How Pete the Cat Helped with Writing

When doing an initial writing assessment in first grade, I noticed that a few students completely stopped writing after coming to a word they did not know how to spell. I had read Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes by Eric Litwin to teach the strategy of using pictures to improve accuracy earlier that morning, and wondered if a catchphrase in the book could help me get students over this hump.

I gathered the students together and told them I wanted to show them what to do if they came to a word they couldn't spell. I proceeded to model writing a story about how happy I was to be with them in first grade, and then came to a word I wasn't sure about. I said, "Oh no! I don't know how to spell excited. Will I cry?"

Without missing a beat, the students chimed in, "Goodness no!"

I responded, "Write the sounds I know, underline, and go. Say it with me: Write the sounds I know, underline, and go."

Then I modeled writing the sounds I could hear, underlined them, and continued with the sentence.

After writing a few more words, I got stuck again. "Oh no! I don't know how to spell principal. Will I cry?"

They responded, "Goodness no! Write the sounds you know, underline, and go."

During writing workshop, not a single student froze when coming to a word they didn't know. Many could be heard reciting, "Write the sounds I know, underline, and go."

Thanks, Pete.