The Write Start (17 page)

Variations

For Scribblers:
Pre-writers love to fill blank books with, what else? Scribbles! And luckily, all that practice does them a world of good, developmentally speaking.

For Spellers:
Emerging writers enjoy making picture books, using drawings or stickers and familiar words.

For Storytellers:
Storytellers can fill book after book with bright ideas. Keep a stack at the ready!

For Scholars:
Scholars can incorporate elements of real books—such as a title page, a dedication, a table of contents, and an “about the author” page—into their handmade versions.

15

Command Central Message Board

S
OME DAYS IT SEEMS
as if managing the comings and goings and communications among family members is a job best suited to a highly trained specialist. Part flight commander and part operations engineer, the family manager has to coordinate a multitude of details. The good news is that the same system that works for the most technically advanced agencies also works in our humble homes. I’m talking about creating a command central.

Admittedly low-tech, my version of a good mission control center accomplishes two things: relaying messages and organizing important data. And the best part is, it’s so simple that your kids can easily get in on the act. Less micromanaging for you, and more organization for everyone on the team. Oh, and another bonus, there’s writing involved too. As they jot down reminders, important dates, or messages, they are making writing-to-remember a daily habit, one that will serve them quite well now
and
in the future.

 

M
ATERIALS

 

∗
legal-size clipboards (one for each member of the family)

∗
painter’s masking tape

∗
latex wall paint in a different shade for each family member (I use the little paint samples available in hardware stores; darker colors work better for this project)

∗
sanded tile grout (about one-half cup)

∗
paintbrush

∗
blank labels

∗
markers

∗
cup hooks

∗
chalk

 

H
OW-TO

 

1.  Cover the binder clip on each clipboard with painter’s tape.

2.  Create your own custom color chalkboard paint by mixing about one tablespoon of sanded tile grout into one-half cup of latex paint. Repeat for each paint color.

3.  Paint the board part of each clipboard with the chosen color. Let them dry thoroughly. Remove the painter’s tape when the paint is dry.

4.  Using blank labels and a marker, label the binder clip on each clipboard with a family member’s name.

5.  Hang the clipboards on a wall using cup hooks.

6.  Leave messages for each family member in chalk on his or her board. Use the binder clip to attach any related, time-sensitive items, like party invitations, event tickets, or driving directions.

 

Variations

For Scribblers:
Post Scribblers’ works of art and some notes alongside their clipboard so they know their spot and will be ready to use it when the time comes.

For Spellers:
Spellers are just learning to write little notes to family members. The clipboards provide a perfect way for them to distribute all of their correspondence.

For Storytellers:
Prolific Storytellers can post their schoolwork and stories at the end of the day for everyone to read and enjoy.

For Scholars:
Scholars are well equipped to use the message center to coordinate and communicate life’s daily details. For example, they can clip a permission slip to Mom’s board and write, “Field trip permission slip due Monday” (which Mom can then sign, clip on the Scholar’s board, and write, “Put in backpack; sounds like a great trip!”).

16

Say What? Writing Tablet

H
AVE YOU EVER LOOKED
at your kids and thought to yourself, “What on earth are they
thinking
?” or “What
will
they say next?” Well, ponder no more. Simply help them make a couple of these whimsical tablets, and all your questions will be answered. In writing.

Writing tablets, often used in schools, are a wonderful way for young children to practice writing and to express themselves. At home, we crafted more playful versions of this old-school tool, making one in the shape of a thought bubble and another in the shape of a speech bubble. We borrowed the idea from cartoons and modified it for our own (writing) purposes. And let me assure you, the result is nothing less than some very animated “discussions.” Hmmm. What
will
we think of next?

 

M
ATERIALS

 

∗
poster board

∗
scissors

∗
clear contact paper

∗
dry-erase markers

∗
paper towel or piece of cloth

 

H
OW-TO

 

1.  Cut a piece of poster board into a thought bubble or a speech bubble shape. (You can easily design your own shapes, or enlarge one of the “
Say What? Word and Thought Bubbles
” templates to the desired size with a copy machine, cut it out, and trace it onto poster board.)

2.  Cut a piece of clear contact paper to a size slightly larger than your bubble shape. Slowly peel off the paper backing, and then lay the contact paper, sticky side up, on a table. Carefully place the bubble shape face down onto the contact paper.

3.  Trim off excess contact paper by cutting around the edge of the bubble shape.

4.  Turn the shape over and smooth out any creases or bubbles.

5.  Now show your kids how to write on their bubbles with a dryerase marker and then erase their musings with a cloth or paper towel.

 

Variations

For Scribblers:
Do you remember Woodstock from the
Peanuts
cartoons? His speech bubble featured a series of dash-like lines that spoke volumes as to his state of mind. Pre-writers’ scribbles have the potential to express at least as much.

For Spellers:
I can just imagine the words that Spellers will come up with to crystallize their thought processes. To start with, they might use their thought bubble to respond to questions with a silently scrawled “Yes,” “ No,” or “Maybe.”

For Storytellers:
Bubbling over with ideas already, Storytellers will, most likely, be in a frenzy of writing, erasing, and more writing in order to get it all out.

For Scholars:
Scholars will realize that in addition to expressing themselves, they can also express the viewpoints of others (from their own perspective, of course). So watch out, they might try to put some words in your mouth!

17

Scoreboard

K
IDS TAKE WRITING WITH THEM,
no matter where they go. Even when they’re out in the backyard tossing around the ball, writing has a place. To make it official, help them create a backyard scoreboard to keep track of points, wins and losses, and other vital stats.

And while kids may not be writing tons of stuff on their scoreboard, this activity reinforces an important function of writing: keeping track. It helps kids get into the regular habit of pausing the action momentarily to make a note of something, however briefly. It establishes a connection between doing and writing, action and notation. And that’s a winning combination, in my book.

The way I see it, it’s not whether you win or lose, it’s how you
score
the game.

 

M
ATERIALS

 

∗
baking sheet

∗
chalkboard paint

∗
shovel

∗
one six-foot-long section of two-by-four lumber (available at hardware stores)

∗
drill or screw gun

∗
two 1¾-inch wood screws

∗
one twenty-inch piece of elastic

∗
old washcloth

∗
chalk

 

H
OW-TO

 

1.  Paint the baking sheet with chalkboard paint (two to three coats) as directed on the paint can. Allow the paint to dry thoroughly between coats.

2.  Select the spot for your scoreboard and dig a hole, two feet deep. Place the wood post in the hole; backfill dirt around the post, and compact it until it feels solid.

3.  Drill a small hole in the middle of the baking sheet one and a half inches down from the top, and another hole one and a half inches up from the bottom. Use these holes to screw the baking sheet to the post.

4.  Tie elastic tightly around one corner of the washcloth. Tie the other end of the elastic around the post, right below the bottom of the chalkboard. This (along with the rain) is the eraser for your scoreboard.

5.  Start keeping score!