Kids want to write before they can read. It begins with putting crayon or pencil to paper to scribble. It’s a way of communicating and there are loads of ideas for encouraging this. And since homeschooling is flexible, any of these can be incorporated into a curriculum.
Newspaper or magazine headlines are a great place for conjuring up creative story writing ideas. Simply ask the children to make up a story that goes with the headline. Or, use photos from magazines and ask your kids to write a story about them. Who are the people and what are they doing? What are their lives like?
Starting a diary or journal is a great way for young kids to hone their writing skills and they love it because they write about experiences they have had. Make sure they’re just not recanting what they did over the weekend. Instead, go into detail about their experiences. What they thought about what they did and how it made them feel. Who were they with? In other words, each journal entry should be a story in itself!
People watching is a great way to get story ideas. When you’re out at the grocery store or at a restaurant and you see someone or something interesting, make a few quick notes about them. Every story begins with characters and kids are great at imagining where these characters can go!
Kids love movies and seem to have lots to say after watching them. So, why not write a critique afterward. What they liked and didn’t like. What they’d do differently. Critique the characters. You never know…their movie review might just turn into a different story altogether!
“Not a lot of things can make writing fun,” said a kid on our game development team for STORY CRAZE. It’s a great activity because it unplugs children and challenges them to stretch their imaginations by finding ways to create stories from random ideas.
