So You Think Your Kid Can Write?

Probably second only to "Have you been published?", the most frequent comment is receive is "My child seems to be interested in making up stories/writing fairytales etc. How do I encourage this?"

Well, first thing's first. Talk to your kids about what they enjoy writing about. What sparks their imagination? Whatever that it is, encourage it. Feed it. And then, once it seems like they're ready for something else, suggest a few ideas of your own.

Chances are they'll want very little to do with what interested you when you were their age, but the rejection of your ideas could lead to their own avenues of exploration.

This would not be unusual. When I was in my teens, my dad came to me with a stack of his old books and told me I'd love them, given my own interests. He was probably right, but the very fact that the covers were done in the 50's and 60's was an instant turn-off.

I wanted to discover new worlds and ideas on my own, especially when I was just learning how string sentences together. Part of this is the result of wanting to be original.

If you've already experienced something, your kids are probably thinking that there's little left in it to explore. Plus, there's the added blah-factor of reading material suggested by their parents. It's like summer reading for school.

So what do you do? As I said, encourage them with things they're interested in, but do it on their turf. Writing, especially for kids, is a means of expression. It's their window out into the world where they can be themselves without fear of reprisal.

If your child comes to you with something they've written, read it. Don't laugh at what they write unless its supposed to be funny (or, if unintentionally funny, out of earshot). Young writers can be very sensitive, and you never want to give the impression that the 5 line poem they poured their heart into is trivial to you.

This doesn't mean that you have to pretend it's the most amazing piece of writing ever crafted by human hand. Kids can spot a fake reaction from a mile away. They know it's not award-worthy. But you can praise the good things they did without over-doing it. This also makes your real reactions to their work much more valuable.

You might even be surprised by the things they know or the insights they have. It will help you learn more about them and can lead to some truly wonderful experiences for both of you.

Getting kids writing early is also an amazing boost for their spelling and grammar skills. My spelling was terrible in grade school, but once I started writing stories it improved tremendously. It had to. Even with spellcheck these days, kids get tired of the computer telling them they did something wrong a thousand times, and they self-correct their language.

Additionally, as your children are taught the fundamentals of the English language in school, writing brings those lessons home in a way that homework simply can't.

So please, if your children show inclinations towards making stories and characters up, encourage them to write them out. It might seem a little boring to them at first, but you get them started, their pens (or word-processing programs) can become life-long companions.
Topics: Writing , Author , Creativity , Kids , Children and Writing