The Writing Rope: A Framework for Evidence-Informed Writing Instruction
Adapted from Keys to Content Writing by Joan Sedita
About This Article
This comprehensive guide introduces the Writing Rope — a research-informed framework developed by Joan Sedita to support evidence-informed writing instruction. The article breaks down each of the five strands (critical thinking, syntax, text structure, writing craft, and transcription), offering practical strategies, sample classroom activities, and targeted support for students with learning disabilities. In addition, drawing on leading research from Canada and the U.S., it also includes grade-specific recommendations for both elementary and secondary educators. Whether you’re looking to strengthen your writing instruction or build more inclusive classroom routines, this article offers a detailed roadmap for helping all students become confident, capable writers.
Introduction
Despite being a foundational skill for school, work, and life, writing is often called the “neglected R” of education (National Commission on Writing, 2004). While reading instruction has benefited from decades of research and increasing classroom focus, writing continues to receive less dedicated time and fewer structured supports — particularly in the upper elementary and middle grades. This gap disproportionately affects students with learning disabilities (LDs), many of whom also experience co-occurring attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or executive functioning challenges. These students may struggle with the layered cognitive, linguistic, and motor demands that writing requires — from organizing thoughts and sustaining attention to physically transcribing ideas on the page.
Across North America, researchers have emphasized the importance of structured, approaches to evidence-informed writing instruction — particularly for students with learning disabilities. For example, in Canada, Dr. Linda Siegel’s work has underscored how writing, spelling, and language development are deeply intertwined, especially for students who struggle with decoding and transcription. Moreover, educators have also drawn on the work of instructional leaders like Carol Ann Tomlinson to better differentiate writing instruction and meet the diverse needs of their learners.
Given recent curriculum reforms, growing emphasis on inclusive education, and efforts to support learning recovery after the pandemic, there is renewed urgency to ensure evidence-informed writing instruction is accessible to all students.
To that end, this article builds on that growing body of research to offer a practical, inclusive model for writing instruction in Ontario classrooms and beyond.
So, what does it take to become a skilled writer?
Much like reading, writing is not a single skill but a braid of interwoven abilities that develop over time. To help make this complex process more accessible, educator and researcher Joan Sedita developed the Writing Rope, a model that identifies five critical strands that contribute to strong writing: critical thinking, syntax, text structure, writing craft, and transcription. Each strand represents a set of teachable skills — and when explicitly and systematically taught, they support students in becoming confident, capable writers across subject areas.
In this article, the Writing Rope is introduced as a practical framework for evidence-informed writing instruction. Drawing on Sedita’s Keys to Content Writing and research from scholars such as Steve Graham, it explores how educators can strengthen each strand through proven strategies — with a particular focus on supporting students with learning disabilities in both elementary and secondary classrooms.
For educators already familiar with the Reading Rope, developed by Dr. Hollis Scarborough, will notice the visual and conceptual inspiration. Just as the Reading Rope illustrates how language comprehension and word recognition work together to support skilled reading, the Writing Rope weaves together the many strands that contribute to proficient writing.
The Five Strands of the Writing Rope
To support students in becoming skilled, confident writers, Joan Sedita developed the Writing Rope — a visual framework that breaks writing into five interwoven strands. Each strand represents a teachable component of writing that, when taught explicitly and systematically, builds students’ capacity to communicate effectively across subject areas.
The graphic below illustrates how these strands come together to support strong written expression, and sets the stage for the deeper dive into each component that follows.
Figure: Joan Sedita’s Writing Rope illustrates how skilled writing weaves together critical thinking, syntax, text structure, writing craft, and transcription to support strong written expression across subject areas.
Source: Sedita, J. (2022)
The Writing Rope highlights five essential strands that work together to support skilled writing: critical thinking, syntax, text structure, writing craft, and transcription. In the sections that follow, we’ll examine each strand in turn, explore how it supports writing development, and share evidence-informed strategies to help all students — especially those with learning disabilities — strengthen these skills.
Critical thinking
To begin, strong writing begins with strong thinking. During the writing process, students must draw on both their critical thinking and executive functioning skills. They need to consider what they want to say, what background knowledge they can draw on, and what new information they may need to gather before putting words on the page. As such, this kind of planning, organizing, and refining of ideas requires explicit, scaffolded instruction — especially for students with learning disabilities.
