Playing outside of the lines: Exploring young Children’s emergent writing as practices of joy

This article explores young children’s writing as an embodied, affective practice that extends beyond traditional pen-to-paper approaches. Using a qualitative data story from a summer writing camp, it examines how one child moves across building, drawing, play, and emergent letter formation over the course of a week. The analysis highlights writing as embodied, affective, and materially grounded, challenging developmental models that position literacy as a linear progression toward becoming literate. Instead, the paper frames writing as an expansive, joyful practice that is already present in young children’s everyday engagements with the world.