This electronic version of Writing frames: scaffolding children’s non-fiction writing in a range of genres allows you to download pdfs as well as word documents of individual frames for use in class.
National Curriculum English documents (des 1990; dfee 1995) made it clear that children should undertake a wide range of different types of writing and that they should be 'helped to plan and produce these types of writing' -- descriptions, explanations, opinions, etc -- 'by being given purposeful opportunities to write their own'.
The EXEL (The Exeter Extending Literacy) project, funded by the Nuffield Foundation, attempted to address this challenge by developing 'writing frames' which would act as a kind of scaffolding for children's non-fiction writing. The frames have been trialled with children throughout the country in primary and lower secondary years and across the full range of abilities, including children with special needs.
In response to popular demand, we are making available in electronic form Writing frames by David Wray and Maureen Lewis, the best-selling publication which grew out of the EXEL project. This means that you can print pdf versions of the frames without battling with the photocopier, alternatively you can use word document versions as the basis for group writing, for instance by projecting the file on to an interactive whiteboard.
Download a pdf of the full publication with background information on writing frames -- their history and purpose, the characteristics of six different non-fiction genres and examples of how writing frames scaffold children’s writing in each of these genres