A program to be used by teachers working with children at the stage of emergent writing, generally kindergarten and grades 1 and 2, and based on recognition of young children's development, is outlined. The project operates on the premise that children can independently learn to write by writing if they are immersed in the appropriate social and psychological setting where the individual's development and stages of writing development can be coordinated with the help of teacher interactions. The setting and procedure that make up the developmental environment are described. The stages of writing development are outlined in detail, including the precommunicative, semi-phonetic, phonetic, and transitional stages and the linguistic and writing behaviors typical of these stages. Illustrations are provided, with student and teacher comments included. A section on teacher interactions provides sample questions and comments to foster student efforts and success. A brief bibliography is appended. (MSE)