Creative Writing

So your students are fussing! It is that time of day when they are asked to take out their notebooks to begin the Creative Writing session. They sigh! They complain! They are not at all in the mood for this! You are trying what you can to bring out the creative side of them, but they can be so discouraging!

So what can we do in cases like these? Well, for starters you can think of ways to bring joy and laughter, fun and enjoyment to their writing experience.

Over the years I have brought fun and enjoyment to the Creative Writing period. My current first grade class look forward to writing simply because I encourage them to do lots and lots of drawings together with writing. By doing this the weakest writers would still get an opportunity to express themselves through their art.

Another way to encourage your reluctant writers is to use a variety of brainstorming strategies to set the tone and pace for writing. This includes such activities as using graphic organizers, telling a story and using story prompts to stimulate discussion.

The following are a list of writing approaches which I have used to get students to stay on task:

Six Traits +1 Writing
The Writing Process
Writer's Workshop

Six Traits+1 Writing -This approach to writing consists of seven areas of focus:

Idea and Content
Organization
Word Choice
Voice
Sentence Fluency
Conventions
Presentation

Here are some ideas for your classroom charts.

Writing posters