for children to play in a real-world literacy context.

17. 17 Building enthusiasm through Talk for Writing All my children are now fully engaged with the creativity of the 'Talk for Writing' process and immensely enjoy taking part. Their participation in lessons has improved beyond recognition. Moreover they have achieved considerably better results. It works! It encourages both children and adults to fully engage in a shared learning dialogue, which is beneficial to both parties. Lessons become a fun process - not drastic remedial surgery! M. Cole (Devon Lead Literacy Teacher)

18. 18 I am amazed at the way the children in my class have taken to the 'talk the text' part of the sequence for non-fiction (recount). They really seem to enjoy it and they had the whole text down pat in just 3 days. We have begun to create their own texts using HMSS and it is amazing how great their ideas sound based loosely on the structure of the original text. I stood back today and listened to them in pairs as the whole class worked on the first bit of their own recount, talking it to their partners. It was such a buzz to see them doing the learning and being so creative without me having to jaw from the front all the time. It was great! J. Guyler, Devon teacher

19. 19 ‘Where boys’ writing developed from extended opportunities for re-telling, text enactment and role play, their written texts show increasing control of standard English forms as they gained confidence in using the literary language developed in oral rehearsal.’ ‘Boys on the Margin’ CLPE Jan 2003

20. 20 Performance can take place in a range of settings but it always seems to give writing more context and purpose. In performance, underachievers take responsibility for their ideas and their texts. Children may literally hear their own voices in their performed writing. ‘Boys on the Margin’ CLPE Jan 2003 Boys were motivated to create high-quality texts when they knew these would be published or performed.

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