I learned this from the National Writing Project when I was a Summer Institute participant (six week intensive writing course for grad credit).
I tend to start my writing classes with a short writing assignment that's related to the reading we're doing; I ask students to write for about 7 minutes and then ask students to share. I always write along with the students and share what I've written. It makes them much more willing to participate, particularly if the topic is something like, "A time you had trouble with a writing assignment and what you did to make that experience easier."
Writing with your students
I tend to start my writing classes with a short writing assignment that's related to the reading we're doing; I ask students to write for about 7 minutes and then ask students to share. I always write along with the students and share what I've written. It makes them much more willing to participate, particularly if the topic is something like, "A time you had trouble with a writing assignment and what you did to make that experience easier."