Using the New Basals to Teach the Writing Process: Modifications for Students With Learning Problems

Teachers who rely on basal textbooks to teach writing to students with learning problems may not be meeting their students' needs sufficiently. In this article, we summarize research for teaching writing to students with learning problems. From the literature review, we developed a checklist of instructional features and used the checklist to examine two fifth - grade basal textbooks. The two basals met or almost met most of our criteria. The basals provide an excellent framework within which a teacher can work. However, the criteria not met are critical variables for students with learning difficulties. Neither basal provided the level of explicitness needed for teaching students with learning problems how to engage in the writing process. The article concludes by recommending modifications: add modeling to the instruction, make parts of the instruction more explicitly procedural, and provide students with scaffolds needed for success with writing.