How Reading Can Lead to Good Writing
Willy A. Renandya, 1 May 2025
As English teachers, we often teach reading and writing as two different skills. But in reality, they are closely linked; they are two sides of the same coin. Good readers often become good writers, and writing helps improve reading too. In this short article, we will explore the reading-writing connection and how we can help our students improve both skills together.
Why Writing Is So Hard
Many students struggle with writing, more than they do with reading. For example, data from IELTS exams show that most students get lower scores in writing than in reading. Why is this the case? There are several possible reasons:
- Writing is often taught with too much focus on grammar and mechanics
- Writing is a complex process that involves thinking, organizing, and expressing ideas clearly
- Students may not get enough practice
Also, students may not always see the value of writing. In some classrooms, writing is often treated as a product instead of a process. Teachers may ask students to write an essay, correct a few errors, and give a grade, but students are not always shown how to develop or improve their writing. Without guidance, many learners feel lost.
Reading Helps Writing
One strong way to help students write better is to help them read more and read better. Reading exposes students to:
- Vocabulary and grammar (linguistic knowledge)
- Ideas about the world (world knowledge)
- How texts are organized (discourse knowledge)
- Different writing styles and tones (rhetorical knowledge)
The more students read, the more they learn about language and how it works. For example, by reading short stories, students can learn how writers begin a story, create belieavable characters and settings, build suspense, use descriptive language, and structure the story from beginning to end. Similarly, by reading academic articles, they learn how to use formal vocabulary, organize arguments, analyze data and present evidence.
As Stephen Krashen (1984), a renowned expert in language education, pointed out, “When enough reading is done, all the necessary grammatical structures and discourse rules for writing will automatically be presented to the writer.” This simply means that students can become better writers by reading widely and regularly.
Learning via Modelling
Think about how people learn skills in real life. Often, they observe an expert, practice with guidance, and slowly become more independent. This is called the modelling approach, or in education, the “Gradual Release of Responsibility.”
The same idea works for writing. If students want to write well, they need to:
- Read the kind of texts they want to write
- Study how those texts are written
- Try to imitate the style and structure
- Practice regularly
For example, if a student wants to write good opinion essays, they should first read many opinion essays. They can learn how writers introduce their ideas, support them with examples, and end with strong conclusions. By ‘imitating’ some of these techniques, students will gradually improve their own writing.
As William Zinsser (2001) said: “Writing is learned by imitation. If anyone asked me how I learned to write, I’d say I learned by reading the men and women who were doing the kind of writing I wanted to do and trying to figure out how they did it.”
Building a Stronger Reading-Writing Connection
We can help our students connect reading and writing in several ways. I present four ways of doing this below:
1. Read Like a Reader
Encourage students to read every day, just like what good readers do. About 20 to 30 minutes is a good start. They should read for different purposes:
- To get information
- For enjoyment
- To explore different text types
Let students choose books, articles, or stories that interest them. The more they enjoy reading, the more they will want to do it. Reading different kinds of texts e.g., news reports, magazine articles, graphic novels, short stories, blogs, advertisements, emails, and academic essays gives students a rich exposure to how English is used in real-life situations. This kind of wide reading builds language, knowledge, and confidence.
2. Read Like a Writer
Help students notice how texts are written. This is also called “writerly reading.” Ask them to look at:
- How the text is structured
- What kind of words and phrases are used
- How the writer connects ideas
- The tone and style
For example, when reading a news article, students can pay attention to the headline, lead paragraph, and how information is presented in short, clear sentences. When reading a blog post, they can notice the informal tone and personal style.
3. Write Like a Reader
Students need to become more aware of their readers. When writing, they should ask:
- Who will read this?
- What is the purpose?
- What does the reader expect?
Students should revise their work, improve coherence, and think about how it sounds to a reader, not just how it looks to a teacher. You can help students by giving them checklists to review their writing or by asking them to exchange drafts and give feedback to each other.
They also need to understand that writing takes time. Good writing often starts with a “bad” first draft, which is then revised many times. This is a normal and important part of the writing process.
4. Write Like a Writer
Encourage daily writing, just like what good writers do. This can include:
- Personal journal entries
- Short stories or fairy tales
- Letters to friends or family
- Captions for drawings
- Comic strips
- Descriptions of favourite animals, places, or people
- Birthday cards or thank-you notes
Writing different types of texts helps students become more flexible and confident writers. They learn to change their language and structure depending on the situation. Over time, they can develop their own voice and style that is clear, coherent, and effective.
Even writing a short paragraph a day can make a big difference.
The key is to write regularly and with a purpose.
Conclusion
To build a stronger connection between reading and writing in your classroom, try the following:
- Encourage more reading, especially different types of texts
- Teach students how to read like writers
- Give students real reasons to write, and help them revise with the reader in mind
- Use multiple model texts for writing tasks
By doing these things, we can help students become better readers and writers, confident users of English who enjoy working with language.
Reading and writing are not separate; they support each other. When we bring them together in our classrooms, we give our students a powerful way to learn.
References
Krashen, S. D. (1984). Writing: Research, theory, and applications. Pergamon Institute of English.
Zinsser, W. K. (2001). On writing well: The classic guide to writing nonfiction. Quill/A Harper Collins Books.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CX1kt9ym56o
