Many children do not like to write, for one reason or another. It may be difficult for them to control the movement of the pencil on the paper, or maybe they cannot come up with anything to write about. The ability to write clearly and legibly is important and parents and teachers need to provide additional help for these children to learn. A great way to help improve a child's writing skills is to have them keep a simple journal. This can begin as soon as a child can hold a pencil in one hand.
Picture Journals for Young Children
Young children who do not know their letters cannot write words or sentences but they can draw pictures. A class of preschoolers got excited one day because they "wrote" a Cinderella story. Parents had a simple folded picture book thrust into their hands and each child read his or her story to smiling parents. The pictures were rudimentary and in some cases unrecognizable, but it was their story.
This is where writing begins, one person expressing a thought or an idea on paper. Encouraging children to keep a journal even at this young age can help prevent negative feelings towards writing in the future.
Words and Picture Journals for Children
As children learn their letters, encourage them to add first individual letters and later simple words they know to their picture journal. This may start simply by signing their name at the bottom of each page, or having a string of C’s and O’s written across the pages.
When children start asking how to spell words, use the opportunity to reinforce letter sounds. Ask them what sound it starts with, and help them sound out the word. Alternatively tell them to simply “write what it sounds like”. This is called inventive spelling, and as they learn more phonetic rules, they will learn the correct spelling rules for words.
When the children can write numbers, show them how to write the date. Use the calendar to demonstrate how to find out the date. Allow them to copy this information from a written example first, then as they better understand the concept, they can copy off of the calendar itself.
Encourage Children to Keep a Daily Journal
The more letters a child knows, the more he can be expected to write in his journal. When an older child asks how to spell a word, use the opportunity to reinforce the skill of looking up a word in the dictionary. The more often a child uses the dictionary, the better the child’s reference skills will become. If you are a bad speller yourself, deferring to a dictionary is an excellent way to hide the fact that you may not remember how to spell the word.
If you have a reluctant writer, tell him that he can write anything he wishes, and that no one will read it - and then stick to it! Leave the journal alone unless the child asks you to read it. The important thing at this point is to get the child writing. It truly doesn't matter what he is writing.
Related Information:
Learn more information on teaching children how to write.
How to Improve a Child's Handwriting - Tips for problem solving a child with poor handwriting.
How to Write with the Left Hand - Learn how to help a child write properly with the left hand.
Jennifer Wagaman - Jennifer is a mother of 2 and has both public, private and administrative experience in the education field.
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