If you’re working with young children, you know how exciting (and sometimes overwhelming) it can be to teach writing. Some kids come in already scribbling letters and trying to write words, while others are still figuring out how to hold a pencil. No matter where they are, they all need encouragement, guidance, and a little structure to help them grow as writers.
That’s where a writing goals chart comes in handy. It’s a simple, visual way to track your kindergarten students’ progress and give kids a sense of accomplishment as they move through different writing milestones. Plus, it makes it easier for us as kindergarten teachers to see where each student is and how we can support them.
I’d been using a writing goals chart in my classroom, and it’s quickly became a game changer! So I want to share some practical tips on how to help your kindergarteners build writing skills while making the process fun and stress-free—for both you and them.
Writing at this stage isn’t about perfect spelling or neat handwriting (though we do work on those). It’s about helping kids express their thoughts, develop fine motor skills, and build confidence in their ability to put ideas on paper.
Writing helps kindergarteners develop literacy skills like:
Of course, every child progresses at different rates. Some kids jump right into writing, while others take longer to warm up. That’s why having clear, achievable goals is so important—it helps kids see their progress, even in small steps.
Teaching writing to five-year-olds can feel like a puzzle. There are so many pieces—fine motor skills, letter recognition, phonics, sentence structure—but when you put them together the right way, everything starts to click.
Here are the main things to focus on:
Young learners need strong fine motor skills. We do activities like:
From the first day of school, we starting learning about letter formation and handwriting. It is essential that students master letter formation. According to studies, students who fail to write fluently by the end of first grade often struggle with the writing process as they progress in school. You see, learning about letters, how to write, and the sounds the letters spell help cement those letters and sounds in the brain.
We offer daily explicit handwriting instruction on how to:
Foundational skills like phonics and phonemic awareness help build new words.
Incorporating dictation into your daily phonics lessons is a great way to informally assess which sounds a student has mastered and which sounds they are still learning. Remember, during dictation, you are controlling the text. You are only asking students to write the sounds, letters, sight words, and complete sentences that they are received instruction on. I have found that incorporating dictation during your science of reading or structured literacy lessons is a great way to spirally review these skills throughout the school year.
During writing lessons or writing instruction, where students are composing their own writing, kids don’t need perfect spelling. I encourage “invented spelling,” where they write words based on the sounds they hear. This builds phonemic awareness and confidence. It is amazing how far student progress by the end of kindergarten.
We offer a ton of simple activities for letter and word practice in addition to writing short sentences during our dictation.
Here are few examples:
Additionally, I have found that teaching in small groups is a great way to strengthen early writing skills in a supportive environment. Small groups is a great opportunity to bring students in close as they develop new writing skills. As they say, early intervention can help prevent long term learning delays.
No matter what stage they’re at, it helps to have a clear roadmap. That’s why I love using a writing goals chart!
A writing goals chart is a simple way to show kids their progress and keep them motivated. It breaks writing into small, manageable steps, so kids can celebrate each milestone as they go.
Instead of just saying, “I’m learning to write,” they can focus in on one aspect of the writing continuum. Throughout the year, the writing goals chart reflects the lesson plans that have introduced and builds on each necessary skill in children’s writing.
For students, it:
For teachers, it:
Making a writing goals chart doesn’t have to be complicated! Here’s how I do it:
When asking so many systems to be working together (fine motor, phonemic awareness, phonics, composing texts, executive function) it is challenging for students who focus on all of these skills equally. Instead we ask them to narrow their focus temporarily. Here is an example of the kindergarten goals for our first unit of writing instruction.
Keep your writing chart simple but interactive.
Some kids move faster than others, and that’s okay! All students do not enter the school year with the same language skills or literacy exposure. I use individual goal charts for each student so they can work on their foundational writing skills at their own pace.
The key is to use the chart often. During writing conferences it is a great opportunity to provide positive reinforcement. Students check their writing goals every week, and decide where they should focus next. This student goal is a great motivator! For a reluctant writer, they may have a goal of writing the whole time. You might also be working in your writing conference on idea generation or using finger spaces.
Even with a solid plan, the best thing we can do is make writing feel enjoyable and meaningful. Here are some easy ways to make that happen:
When writing feels fun and rewarding, kids are more likely to stick with it and grow into strong, confident writers.
Teaching writing in kindergarten can feel like a big task, but breaking it down into clear, manageable steps makes a huge difference. A writing goals chart helps both teachers and students stay on track and celebrate progress along the way.
If you’ve never tried using one, I highly recommend it! It takes just a little time to set up, but it makes a world of difference in helping kids build confidence and develop strong writing skills.
Have you used a writing goals chart in your classroom? I’d love to hear how it’s working for you! Drop a comment below or reach out—let’s share ideas and make writing time the best part of the day!
How about taking the guesswork out of your daily lessons! These are research-based lessons that are simple but effective!
Each day is meticulously planned and teacher tested for you!
Unit specific writing goals and rubrics are included to support the growth of students’ independent writing!
I love to write about teaching writing. Here are a few articles you might be interested in.
My Best Student Writing Conference Tips and Tricks (Free PDF Download)
My teaching career allowed me to experience teaching in different classroom environments and grades. My heart belongs to early childhood education. My job is to make teaching FUN, ENGAGING, and EASIER. Welcome!
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11 Responses
Thanks for sharing! I like to see samples of other students work. It helps me to know that my kinders are on the right track. 🙂 Thanks again!
Jada
Daisy Days for Learning
That's pretty amazing kindergarten writing!
I like the way you set up their personal goals.
I love the personal goals!!! I mentioned this blog post and put a link to this blog post on my blog today!! I think it is so important for students to know specifically what it is they need to work on…this post is PERFECT 🙂 The visuals are great for kindergartners! Thank you for always being a great kindergarten teacher role model!!!!
Bridget
Literacy Without Worksheets
I love your goal chart!!! This is so easy to read. A quick glance and you instantly know what a student should be working on.
I never could get to the freebie. 🙁 Did I miss it?
Never mind, I figured it out! : )
omg i'm so excited about the matching paper! I've been using the goal chart for two months now and I can't wait to see how they do with it on the bottom of their paper as well. Thanks for making it a freebie!
Is the writing goals chart available still?
Yes, you can get it by entering your name in the box at the end of the post. The Writing Goals is in the curriculum guide.
please send me the writing goal freebie
I sent you an email 🙂
Love this!