There is a significant difference between having writing skills and having the disposition to be a writer. Dispositions are not learned through instruction or drill. It is unfortunate that some dispositions, such as being curious or puzzled, are rarely displayed by adults in front of children. A child who is to learn a particular disposition must have the opportunity to behave in a manner that is in keeping with the disposition. If that occurs, then the child's behavior can be responded to, and thus strengthened.
Teachers can reinforce certain dispositions by setting learning goals rather than performance goals.
These are subjective emotional states, many of which are innate. Among those that are learned are feelings of competence, belonging, and security. Feelings about school, teachers, learning and other children are also learned in the early years. Back to the Table of Contents Risks Of Early Academic Instruction Research on the long-term effects of various curriculum models suggests that the introduction of academic work into the early childhood curriculum yields good results on standardized tests in the short term, but may be counterproductive in the long term. For example, the risk of early instruction in beginning reading skills is that the amount of drill and practice required for success at an early age will undermine children's dispositions to be readers.