Having open-ended writing activities ensures that all levels of writing development are accommodated in a single classroom. Open-ended writing activities allow some students to go beyond the confines of a particular writing activity if they wish. Other students can have a writing activity structured in a way that allows them success when they might otherwise have difficulty.
BACKGROUND
By bringing an open-ended aspect to all the writing activities students do, teachers have a better opportunity to meet students’ needs as writers. One teacher-researcher points out, “My students are my curriculum. I want to nurture that uniqueness, not standardize my classroom so that the students become more and more alike, their aim to pass minimum competency tests” (Rief, 1989).
Writing Activities #1 and #2 are examples of open-ended writing activities. Writing “Who Are You?” stories and “Family” stories allow students to sample a variety of responses based upon their own experiences. Students can engage in these kinds of writing even if they do not know how to spell: they are using writing and drawing to express themselves. Each story is different, because each writer is different.
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