The Write Start (21 page)

Variations

For Scribblers:
When your pre-writer does something especially inventive (like using your lint brush to clean up little pieces of dried play dough from the floor), take a picture, date it, and tuck it into a mini album that you can look at together. This will help them get the idea that bright ideas are just begging to be recorded.

For Spellers:
Show emerging writers how to draw pictures of their bright ideas, and then label their drawings with arrows and a few words.

For Storytellers:
Every inventor wants to be the one to design a better mousetrap. Explain this concept to your Storyteller, see what kind of mousetrap they can come up with, and encourage them to describe their ideas in their logbook.

For Scholars:
Scholars may be inspired to design a robot to solve a problem, a widget that makes life easier, or a new and improved version of a familiar gadget. Encourage any and all inventive ideas, and remind them to pull out their logbooks when inspiration strikes. Tell them it’s the perfect spot for all of their plans, diagrams, specifications, and instructions.

27

Show-Me-the-Money Ledger

I
N ANCIENT TIMES,
before the first alphabet was devised, some basic writing systems existed to communicate about one subject in particular: money. You see, even before we had methods of writing our words, we had methods of writing our monetary transactions. First things first, I guess.

Money is serious business, essential to the daily operations of civilized societies. And believe it or not, kids really get this. They understand that the coins in their piggy banks serve a purpose and that it’s important to keep track of them. And while they might not be trading their money for a couple of camels and a barrel of grain any time soon, a new toy may be hanging in the balance. (The piggy-bank balance, that is.)

 

M
ATERIALS

 

∗
blank ledger book

∗
pencil

∗
piggy bank (optional)

∗
money

∗
calculator

 

H
OW-TO

 

1.  Encourage your children to note financial transactions and goals in their ledger, such as receiving money, spending it, saving for a toy, gifts, or allowance.

2.  Show your child how to use the preprinted guidelines in the ledger to line up their writing both horizontally and vertically, making mathematical calculation both easier and more accurate.

 

Variations

For Scribblers:
Pre-writers can begin to learn about money (and work on fine-motor coordination) by doing some simple sorting (making piles of pennies, nickels, quarters, and so on) and counting (e.g., How many pennies do you have?). (Note: for the over-three crowd only, please; coins can be a choking hazard.)

For Spellers:
Emerging writers have the ability to count their money, write amounts in their ledger, and perform simple calculations using a calculator.

For Storytellers:
Storytellers can include some more information in their ledger about financial goals (saving for a trip to the movies? looking to buy a new toy?).

For Scholars:
Entrepreneurial Scholars can actually come up with some ideas to earn money via a small business. Their ledgers will be invaluable to ventures such as creating a lemonade stand, selling handmade goods, or hosting a bake sale.

28

Telephone Messages

H
AVE VOICE MAIL,
answering machines, and caller ID rendered the good, old-fashioned phone message obsolete? Are message memo pads going the way of the rotary phone? Let’s hope not!

There’s a certain skill involved in relating a phone message. Do you remember playing Telephone, the game, as a kid? One person whispered a message in the ear of the person next to him, and so on and so on, down the line, until the last person announced what she heard. Chances are, by the time it reached the end of the line, the final message bore little resemblance to the original. When kids are challenged to transcribe a phone call, they learn to focus on the most relevant information while filtering out the extraneous stuff. Young writers need to master this kind of information processing to prepare themselves for the rigors of note taking at school, and in life. The more they get to do it, the less that gets lost in translation. Get the message?

 

M
ATERIALS

 

∗
memo pad, a stack of phone message slips (see “
Phone Message Slip
” in the templates section), or a fancy phone message book (available at office supply stores)

∗
pencil

 

H
OW-TO

 

1.  Teach children how to answer the phone and ask relevant questions such as, “May I ask who is calling?” and “May I take a message?”

2.  Place a phone message pad alongside a centrally located phone or cordless docking station.

3.  Establish a place to leave phone messages where family members can easily find them.

 

Variations

For Scribblers:
Little ones can practice their skills by playing messenger. Have them communicate simple messages from one family member to another (such as, “Please tell your brother that Charlie is coming over to play”). When they can remember one-part messages, challenge them with two-part messages (such as, “Tell him we’re having spaghetti for dinner, and it will be ready in ten minutes”). All this practice using their working memory will come in handy when it comes time for writing.

For Spellers:
Emerging writers can prepare for real-live message taking by practicing with their pretend phones (or some old cell phones you have saved for play) and a small memo pad. For example, you might ask them to write down the Little League coach’s phone number or take a message for Daddy reminding him to fix the leaky sink when he gets home from work.

For Storytellers:
Storytellers are ready for some serious lessons (and lots of practice) in phone etiquette. They need to master the give-and-take of conversation in order to listen to and transcribe someone else’s words, in between sharing their own little stories.

For Scholars:
Your Scholars probably have enough skills by now to run their own switchboard! Take advantage of the opportunity to say, “Hold all my calls!” when you need a break from answering the phone yourself.

29

Autograph Book

S
ORRY,
I
COULDN’T HELP IT.
The very thought of passing an autograph book around on a momentous occasion makes me all nostalgic.

Not just to be reserved for celebrity signatures, autograph books are a wonderful, writing-filled way to commemorate a milestone. Circulate one at a special event, and everyone can get a chance to write their best wishes, funny quips, and favorite memories. After everyone has signed, the books become keepsakes to cherish. When they’re full, sequester them in a safe spot. You and your children will love pulling them out at a later date and poring through all the entries.

 

M
ATERIALS

 

∗
store-bought or handmade autograph book

∗
pencil

 

H
OW-TO

 

Celebrate special occasions by circulating an autograph book and asking everyone to write something special inside. Your children will learn to express their own thoughts by following the example of family and friends. This can become a lovely ritual that may result in some really special written keepsakes.