Tip #169 from 365 Teacher Secrets for Parents: Writing about Reading

Today's tip for parents from two talented teachers comes from 365 Teacher Secrets for Parents by Cindy McKinley Alder and Patti Trombly.

#169

Writing About Reading

Opportunities multiply as they are seized.
~Sun Tzu

The more your child reads, the better reader he becomes. The more your child writes, the better writer he becomes. Since the two go hand in hand, the more he reads, the better writer he will become, too, and vise versus.

Another way to increase informational writing skills in a motivational way is to begin with your child’s growing love of reading. If he is reading something informational, encourage him to write a short paragraph about it. (Idea #158 discusses summarizing hints). He could create a poster about it, illustrating various points, and then write captions for them. The ideas are endless.

If he is reading a fiction book or picture book, try something fun like challenging him to write a journal entry (sometimes called a reading response journal), pretending to be one of the characters in the story. What would that character write about tonight before going to bed? What would she be thinking, feeling, doing, or hoping? If the story is long, such as in a chapter book, try having him do this once after each chapter. See how the entries change after new events have occurred. If you are reading a book together during shared reading time, maybe you could take turns writing entries (buddy writing) so that you can model the thinking strategies as well as the writing.

Cindy McKinley Alder Patti Trombly

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