In this article, researchers in the field of early writing identify underlying beliefs and values about writing and learning to write for the beginning years of formal schooling in four jurisdictions: the American state of Connecticut, New Zealand, the Canadian province of Ontario, and Sweden, as reflected in the respective curricula and standards…

The ways in which learning graphical representations can encourage the development of creativities in Chinese young children remain to be fully explored. Previous research on children's writing focused on children's symbolization with syllabic languages, providing little information regarding Chinese young children's symbolization and creative…

Observes, for a school year, a first grader's spontaneous utterances and actions while composing. Identifies seven shifts in the composing process, and identifies four factors that influenced these shifts. Suggests that during the transitional period, a child's ownership of the process is set in a complex relationship with the teacher and peers,…

Describes a plan for improving students' writing skills which was developed in a school for kindergarten through third grade students, and which incorporated parent participation and "publication" of student writing. (JC)