Wow, I Wrote That!: Early Story Writing with Young Readers
by OneillT
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Children love stories, reading them, hearing them, telling them. Stories help children experiment with language while practicing their ability to both imagine and describe their world.
Before your child is ready to write themselves, but when they are old enough to read and listen to stories, combine their love of your stories with your literacy to help them create their own book. Dictating stories for your child is an excellent way to practice their Vocabulary and Narrative Skills, both identified as Key Early Literacy Skills.
Staple together a couple of pieces of paper with their favorite crayons and markers nearby. Ask your child to tell you a story, which you then write down onto the paper. Don't worry too much about editing, since it is important that the child see that the story is their writing from their words.
After you’ve written down their story, have the child illustrate their story. They may want to have some of their favorite books nearby, so that they can emulate the style of those works. Be ready to read for them bits of their story from each page so that they can more closely match the picture to the part of the story.
After the story has been illustrated, take the time to have one or both of you read the story aloud, giving extra attention to the accompanying artwork and allowing the child to further embellish and explain that artwork and their story.
When finished, make sure to keep your child’s work, to be used as both a reading resource and as a memory of their writing life.
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