Written Production and Writing: Complete Guide for Speech Therapists
Written production is a complex skill that simultaneously mobilizes many abilities: generating ideas, organizing them, formulating them into correct sentences, spelling them, and managing the writing gesture. Difficulties in written production are common among children with DYS disorders. This guide presents the writing processes and support strategies.
✍️ Resources for Written Production
Planning supports, writing aids, graphic organizers
Access the tools →📋 Table of Contents
Writing Production Processes
According to the Hayes and Flower model, written production involves three main processes:
- Planning: generating ideas, organizing them, defining a goal
- Text Composition: formulating sentences, choosing words, spelling
- Revision: proofreading, detecting errors, improving
These processes heavily engage working memory and executive functions. A beginner or struggling writer can quickly become overwhelmed.
Types of Difficulties
- Ideation: "I don't know what to write"
- Organization: scattered ideas, no structure
- Formulation: poorly constructed sentences, limited vocabulary
- Spelling: numerous errors (dysorthographia)
- Graphomotor Skills: slow and effortful writing (dysgraphia)
- Revision: does not detect their errors
Evaluation
- Spontaneous Production: narrative, description, free text
- Guided Production: from images, instructions
- Multi-level Analysis: content, organization, syntax, spelling, handwriting
- Evaluation of Underlying Skills: oral language, spelling, handwriting
Intervention Strategies
💡 Principle: Reduce Cognitive Overload
The goal is to relieve the writer so they can focus on one aspect at a time. Planning tools, adult dictation, spell checkers, and computers are all means to compensate.
Work Areas
- Planning: use graphic organizers, diagrams, outlines
- Idea Generation: brainstorming, word banks
- Formulation: work on syntax orally first
- Spelling: work specifically (see dysorthographia)
- Revision: proofreading grids, targeted proofreading
- Compensatory Tools: computer, spell checker, voice dictation
Our Downloadable Tools
📋 Graphic Organizers
Diagrams for planning a text.
Download📖 Narrative Structure Support
To organize a narrative.
Download✅ Proofreading Grid
Check-list for revision.
Download🔗 Connector Cards
Linking words to enrich texts.
DownloadFrequently Asked Questions
Yes, for children whose graphomotor skills are effortful (dysgraphia) or whose spelling is very deficient (dysorthographia). The computer frees cognitive resources for idea generation and formulation. With a spell checker and possibly voice dictation, written production becomes more accessible.
Both can be worked on in parallel. For writing, one can temporarily "suspend" spelling requirements to free creativity and idea structuring. Spelling is then revisited during revision or compensated for with tools.
✍️ Supporting Written Production
Discover all our free tools
See all tools →
