Child Language Acquisition: Kroll's Writing Stages

The Preparatory Stage (18 months onwards):

The child begins to develop motor skills which are essential for writing development.

They begin to learn the basics of the spelling system.

The Consolidation Stage (6-8 years):

The child will use a lot of colloquialisms.

They will write as they would speak.

Their writing consists largely of simple, short declarative sentences with familiar conjunctions such as "and."

They are not sure how to finish a sentence.

They begin to express ideas in the form of a sentence.

The Differentiation Stage (8 - mid-teens):

Their grammar becomes more complex and accurate.

They begin to differ between written and spoken language.

Children begin to develop gender awareness.

Their punctuation is more accurate and consistent.

They begin to structure their work using writing guides and frameworks.

The Integration Stage (mid-teens onwards):

The child begins to understand that they can alter their style to suit a particular audience or purpose.

They begin to develop a more personal writing style which will continue to develop throughout their adult years too.

Writing becomes more accurate with a wider vocabulary and accurate spelling.

Their narrative and descriptive skills will have improved. They are able to create developed characters, plots and settings.