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Helping your Children with Their Writing
Plan for the Workshop What writers do and need What to look for in children s writing What to talk about with your children Spelling, grammar and punctuation Writing and computers
What Writers Do Plan what they want to say or accomplish with their writing Think about the best type of writing for their purpose and audience Write, read and think about what they have written, revise, and edit
What Writers Need Some choice of topic, audience, and genre to feel a sense of commitment Opportunities and resources to find information about the topic Quiet, unhurried time to think about what they want to say Time to write Opportunities to talk to others about their writing
What to Look For in Children s s Writing It s clear that the writer has something to say There s a sense of the writer s own style/personality/way of thinking in the writing
What to Look For in Children s s Writing The writer: says something using enough details organizes ideas so readers can follow them uses words and phrases, and a variety of sentence structures that keep readers interested uses spelling, punctuation and grammar that readers recognize.
Craig s Story (Grade 8) Mechanical Advantage Haunts You Jim was a very lazy and ignorant kid. Who needs mechanical advantage! he would always say. Of course, this always made his life harder, especially since he wasn t that strong himself. Soon he began to forget what mechanical advantage really was, and was simply lost in a world of hard work. He couldn t keep up with it, and his laziness only made matters worse. It seemed that there was no hope left for this poor soul. Fortunately for him, though, he was being watched. And hope would come sooner than he thought. One night he fell asleep, but right after he fell asleep, he found himself sitting on his bed. Ah, this is one odd dream, he said to himself. He turned around to see him or what seemed to be his body sleeping on his bed.
OK, this is getting weird, he said. It would soon get weirder, for a shadowy figure emerged out of nowhere. Jim couldn t help letting out a high, girlish cry for help. SILENCE! said the figure. I, the Ghost of Pulleys have appeared before you today to teach you a lesson. I am one of the three Ghosts of Mechanical Advantage. You have been very foolish lately, being ignorant about the power of mechanical advantage! Prepare to be educated! Jim was quickly sucked into what seemed to be... a science classroom? There, standing in front of him was the Ghost of Pulleys. Now, it is time for your enlightenment. The pulley can greatly help you by reducing the force needed to lift an object, Jim slowly, but surely began to understand how helpful pulleys were: moveable pulleys, fixed pulleys, double pulleys, the works. So, the more sections of rope I have, the easier it is to lift? Jim asked. Of course, replied the ghost.
After an adequate lesson with the Ghost of Pulleys, Jim was sent to the next ghost. A swirling vortex opened up before him and he jumped in. Whoosh! Jim landed in a playground where he saw a see-saw in the middle, and a bunch of other things lying around, such as a hockey stick, a pair of shears, a hammer, and a crowbar. Alas, the uneducated mortal has arrived, sounded a booming voice. Let me guess, Jim replied, The Ghost of Levers. The ghost was very pleased, Ah, that gets a lot of things out of the way. Now, it is time for your enlightenment. Jim was told about Class 1, Class 2 and Class 3 levers, as well as how you can find them in real life. Yes, levers can help you greatly when used correctly. Now for your final destination. The vortex appeared before Jim again and he jumped in, wondering what was next. Tick-Tock, Tick-Tock, Tick-Tock. Where am I?? Jim said in exasperation. His surroundings were quite different from the last two. First the classroom, then the playground, but now... inside a clock tower? There were gears everywhere, all kinds of gears, all working together to make the clock precisely accurate. Suddenly, a shadowy figure leaped out from behind one of the gears.
Howdy there, partner! You ready for some gear education? Sure, I m guessing the gear ghost, right? replied Jim. Right you are, said the ghost. The ghost quickly launched him to the top of the tower and proceeded to explain all about gears: driver gears, follower gears, even rack and pinion gears. At the end of his lesson with the gear ghost, a vortex appeared and sucked him in without warning. After a couple of seconds, he was quickly sent to his room, and returned to the position he was in before on the bed. In front of him were the three ghosts. The Ghost of Pulleys stepped forward, took a deep breath and said, Use the knowledge you have just learned to assist you in daily life. Then the Ghost of Levers stepped forward and said, Do not forget what we have taught you. And finally the Ghost of Gears stepped forward and said, I reckon we could do this again sometime. We ll be here if you re ever in need. The three ghosts quickly huddled together and before you could say mechanical advantage, they disappeared. Jim sighed and then climbed into his bed. Wow, he said, I really need to lay off the junk food.
Cristina s Report (Grade 5) Soil Erosion and How to Avoid It Don t take soil for granted. It will not always be under your feet if you allow wind and rain to let it erode. Whenever it rains. The raindrops move soil. Whenever it is windy. The wind picks up the soil and moves it. People make soil erode faster by doing certain things. When farmers allow cows sheep and horses to eat the grass down to the dirt, or when they plow the soil to much so its like powder. They make soil erosion happen faster. People who cut down all the trees on a hill make the soil looser so it will erode faster. Once soil is gone, plants have nothing to grow in.
We don t have to let that happen. Soil erosion can be prevented by planting trees to make wind breaks and by leaving grass strips between plots of land that have been ploughed. Plants and trees prevent soil erosion. They slow down rain water so that it soaks into the ground rather than pushing the soil along. The roots also hold the soil down so it cant be washed away. Think about soil erosion whenever you dig up plants or trees or whenever you dig in the dirt. If you let the wind and rain wash all the soil away, what will be left of your backyard? (Unedited version)
Talking With Your Children About their Writing: Global Questions What do you want to say in your writing? What part of your writing are you most proud of? What part of your writing do you think needs improvement?
Talking With Your Children About their Writing: Starting Points Here s what you re saying to me in your writing: Here s what I think are the best parts of your writing: Here s what I think are the parts that could be improved:
Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar: Helping Your Children Ask your child to read the piece of writing aloud. Instead of correcting every error for your child, look for types of errors that your child makes. Ask your child to find and correct other errors of that type. Using spelling checkers effectively
Most Commonly Confused Homonyms to too two there their they re its it s through threw no know hours ours wood would herd heard In addition, where and were are often confused, as are of and off.
Computers and Writing Influence of Instant Messaging on children s spelling, punctuation and grammar Acknowledging sources Determining the accuracy of website information
Evaluating Websites Parents and their children might look for: the name of the website s author and publisher and the author s credentials contact information for the website s author the purpose and sponsors of the website who is advertising on the website, if there are advertisements evidence that the author has consulted a number of sources to find the information posted on the website links that are working and that lead to other authoritative websites current dates when the information was updated