Helpful Habits for Writing Well #1: Creating a Literate Environment
When you think about all that’s involved in teaching a child to write well, it can be overwhelming!! The subjects handwriting, punctuation, spelling, grammar, and vocabulary are just the start. They need to learn the challenging skill of expressing their thoughts clearly in written form. Add to the list the writing process, writing styles… writing a research paper, writing to persuade, writing personal letters… it can feel like a lot! Here is the first of four Helpful Habits for Writing Well #1: Creating a Literate Environment.
How can we teach our kids to communicate effectively?
There are many excellent writing curriculums out there, but I have also found that there are simple writing HABITS that can be used regularly to cover a lot of ground.
Kind of like a multi-vitamin or an all-in-one.
In fact, I have observed so many positive results from these HABITS in my own kids that they HAVE BECOME our main writing curriculum!
Four Habits for Writing Well
For a general overview, begin by reading A Simple Step-By-Step Guide to Homeschool Writing.
- Creating a literate environment- Reading quality literature of many genres, memorizing, and engaging in conversations.
- Copywork- Copying the best pieces from great authors.
- Narration- Reading or hearing a short story, verse, concept, or idea and expressing it back to someone in your own (first oral, then written) words.
- Notebooking– Journaling as a regular habit for life.
Helpful Habits for Writing Well #1: Creating a Literate Environment
How can you express something that you don’t possess?
Children should have a vast mental “library” of written ideas before they will be able to clearly express their thoughts in written word. I wrote more on this concept in the post Teaching a Child To Read With Two Important Habits.
Every child should be read to-A LOT! This can happen in small, scattered moments throughout the day, but it should be lathered frequently with pleasure.
We should be reading aloud to our children….A LOT!
In addition, as soon as they begin reading on their own, we should provide for them a quiet space and quality literature on which they can feast their imaginations.
This is giving them a bank, if you will, from which to draw as they attempt to form their own ideas about the world around them.
Ideas for Creating a Literate Environment
Here are some ideas to help cultivate a literate environment for your children.
- Read a variety of fiction to them including fantasy, historical fiction, folk tales, mystery, etc.
- Read non-fiction to them. What subjects interest them? What do they ask about or spend a lot of time doing? Get books on these topics and look through them together.
- Read biographies. Stories of great men and women of history inspire them to do hard tasks, overcome challenges, and be different.
- Read poetry. I like to read poetry by poet. When I find a poet I like or that I think the kids will like, I read some of their best poems over and over. Poetry should be read more than once to fully appreciate the meanings behind each word.
- Memorize together. You can memorize Scripture, famous poems of history, historical documents like The Declaration of Independence or snippets from famous historical speeches. Try learning the planets, books of the Bible, Presidents of the US, states and capitols, planets, continents, oceans, and more!
- Engage in conversations that make them think. Ask them questions. When they ask the questions, on the other hand, use their curiosity as an opportunity to start conversations that help them express their thoughts and feelings clearly.
A child can only express what they possess. Give them a broad foundation of knowledge and experiences with oral and written language. This will be a great starting place for communicating their thoughts in oral and written form.
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More Resources
Are you looking for ideas to help your child write well? These are simple and effective HABITS that you can use to prepare your children to be fluent writers.
For more on this, see…
Helpful Habits for Writing Well # 2: Copying the Best Pieces from Great Authors.
AND Helpful Habits for Writing Well #3: Narration.
Also, Helpful Habits for Writing Well #4: Notebooking.
Sheri – you are completely spot on regarding the importance of reading to and with your children. I’m very passionate about this topic as reading and writing are some of my most enjoyable activities. My ten-year-old son and I have a weekday bedtime routine where we read from a book of his choice (for 20 minutes or so) before he goes to sleep. We both take turns reading, but I tend to do the majority of the reading since he’s in full relaxation mode by this time. My family and I also have him read a lot during our Bible studies to give him further practice in reading out loud. By having him read during our regular daily activities, his oral reading skills have improved tremendously. I think it’s absolutely a blessing that you’re able to homeschool your children. Your pictures show just how much they’re thriving in such a love-filled, learning environment. I’ll look forward to following along with you on your homeschooling journey.
Thank you for your kind words! Yes, it is a blessing to homeschool them and even with the hard days, I am so thankful I’ve had this opportunity. I love hearing stories like yours and what you are doing with your son. Reading together is a great memory maker!
Thank you for your advice! I’ve just stumble upon your blog and have been rereading these 3 writing posts. I’m a first-time homeschooling mom of 2 elementary kids and greatly appreciate the guidance.
My question on literacy is, without having a teaching background, how do I learn what are quality books of different genres? Our libraries have been closed for a while due to covid and allow only curb-side pick up. So, I am unable to search books. Would you be willing to please provide me a list of suggested quality books to read of different genres, including poetry?Grade2-4. I appreciate the lists you provided for copy work. That’s extremely helpful. Any suggestions on literature, books, curriculum, etc is greatly appreciated. Thank you so much!
Hi Heather! Somehow your comment escaped me, so I apologize for the delay!
I would encourage you to check out the various Mom Interviews on my blog since they each list their favorite books. Also, I covered this topic in this post below. https://ourlifehomeschooling.com/2020/09/02/teaching-a-child-to-read/
Another great go-to is amblesideonline.com.
If you are looking for books of various genres, I would suggest subscribing to or becoming a member of the Read Aloud Revival by Sarah Mackenzie. She regularly updates a book list by age/topic/genre and I have found it a lifeline over the years!
I hope that is helpful!