Writing with Adults: Successful Publishers Together
One of the different types of writing that we want to do every day, with every emergent student, is Writing with Adults, also called Shared Writing. This is where literacy learners and educators write together as a team to successfully publish a text, which can then be shared with others. One form of Writing with Adults is known as Predictable Chart Writing (Hall & Williams, 2001).
Predictable Chart Writing
Predictable Chart Writing is a week long activity. It is multi-level and is suitable for literacy learners who are early emergent through to early conventional (transitional).
Predictable Chart Writing (PCW) is a very flexible option for shared writing and can be used with almost any subject or area. It is also great for all of the different students we work with as it has strong ties with language and is so easy to implement with AAC. Please remember that PCW is primarily for emergent readers and writers. It is also useful for transitional readers and writers because it provides a structure that focuses on high frequency words – so for those students it becomes a working with words activity. Conventional students shouldn’t be participating in predictable chart writing – they could be doing more independent reading or writing at this time.
Video of a Week of Predictable Chart Writing & One Page Guide
In 2022, Coomera State Special School created a series of videos around Predictable Chart Writing to support teachers just getting started with this form of writing. The main video goes for 26 minutes and covers the whole process across a week.
To assist with implementing the week long process, I have written a one page guide to Predictable Chart Writing (PCW) where I have differentiated how you would complete each day’s activities with students at different levels. This can be downloaded below and should accompany this video.
And just a few points about the video and classroom:
- Firstly, the students come and go through the week for a range of reasons – at times there are only 2 in the class. This isn’t ideal but we worked with it as always!
- The students in the class cover the whole range mentioned in the handout – and so you’ll get to see different students at different levels, although not always on every day.
- None of the students in the video have an established Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) system at the time of this video, so I am modelling using a generic system, and they also participate using that system as needed.
- In the early part of the week I am using an early functions Pragmatic Organisation Dynamic Display (PODD) book and I stumbled occasionally as I was going to use vocabulary that is in an expanded functions PODD. My apologies for this.
Other Resources – Predictable Chart Writing
General Predictable Chart Writing Resources
- Dynamic Learning Maps (DLM) self-directed learning module on Predictable Chart Writing
- Predictable Chart Writing handout from the Centre for Literacy and Disability Studies
- Durham Road School (Perth) handout on Predictable Chart Writing
- Handout on suggested sentence starters for PCW
Writing in Our Classrooms Overview Sheet
- Writing in our Classrooms Overview Sheet (Updated August 2025)
Blog Posts by Jane Farrall on Predictable Chart Writing
- Predictable Chart Writing: Group writing for all
- Writing with Adults: Predictable Chart Writing (blog post about the Coomera videos)
Photos and Videos on Predictable Chart Writing
The photo above shows a perfect example of pages from a PCW Wednesday (cutting up day). The students have stuck down the words from their sentences wherever they choose to – and the teacher has modelled with her sentence at the end.
The videos below were also recorded at Coomera State Special School in 2022. These were made to support educators working with students using Partner Assisted Scanning. These videos all focus on Wednesday, aka “Cutting Up Day”. Huge thanks to Sharyn from Coomera for role playing with me.