Abstract

The present study examined the effects of two kinds of interventions on children's written texts in a grade three classroom. Using a mixed method design, the two interventions were (a) discussion and (b) story drama. Before and after the interventions, 26 children in the experimental group class, as well as 19 children in the control group class, were asked to write a short text to determine their level of writing. Then, for a period of eight weeks, the 26 children from the experimental group were split into two equivalent groups and received alternating discussion and story drama sessions, with each session followed by a writing activity. The 203 texts produced by the 26 children were coded for the number of words, the quality of the descriptions, and the organization and structure of the children's written texts. The study revealed a significant difference in the number of words written, specifically, children produced texts with more words following the drama sessions than following the discussion sessions. A gender effect was also found in the texts written after the discussion interventions: Girls wrote more adjectives overall and more different adjectives than boys. Finally, through the exploration of field notes, other aspects of the interventions were examined qualitatively for information regarding ways in which both discussion and creative drama can enhance children's experience of writing activities.