Fostering A Love of Writing at Home

Last week I was asked to talk to parents at a local school about writing. I made the following points in my presentation. Writing (and Reading) is not just for School! It needs to easily move in and out the classroom. As teachers we want to pull down the classroom walls and spread the learning surrounding writing as far as possible.I urged parents to support these efforts and suggested some actions to aid writing development. Creating a bridge between school and home for young learners is always a great building project in which to be actively involved.                                                                                                                                                                          

Set Up A Place at HOME

  • It doesn’t have to be a desk, but it must be comfortable.
  • Provide a basket of engaging books
  • Provide writing materials-notebook, assorted paper, scissors, glue, magazines Not too many items and rotate them occasionally
  • Notice reading and writing in the world
  • Notice people reading/writing
  • Draw attention to print in the environment –signs, menus, noticeboards, on buses
  • Encourage the making of signs, menus, lists
  • Connect the contexts and the fact that writing conveys messages
  • Encourage playing with words –word games!
  • I reminded them they are their child’s First Teacher, First Model.
  • Shopping lists, notes, cards and messages are great opportunities for home literacy. Such writing tasks are authentic grown up things. They teach that writing has a purpose and an audience.
  • Leave notes In school lunchboxes, school bags, around the house. Ask your child to leave you notes/pictures. You are teaching that writing conveys meaning.
  • Give writing related gifts -a variety of pencils, markers, writing pads, post it notes, personal writer’s notebooks and BOOKS make excellent gifts. 
  • Doing such things fosters a love of writing.

Offer Meaningful Praise for Effort

I notice…
I see that you have tried…
You have worked hard on this piece of writing…
Resist the urge to correct everything. Understand that writing grows with practice, time and experience, not constant correction.

Experimenting                                                                                    
Every writer grows with practice and experimentation. No one asks you to be a writer. It is something one chooses to do.

Writing Is A Portable Skill

A writer’s notebook is a great travelling companion.
Encourage your child to bring a writer’s notebook whenever you go on a family outing. Visiting Grandma, the dentist, a restaurant. Anywhere there is potential down time. Encourage comments, wonderings, drawings.

You Can’t Be A Writer Unless You’re A Reader!

Read to and with your child
Encourage them to tell and write their stories
Find the best books for your child
Take advantage of libraries

Tell Your Stories

Tell the stories of your own childhood and encourage them to tell their own unique stories. Speak with detail. As a parent you want your child to develop as an independent, self directed learner. If you demonstrate those same attributes your child will come to see you as someone who values- Reading, writing, speaking and listening.


Children need to see:
  • Adults demonstrating curiosity and wonder about the world in which they live. 
  • Adults who are brave learners and risk takers. 
  • Adults who are joyfully literate!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular With Other Visitors

Writing Opposite Poems

Image
 O pp o s ite  P oem s In his book, ' How To Write Poetry,'  Paul Janeczko presents the idea of opposite poems. Paul suggests they could also be referred to as antonym poems. This is wordplay and it's fun to try. Here are some examples Paul provides to help us see very clearly how these short little poems work. I think the opposite of chair Is sitting down with nothing there What is the opposite of kind? A goat that butts you from behind Paul Janeczko You will  notice the poems are written in rhyming couplets. They can be extended so long as you remember to write in couplets. Paul shows us how this is done. What is the opposite of new? Stale gum that's hard to chew A hot-dog roll as hard as rock Or a soiled and smelly forgotten sock You might notice that some of Paul's opposite Poems begin with a question. The remainder of the poem answer the question posed. Opposite poems are a challenge, but it is a challenge worth trying. Not every thing has a
Read more

Writing About Reading - Reading Reflection Journals:

Image
UPDATED February 2022 Writing in response to literature can be a great way for students to organize their thoughts, explore what they think, and generate ideas. One of the strengths of writing in journals is that it allows students to capture all of those great ideas that generally float off into the air during the discussion.  Journal writing can also become drudgery if students are asked to write too often, given little choice or inspiration in what to write, or if they simply don't have anything to say. While some students eagerly share their impressions about selections they have read in class discussions, others are less comfortable and keep their thoughts to themselves. In an effort to encourage all students to think more about what they read and confidently share their observations and opinions, some teachers are turning to the reading reflection journal and are gaining insights they never anticipated.  The Value of Reflection Journals   Journals assist teachers to gain i
Read more

Learning How to 'Zoom In' When Writing

Image
It is important for young writers to understand that not all parts of a story are equal. There are parts through which a writer moves quickly, and important parts where the writer slows down and lingers a while. This is where the writer might intensify the action or reveal the character’s reactions in greater detail. Young writers need to know that this is a deliberate strategy on the part of the author. The author consciously zooms in. The writer uses a magnifying glass to view a part of the story more closely; to focus on a moment and to slow down time. When an important part of the story is enlarged upon, it   is a signal to the reader, that this part of the story is important. The strategy of ‘zooming in’ goes by many names: ‘exploding a moment’ ‘magnifying a moment’, ‘hotspot’ ‘snapshot’, ‘adding detail’ or ‘slowing the action.’  What ever the name, the idea is the same. The author writes in a way that expands a significant part of the story with the intention of drawing t
Read more

Answering Questions Posed by Young POETS

Image
UPDATED, May 2020 As a frequent visitor to schools I have the great pleasure of working with groups of young, enthusiastic poets and their teachers. When I arrive in a classroom, young poets are often pre-loaded with questions, and most keen to have them answered.  I try to answer as many as I can, but we frequently run out of time, and the poetry caravan moves on to the next classroom. So I am here to answer some of those questions -right here, right now. So here goes: When you were little did you love writing? The short answer is yes. I have always enjoyed words and language. I can't recall a time when I wasn't doing some kind of writing. When did you write your first poetry book? I have had poems published over the years, but it wasn't until 2014 that I had an entire book of poems (an anthology) published. When I looked back through all my notebooks I realized I had hundreds of poems from which to choose. So, 'Searching For Hen's Teeth-Poetry From The
Read more

Slice Of Life Story-The Trials Of A Left Handed Writer

Image
Amazingly I learnt to write using my left hand. An achievement against the prevailing beliefs of the day. My very first teacher saw it as her mission in life to ‘fix’ the poor, wretched little boy suffering from what she clearly diagnosed as left handed disease. She must have thought, 'This child must be re formatted! If he remains left handed he will be forever condemned to writing in a scrawl that no one will be able to read. Ugly hand, ugly hand.' ...They tried to say it couldn't be done, it mustn't be done. They took the pencil out of my left hand and placed it in my right hand. It felt unnatural. It felt weird. It was not right. More to the point it was not left. I was not about to conform. At least they didn't try tying my hand behind my back. Watch me I said. I may be an oddball, left handed scribbler but I am a determined oddball. I mean how boring would the world be if everyone wrote with their right hand? So I dug my toes in –and my hands to
Read more