In particular, students benefit from direct specific instruction on how to collect and organize information from a range of sources. This can include instruction in note-taking, graphic organizers, concept mapping, and other tools that help make their thinking visible. Furthermore, the writing process itself — planning, drafting, and revising — should also be taught explicitly and revisited regularly across subject areas.
To support this, educators can use tools such as graphic organizers, mind maps, checklists, and strategy instruction to break down and structure the thinking required for writing — particularly for students with LDs.
Sample Activities to Strengthen Critical Thinking for Writing
Adapted from Keys to Content Writing (Sedita, 2022) and Teaching Secondary Students to Write Effectively (Graham et al., 2016)
The following activities help students plan, organize, and refine their thinking before writing — foundational skills for developing strong written expression, especially for students with learning disabilities.
| 1. Concept Mapping and Graphic Organizers
Help students visually represent their ideas and understand relationships between concepts. Activity: Provide students with topic-based graphic organizers (e.g., cause-effect charts, idea webs, or Venn diagrams). Ask them to brainstorm and categorize ideas before writing a draft. Tip: Model the process with a think-aloud before independent practice. |
| 2. Checklist-Guided Planning
Support executive functioning by offering step-by-step checklists for each stage of the writing process. Activity: Distribute a planning checklist (e.g., “Did I select a topic?” “Did I include supporting evidence?”). Use it during small group writing time or as a self-monitoring tool. Tip: Encourage students to customize their own checklists over time for ownership and independence. |
| 3. Strategy-Based Paragraph Writing (PLEASE, PLAN & WRITE, TOWER)
Teach evidence-informed writing strategies that help students generate, organize, and refine ideas. Activity: Introduce each strategy using anchor charts and modeled writing. Then, provide opportunities for guided and independent application. PLEASE Writing Strategy
PLAN & WRITE Strategy:
TOWER Strategy:
|
Writing Craft
Writing craft is often viewed as the “art” of writing — the intentional choices a writer makes to shape how a piece looks, sounds, and feels. Craft includes elements such as voice, tone, style, and point of view (e.g., first-person vs. third-person), as well as how effectively a writer connects with the intended audience.
To build this skill, students benefit from direct and explicit instruction in:
- Word choice – selecting precise, descriptive, or emotionally resonant words
- Task, Audience, and Purpose – understanding why they are writing and for whom
- Literary devices – using tools like simile, metaphor, alliteration, or allegory to enhance meaning
In particular, students with LDs may especially benefit from modeling and scaffolded examples that make writing craft more visible and accessible. Mentor texts and shared writing can help demystify the choices skilled writers make, giving students concrete tools to enhance their own work.
Sample Activities to Support Writing Craft Instruction
Adapted from Keys to Content Writing (Sedita, 2022) and Teaching Elementary Students to Be Effective Writers (Graham et al., 2010)
| 1. Emulate the Author
Share short, well-written mentor texts and guide students in identifying craft elements:
Follow-Up Task: Have students write a short piece that mimics the style, tone, or structure of the mentor text. |
| 2. Sentence Stretching for Word Choice
Begin with a simple sentence (e.g., The dog ran.). Challenge students to expand it using:
Tip: This helps students learn how precise word choice improves clarity and engagement. |
| 3. Writing with Purpose: Change the Audience
Provide a writing prompt and ask students to adapt their message for different audiences. For example:
Discussion Prompt: How did your tone and word choice shift for each audience? |
| 5. Crafting with Literary Devices
Introduce one literary device at a time (e.g., simile). Read examples, create a class anchor chart, then have students try it in their own writing. Activity: Ask students to add a simile to an existing paragraph or replace a plain sentence with one using figurative language. |
Transcription
In addition to the more conceptual strands of writing, transcription refers to the physical and mechanical aspects of writing, including spelling, handwriting, and typing. Just as students who struggle with decoding put their energy into reading individual words instead of understanding text, students who have not developed transcription fluency may find that their cognitive load is spent on forming letters, spelling words, or navigating a keyboard—leaving little room for idea generation, organization, or revision.
Therefore, strong transcription skills are essential to fluent written expression. When transcription becomes automatic, students can focus more fully on content, structure, and style.
To support this, students with learning disabilities often benefit from explicit instruction and assistive technology (AT) supports to reduce transcription-related barriers. Tools like spell check, predictive text, and voice-to-text can be valuable bridges — not replacements — while students continue to build fluency in these foundational skills.
