Creative writing is such an amazing educational tool for children, but many people struggle to get their kids engaged with it. Creative writing is so beneficial because it improves reading and writing skills but it can also be used to benefit other areas of education. For example, why not make history more exciting by encouraging your kids to write stories about different historical periods? Finding ways to help your child develop their creative abilities will benefit them in so many ways, which is why creative writing is so effective. If you want to do more creative writing with your kids, here are a few tips to help you get them engaged with it.
Start With Simple Exercises
Challenging your kids to write a story straight away can be quite daunting for them and they might not have a clue where to start. That’s why it’s best to start out with some simple exercises. Group storytelling is a great way to get the creative juices flowing and encourage your kids to improvise. Start by telling the first line of a story and then pass on to the next person. You each come up with a single line of the story and see how it develops. Bouncing ideas off one another is a brilliant way to get things moving and they only have to come up with a single line, so it’s a lot more manageable. Having them describe simple things like their morning routine or a family day out is a simple way to get them into a storytelling mindset as well. Once you have warmed up with these exercises, you can move onto creating longer stories. If you are stuck for ideas, check out https://www.imagineforest.com/blog/creative-writing-exercises/ for some brilliant writing exercises for kids.
Use Writing Worksheets
There are some great writing worksheets out there that are filled with story ideas, brainstorming sheets and great tools to help structure a story. Visit https://studentreasures.com/teachers-lounge/lesson-plans/second-grade/ to download some of these great worksheets and use them as a way to structure and guide your creative writing sessions. Although it’s important for them to let their imagination run wild, these worksheets are a great way to give direction to kids that are new to creative writing.
Get Inspired
When your kids are a bit more comfortable with creative writing and they are starting to write their own stories, you need to help them get inspired. Reading a lot is important but you should also get outside and explore. Spending time in nature is a great way for the family to stay fit, and it’s a brilliant way to find inspiration for exciting stories. You can also find inspiration in places like museums and art galleries as well.
Read Out Loud
When your kids have written some great stories, you should spend some time reading them out to each other. Reading out their stories will help them to build confidence and it’s also a good way to help them find areas for improvement. Just remember that it’s supposed to be fun and you need to make sure that your kids are not too critical of themselves.
If you can encourage your kids to engage with creative writing, it will benefit their education in so many ways and it’s a brilliant creative outlet for them as they get older.