LET THE PIGEON DRAW WRITING UNIT!

The Secret Tool For Improving Writing Skills

Want to know the secret to introducing your students to and falling in love with writing? It is simple. Teach them how to draw. Drawing has been proven through research to be the foundation of writing.  Everyone can learn to draw. It is a teachable skill, just as writing is. Drawing pictures allows children to express their imagination on paper. "Picture writing" is an important first step in the writing process. As writing skills continue to develop, drawing pictures will serve as a planning foundation for their writing. 

Getting started with picture writing is easy...

1. have students draw

2. have students talk about their drawings

3. have students "write" about their picture 

which includes scribbling, random strings of letters and phonetic spelling

4. celebrate their drawings

My Let The Pigeon Draw Drawing Unit

I love Writing Workshop! The first year that I started doing Writing Workshop in my classroom I found that my students lacked confidence in their drawing and writing skills. There was a lot of "I can't draw that!' "How do you draw a ..." and "I can't write!" heard throughout the room. I decide to make my first Writing Workshop unit a drawing unit to build by students' confidence and support them in their first endeavors of putting their pencils to paper.

Drawing Workshop Lessons

All of the lessons in my drawing unit follow the Writing Workshop Format of a group mini lesson, drawing time, conferencing followed by a time for your little artist to share. Start each drawing lesson by reading a mentor text and having conversations about what they are going to draw that day. This can be accomplished by turning and talking to a partner or with the whole group. Over the years I have scanned or copied student examples to share during the lesson depending on how much support I feel that my students need. After your mini lesson send your artist off to draw in their Book of Drawings. During this time I support students that are having a difficult time by drawing along with them on a whiteboard or talking them through their drawings. I conference with student about their drawings, take anecdotal notes and encourage students to stretch their thinking. At the end of their drawing time we come back together to share our drawings. Sometimes I have partners share, tables share or I pick some students to share their drawings under the document camera. 

Why Start Your Year With Drawing

My drawing unit sets the foundation for written expression that will be used throughout the rest of the school year. They will continue to draw to support their writing during writing workshop, draw to show their understanding of math concepts and share their understanding of literature with drawings during guided reading. Say goodbye to hearing "I can't draw that!' "How do you draw a ..." and "I can't write!"

 This Unit If Full Of Lots of Extras

My writing unit also includes lots of fun art activities and an end of the unit Mo Willems Hot Dog Party. This part of the unit could be used as a Mo Willems author study if your students love Mo as much as mine do. Find me on social media to see more about my this Drawing Unit and my other Kindergarten Writing Workshop Units.

Check out other drawing ideas on 

my Drawing Pinterest Page...