Moreover, word processing tools can also play a critical role in supporting transcription. Research has shown that students in Grades 1 to 8 who used word processors produced higher-quality writing than those who wrote by hand (Graham et al., 2010). These tools offer legibility, ease of revision, and reduced motor demands — all of which can help students focus more on expressing their ideas effectively.
Sample Activities to Support Transcription Instruction
Adapted from Teaching Elementary Students to Be Effective Writers (Graham et al., 2010), Teaching Secondary Students to Write Effectively (Graham et al., 2016), and Keys to Content Writing (Sedita, 2022)
| 1. Keyboarding Practice with Purpose
Integrate structured keyboarding instruction into writing time. Use free or low-cost programs to teach proper hand placement and typing fluency. Activity: Have students write a journal entry or respond to a prompt using a word processor. Encourage attention to both content and layout (spacing, punctuation, etc.). |
| 2. Dictation and Sentence Construction
Use oral dictation activities to strengthen spelling and sentence-level transcription. Activity: Dictate a short sentence with familiar vocabulary (e.g., The cat jumped onto the windowsill.). Students write it down, focusing on spelling, capitalization, and punctuation. Over time, increase sentence complexity. |
| 3. Spelling Routines with Visual and Auditory Cues
Teach spelling patterns explicitly and provide multisensory practice. Activity: Introduce word families or spelling rules (e.g., -ight, silent e). Have students say the word, tap out the sounds, and write it. Use visual aids like charts or cards for reinforcement. |
| 4. Voice-to-Text for Drafting
Let students use speech-to-text software to get ideas down without the barrier of handwriting or keyboarding. Follow-Up: Have them reread the draft and make manual edits for spelling, punctuation, or word choice — building revision skills while reinforcing transcription awareness. Tip: Teach students to use these tools strategically and responsibly — for example, checking for misheard words, reviewing homophones, and ensuring the final product reflects their intended message. |
Putting the Writing Rope into Practice
Once educators understand the individual strands of the Writing Rope, the next step is to bring them to life in the classroom. The strategies that follow illustrate how to implement this framework with intention — not only by teaching discrete skills, but by supporting students through structured routines, inclusive environments, and purposeful practice.
Drawing from the Institute of Education Sciences’ practice guides (Graham et al., 2010; Graham et al., 2016), the next two sections provide targeted, research-informed recommendations for writing instruction at the elementary and secondary levels. These approaches emphasize direct, explicit instruction and are particularly effective for students with learning disabilities who benefit from scaffolded support.
Writing at the Elementary Level
The following recommendations are drawn from the Institute of Education Sciences guide, Teaching Elementary Students to Be Effective Writers (Graham et al., 2010). These evidence-informed practices highlight essential instructional approaches to support writing development in the early grades — especially for students who benefit from explicit instruction, scaffolded routines, and structured opportunities for practice.
| 1. Provide Daily Time for Students to Write
Students need consistent time to write in order to develop fluency, build stamina, and view writing as a valuable skill.
|
| 2. Teach Students to Use the Writing Process for a Variety of Purposes
Writing instruction should help students understand the process and purpose behind different forms of writing.
|
| 3. Build Fluency with Foundational Writing Skills
When handwriting, spelling, and sentence construction become automatic, students can focus more on content.
|
| 4. Create an Engaged Community of Writers
A positive writing community fosters confidence, motivation, and risk-taking.
|
Writing at the Secondary level
Adolescents face increasingly complex writing demands across content areas, making structured, explicit writing instruction more important than ever. The recommendations below are adapted from Teaching Secondary Students to Write Effectively (Graham et al., 2016), a research-based guide developed by the Institute of Education Sciences. These practices help ensure that all students — including those with learning disabilities — can develop the strategic knowledge and confidence needed to write for different purposes and audiences.
| 1. Explicitly Teach Writing Strategies Using a Model–Practice–Reflect Cycle
Students benefit from direct instruction in how to plan, organize, revise, and evaluate their writing. The Model–Practice–Reflect cycle ensures that they understand each step, see it in action, and apply it themselves.
|
| 2. Integrate Writing and Reading to Emphasize Key Text Features
Reading and writing are reciprocal processes — skilled writers are often skilled readers, and vice versa. Instruction should highlight the features of effective writing through close reading and text analysis.
|
| 3. Use Writing Assessments to Inform Instruction and Feedback
Formative assessment helps teachers identify students’ strengths and needs, guiding responsive instruction and personalized feedback.
|
Conclusion: Weaving Stronger Writers, One Strand at a Time
Ultimately, writing is a complex, multi-dimensional skill — but with the right instructional approaches, it becomes teachable, accessible, and empowering for all students. The Writing Rope offers a clear framework for understanding how different components of writing development interconnect. By intentionally strengthening each strand — from critical thinking to transcription — educators can support students in becoming confident, flexible writers across subject areas and grade levels.
