How to nurture your child’s writing.
Speaking and listening.
Our
children
communication
expression,
learn
about
first
through
facial
gesture
and
verbal
interactions. They continue to learn
about
and
primarily
understand
through
the
world
speaking
and
listening. During their junior school
years, children learn to express ideas
formally in writing, but they still need
to use talk extensively as a tool to help
them rehearse and organise their
ideas.
Good writing is a journey. From birth
Reading.
we are developing our children’s ability
How to nurture and support
your child’s writing.
to become writers.
Once children have learned to read
fluently, they are able to learn and
Fundamentally, writing is a written
understand about the world through
form of communication. Our children
learn
to
understand
the written word. They realise that
communication
they can communicate meaning through
from the earliest age and are usually
text. Reading not only feeds children’s
highly skilled communicators in other
imaginations
areas before they are good writers.
and
broadens
their
vocabulary; it also familiarises them
Transferring and adapting those other
with
communication skills to writing is a
the
process.
organisation
We can nurture our children’s writing
language.
conventions
by understanding this process and by
sentence
structures,
and
punctuation
of
formal,
written
Writing.
supporting them as they develop their
skills.
Children
use
their
experience
of
speaking, listening and reading when
they write. The richer their resource
bank, the more ideas they will have
1.
when writing and the greater their
Encourage your child to write for
Read aloud to your child; alternate
Praise development of subtlety/ nuance
desire to write will be. There are lots
different purposes e.g. a shopping list,
reading pages of a book with your
of meaning, even if expressed clumsily.
of ways to nurture your child’s interest
an invitation, a recipe, and different
child; take on a character each and
Give children two or three options of
in writing, which will then support them
audiences e.g. younger children, same
read the dialogue together, maybe with
specific vocabulary, explain each and
when it is time for them to produce a
age, boys/girls, a grown up.
accents to bring the characters to life;
allow them to choose the word which
take a short chapter and turn it into a
most closely resembles what they were
play script – write it together, then let
trying
the children act it out as a mini
incorporate
performance for grown-ups.
conversation to embed it in their
written piece.
Use examples of different types of
General tips to nurture your child’s
real writing as models/templates for
writing.
your child to work from.
Model good communication and engage
Use settings as a starting point for
in good conversation with your child.
children to write their own story –
See this as building their resource
they often find it much easier to write
bank for writing.
once they have a context/ setting.
Ask them their opinion on things and
Can the children identify the basic
why they think that. This develops
structure of the book:
their ability to write from a viewpoint
hero/ heroine/ villain and why; how and
and create an ‘authorial voice’.
why do characters change during the
Talk about favourite authors when
they were children - imagine the
stories they might have liked to write
who is the
when they were children (the authors),
and
dialogue and begin to notice patterns
Encourage your child to see himself or
Write new words on paper and stick
them on a ‘wow word wall.’ Encourage
in the book and think about why the
mistakes,
author wants us to see events from
rewritten
sections,
different points of view.
talking
about
writing,
length have a great capacity for
poetry, because every word counts. It
opposites
doesn’t have to rhyme, or be in full
sentences. Distil meaning into a few
words.
and
synonyms. Extend sentences by asking
changed their mind etc.
children what they think and why they
Encourage your child to keep a journal
extended/ complex sentence.
think it, then say it back to them in an
for ideas – they don’t have to be whole
stories – J K Rowling kept a journal of
ideas for years before she finally
settled on Harry Potter.
2.
letter
children who are reluctant to write at
conversation. Generate new vocabulary
by
Encourage
script writing, report writing, journal
Visit websites of children's authors
that the authors would have made
handwriting,
writing.
writing, blogging and poetry. Some
Praise any use of new vocabulary in
funny
piece of writing.
happen next and why?
Draw attention to different viewpoints
had
children to use five wow words in each
Remember, prose is only one form of
authors as children, writing. Point out
stuck,
views
How does it make them feel and why?
and play games with characters etc.
got
new
more than the mechanics of reading.
within a chapter/ book.
herself as a writer – invoke famous
express
thinking that.
of the words. Make it an experience
Ask children to suggest what might
narrative
children
might be feeling this or she could be
Let your child engage with the meaning
he/she will be engrossed in it.
action/
to
into
tentatively using the conditional: he
resolved and is there anything which is
description,
word
the characters came to life.
Read a slightly easier book if it means
Gently draw attention to paragraphs of
Remember
new
Help
we learn; what is the problem/ how is it
Rowling.
the
were younger and why. Talk about how
Allow your child to get lost in a book.
e.g. Roald Dahl, Michael Morpurgo, J K
express.
vocabulary.
Talk about books you loved when you
story; what do they learn and what do
not resolved and why?
to
3.
BBC Bitesize has some useful activities
How
to support writing skills:
planning and writing a specific task:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/ks2/en
glish/spelling_grammar/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/ks2/en
to
support
your
child
with
‘Talk for Writing’.
Concentrate on meeting one or two
Children need to understand why they
make the entire composition perfect on
are writing: they need a purpose and an
the first draft.
the primary reason for writing is to
communicate ideas and meaning in an
http://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/ks2/en
organised way. Accuracy of spelling,
glish/reading/
grammar and punctuation is to make
meaning clearer. This helps the process
http://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/ks2/en
of composition to be less daunting.
glish/spelling_grammar/word_types/pl
ay/ Play this game, then ask your child
rehearse
can identify the nouns and verbs. Then
organisation
before
they
start writing. Build in a ‘Talk for
add adjectives to describe the nouns
Writing’
and adverbs to describe the verbs.
writing.
Talk about how much more interesting
and precise the sentence has become.
time,
before
they
start
Then try to extend the sentence, using
attention to any confusion and discuss
Before the final paragraph/ ending,
Have a short break if necessary.
Proofread
Move from the brainstorm to a spider
together.
errors.
as a basic order for ideas.
Give lots of praise for finishing the
task.
introductory
Give the piece of work to someone else
in the family to read and praise (this
next and keep going while your child is
allow ideas to settle and might clarify
interested. Whenever they want to
thoughts.
through
writing
together and discuss/ correct spelling
Number the legs on the spider diagram
opening/
the
Discuss and insert missing punctuation
diagram, to help to order the ideas.
Have a break at this point. This will
read
afresh the best way to end.
Talk about the possible categories
adverbs. Then ask what might happen
enthusiastically
reread the work aloud and discuss
Begin with a brainstorm/discussion.
scene/ outlines the topic.
verbs, and then add adjectives and
stop,
how to make the meaning clearer.
sentence together which sets the
a connective. Again, identify nouns and
the
doesn’t quite make sense, gently draw
work, using talk.
an
during
makes sense, give lots of praise. If it
‘Rehearse’ organising ideas for written
Compose
intervals
far aloud and check for sense. If it
which have arisen from the brainstorm.
Children need to generate ideas and
to write a simple sentence. See if they
regular
process, read the written work done so
agreed targets rather than trying to
audience. It helps if children know that
glish/writing/
At
This is a step by step approach…
what they’ve written and praise their
Go back to the spider diagram and talk
hard work.
through the first section. Generate
creates
an
immediate
audience
reaction and gives positive feedback).
three or four simple sentences, then
expand each and link together in a
logical sequence to form a paragraph.
Using linking words / connectives join
the first paragraph to the second.
Work through each point on the spider
diagram, building up a paragraph for
each
and
linking
the
paragraphs
We hope you find these ideas useful.
together.
4.
Above all, enjoy engaging with your
5.
child and know that they will value your
support.