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Composition Interventions

Introduction

Often, when you are teaching a student about writing, it becomes apparent that the processes of developing and organizing ideas can occur simultaneously.  To develop both sets of skills at the same time, intervention providers focus on a specific genre of writing and teach the writing process using an instructional approach called self-regulated strategy development (SRSD).  Self-Regulated Strategy Development (SRSD) is often a good match both for students with learning disabilities and for struggling writers. Written expression requires proficiency in activating schema, executive functioning, and self-evaluation; SRSD develops these skills to support independent, effective written communication. 

What Is Self-Regulated Strategy Development?

During this session, you will learn how to intervene to support your student's ability to develop and organize his ideas simultaneously. In order to develop your student's ability to write in a particular genre, you first need to deepen your understanding of the SRSD instructional approach. Listen as Steve Graham and Karen R. Harris, two of the most well-known researchers on the topic of writing strategies, define SRSD.

Now, read about each of the components of SRSD below, and consider the following guiding questions:

  • What are the six stages of explicit writing instruction? How does each help students to attain mastery of a given skill?

SRSD Cheat Sheet 

Finally, read this lesson plan to see what it might look like to teach a student how to write a narrative essay using SRSD.

(Optional) Additional Resources

For additional information on each step of SRSD and additional research about the efficacy of this instructional approach, click hereClick here to sign up for a free website all about SRSD, with lots of additional lesson plans and resources that you can use!