Importantly, these strategies are not just for literacy blocks or language arts classrooms. Writing instruction belongs everywhere — in science labs, history lessons, math reflections, and beyond. For this reason, an inclusive, scaffolded approach can make the difference between writing with frustration and writing with purpose — especially for students with learning disabilities.
In the end, by embedding explicit instruction, using research-informed strategies, and creating classroom environments that value the writing process, we can help all students find their voice — and use it well.
About the Author:
This article was developed through LD@school, a signature initiative of the Learning Disabilities Association of Ontario (LDAO) dedicated to providing evidence-informed resources for educators supporting students with learning disabilities. It is adapted from Keys to Content Writing by Joan Sedita (2022) and draws on foundational research from Dr. Steve Graham and the Institute of Education Sciences. The article also acknowledges Canadian and international perspectives on literacy, including work by Dr. Linda Siegel and Dr. Carol Ann Tomlinson.
Spotlight from LD@school:
This article is being featured on the LDAO website to highlight the high-quality educator resources available through its LD@school initiative. For more evidence-informed strategies, articles, and tools, please visit LD@school.
Looking for similar resources in French? Visit TA@l’école to explore articles and strategies designed for French-language educators.
Powered by LDAO:
LD@school is a signature initiative of the Learning Disabilities Association of Ontario (LDAO), a registered charity and provincial leader in inclusive and accessible education. For over 60 years, LDAO has supported children, youth, and adults with learning disabilities (LDs) and related conditions such as Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).
Designed for educators, LD@school provides evidence-based and practice-informed resources, along with classroom-ready strategies to help Ontario teachers create equitable, accessible learning environments for students with LDs, ADHD, and other learning differences.
LDAO also offers other signature platforms, including TA@l’école (for French-language educators), LD@home (for families), and LD@work (for adults and employers), supporting the LD community across the lifespan.
References:
Graham, S., Bollinger, A., Booth Olson, C., D’Aoust, C., MacArthur, C., McCutchen, D., & Olinghouse, N. (2012). Teaching elementary school students to be effective writers: A practice guide (NCEE 2012-4058). Washington, DC: National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education. Retrieved from https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/PracticeGuide/17
Graham, S., Bruch, J., Fitzgerald, J., Friedrich, L., Furgeson, J., Greene, K., Kim, J., Lyskawa, J., Olson, C.B., & Smither Wulsin, C. (2016). Teaching secondary students to write effectively (NCEE 2017-4002). Washington, DC: National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance (NCEE), Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education. Retrieved from http://whatworks.ed.gov.
Graham, S., & Perin, D. (2007). Writing Next: Effective strategies to improve writing of adolescents in middle and high schools. Alliance for Excellent Education. Retrieved from
National Commission on Writing. (2004). The Neglected “R”: The Need for a Writing Revolution. College Entrance Examination Board. Retrieved from https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED475856
Scarborough, H. S. (2001). Connecting early language and literacy to later reading (dis)abilities: Evidence, theory, and practice. In S. B. Neuman & D. K. Dickinson (Eds.), Handbook of Early Literacy (pp. 97–110). New York, NY: Guilford Press.
Sedita, J. (2022). The Writing Rope: A Framework for Explicit Writing Instruction in All Subjects. Brookes Publishing.
Siegel, L. S. (2006). Perspectives on dyslexia. Paediatrics & Child Health, 11(9), 581–587. Retrieved from https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2528651/
Tomlinson, C. A. (2014). The Differentiated Classroom: Responding to the Needs of All Learners (2nd ed.). ASCD.
The Writing Rope: A Framework for Evidence-Based Writing Instruction. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://media.edweb.net/edWebinar/?view=20221107edweb55#cprtstatus=_cp_0!channel!AMNDb0VzXqGq
Webinar: The Writing Rope – The Strands That Are Woven into Skilled Writing. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://vimeo.com/486403359
