Tips to Help Your Child Write BetterWriting is a skill that crosses spheres of learning. Reading and writing are essential skills for life. Here are strategies for helping your child become a better writer:
Talk about how much you write in your daily life: emails, memos, letters, text messages. There are so many opportunities for writing in the real world. Show your child how you review an email and make changes to improve it before sending. Show your child how revision is necessary in life. Revision is just part of life. Help your child see revision in her own life. For example, she might try on an outfit, take a step back, see what can be improved, and then add some accessories. Let your child know that every occupation requires writing. Doctors write. Artists write. Athletes write. Look for examples everywhere you go of people writing as part of their professional lives. Encourage adults in your child’s life to point out examples of writing and revision. Encourage your child to write letters. Not the electronic kind but old-school, handwritten letters. Whether she writes to a grandparent or a pen pal in another state or country, she’ll gain valuable practice expressing herself through words. . Emphasize reading and writing as two of life’s great pleasures that go together. Writing shouldn’t be held in isolation. Give your child opportunities to showcase his writing. Find a way to display your child’s writing at home. Read your child’s writing and comment on it. Take time to praise your child’s writing, even if it’s a routine assignment that comes home in the backpack. Praise your child to other adults. Let your child hear you brag on their writing to a grandparent on the phone. Kids will want to repeat their behavior when bragged on. Read More... |
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