At what writing phase do students start leaving spaces between words and using punctuation?

In the early stages of writing development, students often experiment with writing by expressing sounds and ideas using letters, which can lead them to represent words primarily through the use of consonants. However, they typically do not incorporate spacing between words or punctuation at this initial stage.

The correct phase where students begin to leave spaces between words and use punctuation is the transitional phase. During this stage, learners start to understand the concept of separating words for clarity, as well as the standard uses of punctuation to enhance the meaning and readability of their writing. This awareness marks a significant progression in their writing skills, indicating they are developing more sophisticated writing strategies.

In contrast, while initial, middle, and final sounds focus on phonemic awareness and spelling strategies, they do not directly address spacing and punctuation. Standard spelling involves the correct spelling of words, which is typically a later development in the writing process.