Teach your fourth-graders the mechanics of writing. It's important for children to identify and use imperative, declarative, interrogative and exclamatory sentence structures, in addition to proper grammar, spelling, sentence structure, capitalization and punctuation. Understanding the mechanics of writing can help the fourth-graders organize their thoughts, enabling them to present their ideas in a clear written format.
Encourage the fourth-graders to brainstorm in a variety of ways so they can identify the brainstorming method that works best for each. Drawing may work for some students, while others may prefer free writing, idea brainstorming or using a diagram -- such as a Venn diagram -- to compare two ideas or things. Give the fourth-graders several writing assignments with assigned brainstorming methods so each child can try each method. Focus on which method works best for each child.
Research is an important pre-writing tool. Without researching a topic thoroughly, the fourth-graders may not understand the topic and therefore won't present clear ideas in their written assignments. Some assignments or prompts, such as "What I did last summer," won't need research because they're based on the child's experiences. Give the fourth-graders at least one or two assignments that require them to interview at least one person as part of their research. Interviews can be especially important in some written pieces.
During the pre-writing stages, a pupil can organize a writing piece in a variety of ways. Teach the fourth-graders a few ways to organize their thoughts so they know which methods work best for them; this can also help them find their writing "voice." Use flow charts, maps and outlines as ways to effectively organize their thoughts before they actually start writing. Give them examples, such as an outline for a five-paragraph essay that includes notes or questions with each paragraph. The essays should include topic and conclusion sentences.