Whole Language Approach?

The trend in the United States is to follow the whole language approach to teach writing. In whole language, students are urged to express themselves before learning spelling or grammar.  Many teachers believe that this allows students to enjoy learning and encourages imagination rather than starting with memorization. Children taught with this approach have a problem when spelling and grammar aren't taught or are taught much later. They then have difficulty spelling and do not know grammar rules.  A balance can be struck between phonics and whole language. Teachers could spend small periods of time with phonics while still encouraging students to write and read based on the whole language approach. Check out a great article to learn more about whole language and phonics at Education World.