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Picnic Table Talk: Writing

I come from a family that enjoys writing. Our love of writing comes primarily from my father, who writes poetry and the occasional story in his (very sparse given his ten children and demanding job) free time. My mother also deserves credit, however – she is the letter writer in the family. She doesn’t write frequently (she does, after all, have the demanding job of mother of ten children – two still at home), but the letters she writes are always long and detailed.

I type more than I write by hand. I enjoy writing with a fountain pen, thanks to intensive handwriting education in French public schools. I type very quickly, but sometimes it’s good to have the extra reflecting time given by my penmanship.

I have done very little to teach my children penmanship. Johnny is too young (he does draw circles, which is pretty good for a 20-month-old). Emma has printing sheets, but she’s a perfectionist who only draws the letters she is certain she can get perfectly. I’m fine with that for now. She writes a very nice T, E, L, I, and U, as well as the occasional M and A when she is feeling adventurous.

I hope my children grow to love writing also, and I think there is a lot that can be done in early childhood to foster a love of writing. A few things I remember and try to practice as a parent from my own childhood:

  • Read aloud, a lot.
  • Write yourself, and let children hear what you have written.
  • Write down stories your children tell you before they are old enough to write them themselves.
  • Keep a journal and encourage your children to do so also. I’ve kept a journal for most of my life (every single day since September 27, 2003), and all three of my children have journals. Emma and Johnny scribble and draw in theirs as I did in my first journal as a child, and I’m sure Lily will be doing the same soon. I write occasional journal entries in my children’s journals to get them started with a record of their lives as well.
  • Sing songs – often overlooked, this is a great way for children to learn about rhyming and the rhythm of language.
  • Write simple stories and have your children use them to practice their penmanship once they are reading. My children are too young for this currently, but I remember my mother doing it with me, and it made penmanship practice much more interesting.

MaryAnne is a craft loving educator, musician, photographer, and writer who lives in Silicon Valley with her husband Mike and their four children.

12 thoughts on “Picnic Table Talk: Writing”

  1. Great suggestions. I read in front of sunnyboy a lot but hadn't really thought of the importance of writing in front of him too. Maybe I should start to write a journal. Sunnyboy does like to write his own shopping list (scribbles) when I write my shopping list.

  2. I agree that reading is so important! I also like what you said about writing ourselves! My husband is writing a children's book series and we hope to publish them someday! I love that he gets excited to read the to the kids. Great post! *Ü*

  3. I do all those things well not the journal anymore… It is so important to encourage children to learn and express themselves… In fact we sometimes sing song sentences to practice rhyming with Wee Man.. He has gotten very good at it…

  4. Valerie @ Frugal Family Fun Blog

    I love writing with a fountain pen too! So much more fun than a ball point pen. You have great tips here to get kids ready for writing!

  5. I'm so horrid at journaling, I know about the many benefits, but…..
    Thanks for reminding me about songs.

  6. Katie, Kevin and kids

    I agree that reading to our kids is probably the best thing we can do to encourage them to be writers some day.
    I'd love to see your beautiful penmanship sometime!

  7. This is wonderful, and perfect for us right now. I love your suggestions for helping children see how wonderful reading and writing really are.

  8. Raising a Happy Child

    Great post! Like with everything else, personal example goes so much further than imploring our children to do what we say. I need to get better writing in front of Anna – she always wants to do the same then.

  9. I'm exploring this question in our house right now; in fact I just posted about it on my blog.

    I like how you're including holistic approaches to "writing" as well as setting an example by journaling. I think observation goes a far and long way in influencing our children's habits (from writing to behavioral . . .)

  10. Penmanship is so underrated! My husband can't even read cursive, so I have to read his grandmother's letters to him. It's sad to see what the school system leaves out as we grow older.

    My handwriting is terrible, so I suppose I really have no right to complain.

  11. I love the journaling idea and also writing down the kids stories before they can write. Thanks! I am amazed your keeping up with your blogging! Make sure to rest!!!

  12. It sounds like you have wonderful parents and a childhood full of fond memories–I hope to give this to my children too.

    You are doing such a good job of giving your children memories full of love and learning and I learn alot from you and the ideas you share.

    I need to do better about writing down the stories Joe so often tells–thank you for this reminder.

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