Students writing for authentic audiences from the earliest grades. Hell yes. 100% here for this, and something that used to be a given back when I was in grade school. nytimes.com/2018/11/15/lea…
This from @RebekahODell1 is just spot on. Teaching college writing I've seen what happens when students are primarily asked to write "just for school." Letting writers write for people and honoring the students' ideas and knowledge makes a huge difference in engagement. 
We have an "engagement crisis" in schools, where the nature of schooling centered on achievement on standardized assessments, or worse, tech-mediated so-called "personalized learning" alienates students from school and even themselves. insidehighered.com/blogs/just-vis…
In my experience, writing for an authentic audience transforms how students view their writing and themselves. It can happen almost with the flip of a switch. I can only imagine how great it will be when students have been doing this throughout their schooling.
I dedicated my new book to my grade school teachers because they're the ones who first introduced me to writing for the world. My 3rd grade teacher taught me a lesson about authentic audiences that I've never forgotten and continue to pass on. amazon.com/Why-They-Cant-…
Proof of that dedication.
