The effect of the letter, one of the writing activities for learning purposes, in the teaching of the 7th grade unit on reproduction, growth and development in life and determining students' opinions about writing

This study aims to investigate the impact of Writing to Learn (WTL) activities on student learning in the context of teaching the "Reproduction, Growth, and Development" unit in the 7th grade Science curriculum, as well as to explore students' perspectives on the instructional process conducted using WTL activities. Intervention design, one of the mixed research methods, was used in the research. The study group of the research consists of 56 students studying in the 7th grade of a secondary school in Bayburt Center in the spring semester of the 2023-2024 academic year. As a data collection tool in the research; Preliminary Knowledge Test (ÖBT), Reproduction, Growth and Development Achievement Test (RGDAT) and semi-structured Interview Form (IF) were used. An independent samples t-test was used to analyze the pre-test of the RGDAT, and the Mann-Whitney U test was used to analyze the post-test of the RGDAT. Content analysis method was used in the analysis of qualitative data. As a result of the analysis of the data obtained from RGDAT, it was determined that the letter from the WTL activities increased the acacemic success of 7th grade students in Reproduction, Growth and Development. From the analysis of the data obtained from the IF, it was determined that the students' opinions about the WTL activities were positive. Key Words: Writing to learn, reproduction, growth, development, letter, academic success.