Tarricone, J.G., The Landmark Method For Teaching Writing, Landmark Foundation: Prides crossing, MA, 1995

Landmark School is a private school program funded by the Landmark Foundation. The school is non-profit and includes residential and day school opportunities for students, ages 7-21 with language-based learning disabilities/dyslexia. Two campuses are operating, one in Massachusetts and California. The writing program was developed from research and direct application in the classroom.

Students with learning disabilities vary widely in skills deficits and strengths. Common problems exist in the areas of organization, comprehension, general processing skills, language acquisition and expression, memory, motor skills and higher-order thinking. It is easy to see why writing, with all its complexities and components may be difficult for students with learning problems.

The Landmark writing process emphasizes student success, multi-sensory approaches, micro-unit and structured tasks, ensuring mastery through practice and review, accurate modeling of good writing and inclusion of the student in the learning process.

Tarricone urges teachers of LD students to teach vocabulary words often used in writing assignment directions. Words that can confuse students include: interpret, review, summarize, justify and evaluate. She encourages development of oral rehearsal and group discussion skills in her students. Especially valuable is the clarification of ideas that can result from talking as well as the immediate feedback provided by these discussions.

Landmark teaches students five parts of the writing process. The steps are: brainstorming, organizing, drafting, proofreading and final drafting. Students are taught to follow these steps when writing. Teacher-led brainstorming can be effective if a goal is clear, student ideas are accepted, cues or prompts are provided, class contributions are written down and there is a set time limit. Semantic mapping is encouraged for independent and collaborative group brainstorming. Providing a graphic organizer is also effective.

Following brainstorming, but prior to rough drafting, the Landmark School recommends that information be organized. Outlining and graphic organizers can be used for this purpose, separately or in combination. Various forms of graphic organizers are illustrated including a three-part basic organizer (topic sentence, supporting details and conclusion) and a more complicate causal chain organizer. The visual nature of these is helpful for some students with language deficits. Some students prefer outlining for its emphasis on paragraph structure and word cues. A combination of outlining and graphic organizing may be the best fit for some.

Before the first draft is attempted, it may be helpful for a student with a graphic organizer to number or label the map in terms or ordering the items for a logical sequence. The five W's (who, what, where, when, why or how) are accessed for drafting. Answering these questions can assist students in elaborating. For longer essays, paragraphs can be completed separately. It is crucial to accurately teach the meaning of a thesis statement.

Proofreading, Tarricone writes, is dependent on meta-cognitive skills that a lower performing student may not have developed. Specifically, problem-solving and evaluative abilities may be low. Proofreading suggestions are: checklists, acronym strategies, meta-cognitive skill development and peer editing. Consistent usage of these can help students when proofreading written expression. Self-questioning is recommended as a meta-cognitive way to edit writing. Self-questions can be posted in the room or placed in student's writing folders. Examples of questions are as follows: What parts do I like best? What parts should make clearer? Did I use key words? Lastly, peer editing helps students accept constructive feedback and gain skills.

Final drafting must be tied to the proofreading changes. Using the proofreading checklist during the final draft writing can help students include editing in their final version. Getting students to do their best can be achieved through assignments that are to reach a wider audience, such as letters to the editor. It is also motivating to include an art project in a final draft piece or a class book that will be shown to others. Thoroughly providing all the necessary steps for a student's writing project will go a long way in building both pride and skills in a student.