The Up the Ladder books are designed for children in grades 3–6 who may not yet have had many opportunities to practice writing narrative, information, and opinion pieces, or might not have had those experiences in workshop-style classrooms. The units give these children opportunities to engage in repeated successful practice and to move rapidly along a gradually increasing progression of challenges.
The Up the Ladder Units:
- give less experienced writers intense writing practice within a short timeframe
- teach foundational primary-grade strategies through content, topics, and mentor texts that are appropriate for grades 3–6
- include concise, accessible student checklists and guidelines for daily assessment
- support teachers with an introduction to the workshop framework and writing process, tips and strategies for classroom management, and video demonstrations of the minilessons
- engage young people in work that is demanding yet attainable
- ensure that students make rapid and dramatic progress toward grade-level writing work.
While the Up the Ladder units are designed to be precursors to the grade-level Units of Study in Opinion, Information, and Narrative Writing, 3–6, they can be helpful in a variety of instructional settings.
Learn more about the Up The Ladder Units.
