Are you looking for ways to help your munchkins develop strong writing skills as early as possible? Is getting them to write making you think it’s time to take antidepressants? Maybe it’s time to try something different. Here are our top writing activities for little ones.
Story Starters and Prompts
We all know that the strongest instrument that children use is their imagination. If you make sure to give them an exciting sentence to start with (“The princess was bored in her castle…”), you’ll let their creativity juices flow.
Mom-approved tips:
The best part about this strategy is that with a prompt at hand, kids won’t be afraid of the ‘blank page’ and will be more eager to develop an interesting plot.
Create a Comic Book Together
Find printable templates online and use them to help your pumpkin complete the speech bubbles on it. Plus, you will also create characters and the plot lines! The amount of your guidance will depend on whether the little one asks you, “Write my paper for me” or not.
Mom-approved tips:
If you see that the child is okay to fill the speech bubbles, do not interrupt. Let them enjoy the process without parental involvement!
Start Journaling Together
First of all, provide your baby with a personal journal. Thus, they’ll feel more encouraged to express and maybe even share their unique ideas, think about what happened during the day, and boost their prose.
Mom-approved tips:
Try to make journaling more fun for your child. Colorful stickers, pens, and pencils will make the process more exciting, taking kids’ writing fluency and emotional intelligence to the next level.
Play MasterChef
There’s no doubt that your little champ has a list of favorite snacks. Ask them to write a recipe for their yumm-yummiest dish. In addition to getting your child more interested in the process of writing, you will help them develop procedural writing skills. Besides, kids also learn what the structure (steps, ingredients, etc.) in writing is all about.
Mom-approved tips:
Do not hesitate to ask your child to also draw the finished product or cook it with their help, if possible.
Write Poems
No need to create literature masterpieces! Instead, give preference to things like haikus, short acrostics, rhythm couplets, or anything else that is easy, quick, and something that a little buddy can easily deal with. It is an excellent way to explore language in a playful way. Plus, it’s a wonderful opportunity to help your child develop their vocabulary.
Mom-approved tips:
Creating a ‘wall for your masterpieces’ works as nicely as arranging a poetry reading night in your living room.
Write a Review for a Book
If reading is part of your routine (well done!), we recommend writing a short review of the book that your little reader was especially impressed with. Ask the pumpkin to share what they really liked about the story, what they didn’t like, and whether they would recommend it to their pals. The point here is that by writing a review on a book, children learn to think critically and sum up any sort of information.
Mom-approved tips:
If you are a school teacher, do not hesitate to post the best reviews on a classroom bulletin board. If you are a proud parent running a blog, feel free to post your baby’s work.
Give Life to a New Character
As we’ve mentioned above, imagination is something that kids can truly boast of. Provide them with an opportunity to use one by asking them to design their own characters. Tell them they have all the freedom to give life to a character of any nature, from a supernatural creature from the pink planet to a mere mortal school student who finds out that his parents are secret agents. When they’re done, ask them to write a brief story to describe the character. What does s/he like? Do they have hobbies? Friends? Supernatural powers? Talents? Any sort of adventure should be included. As a result, little creators will learn what descriptive writing is and how to deal with different concepts of personality.
Mom-approved tips:
To help them move past the dead point, you are welcome to give them character templates or drawing sheets.
Organize Storytelling in a Group
If you have two or more kids, engage them in a group story writing. For instance, you can ask one kid to start a story (as for the topic, only their imagination is the limit!), and then the others will continue this creative process. They will write it and then read it out loud. It is a very simple strategy to hone kids’ prose, build teamwork, and storytelling skills.
Mom-approved tips:
Choose funny stories – reading them aloud in a group is hilarious!
Try Mad Libs
If your kids have never tried it, it’s time! Provide them with detailed instructions on how to deal with Mad Libs. We recommend giving them printed Mad Libs samples so that the process is 100% clear for them.
Mom-approved tips:
If children do not have an understanding of adjectives, verbs, and nouns, Mad Libs are a great tool to introduce all of those concepts.
Afterall
The variety of writing activities for children is pretty impressive. Whatever you go for, make sure to consider your kiddo’s interests and current level of prose. It is crucial to be encouraging no matter what and focus on their efforts instead of perfection (perfect is boring!). Besides, parents and caregivers should keep in mind that children love variety, so mixing expository, descriptive, and narrative writing is a must. Do not forget to link your writing tasks with what your honey is fond of the most – dolls, sports, superheroes, t-rex, animals, and so on. Finally, what is the key to success? Celebrating their hard work! When they are done with the creative process, they will come to you to proudly display their stories. Your task is to tell them how honored you are and share their masterpieces with the rest of the family.
