The KidWrite Report
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Science Books!
I'm delighted to report that the science books I authored for kids in grades 1-4 are published!
What Kids are Reading
Kids today supposedly don't read. I'm sure there are kids out there who do nothing but play video games with every spare moment, but I haven't met those kids yet. The kids I meet are engaged in reading. They're also articulate about the books they like, as well as about the books they don't like.
Perennial favorites are the Magic Tree House series, the Wimpy Kid books, and the Stilton books. Star Wars and Pokemon books also ranked highly. There were also quite a few Dr. Seuss fans, and who can blame them?
We're going to pick a series and read from that series so that we can compare the characters and the stories. I want the kids to view reading as a social activity. Sure, it's something you can do on your own. It's also something can do with a friend. At the very least you can talk about what you've read and share your insights.
The best part is, it's a lifelong activity that you can take with you.
Strategies: Summer Terrarium
So the summer nature journal piqued your interest but you haven't found a good project yet? How about this soda bottle terrarium from the Kids Garden News site.
Need to see it to do it? Take a look at this video:
Strategies: Summer Nature Journal
Summer vacation is nearly here. If you're like most of us, you want to be sure your kids keep their writing skills sharp. A nature journal is just the thing to ensure they do without feeling like you're giving them homework during summer break. All you need is a nature project and a journal and you're good to go.
Step one is to get or make a nature journal. Any notebook or pad will do. Have your child decorate it so it feels like a "real" nature journal to him/her. You can get a small magnifying glass for closer examination of buds and leaves if you'd like. Maybe a special pencil and eraser that's just for the journal, too. Make it feel special and they'll view it that way, too.
Set aside the first few pages for use as a table of contents. Number the rest of the pages and use one block for lab notes, one block for drawings, one block for journal entries. Keep it organized so your child can find the necessary information when it's needed.
Why have pages for lab notes and drawings? Because it's good to be able to see the progress of their nature study in one place. If that isn't the way your child likes to work, have them include the lab notes and drawings in their daily entries, then write a recap entry at the end of each week to show how much has changed.
Stumped for an idea? Janice VanCleave has an excellent nature science fair project book that's filled with ideas. Use one of them or use her suggestions as the basis for some brainstorming of your own. It's hard to go wrong with a nature project!
Step one is to get or make a nature journal. Any notebook or pad will do. Have your child decorate it so it feels like a "real" nature journal to him/her. You can get a small magnifying glass for closer examination of buds and leaves if you'd like. Maybe a special pencil and eraser that's just for the journal, too. Make it feel special and they'll view it that way, too.
Set aside the first few pages for use as a table of contents. Number the rest of the pages and use one block for lab notes, one block for drawings, one block for journal entries. Keep it organized so your child can find the necessary information when it's needed.
Why have pages for lab notes and drawings? Because it's good to be able to see the progress of their nature study in one place. If that isn't the way your child likes to work, have them include the lab notes and drawings in their daily entries, then write a recap entry at the end of each week to show how much has changed.
Stumped for an idea? Janice VanCleave has an excellent nature science fair project book that's filled with ideas. Use one of them or use her suggestions as the basis for some brainstorming of your own. It's hard to go wrong with a nature project!
New Series by Rosemary Wells is iPad App
The digital book market for kids is heating up. The newest to enter is children's author and illustrator, Rosemary Wells. She's teamed with Auryn Inc. to produce an iPad app that is the first in a new series.
According to Publishers Weekly, this app features a new character by Wells. Bunny Fun: Head, Shoulder, Knees and Toes enables young readers to interact with the characters in an entirely new way.
According to the PW report, "Kids can listen to the song, sing along, make their own recording or learn to sing the song in one of four different languages."
I have no doubt this will be a huge hit with kids. It's also a terrific way to learn the basics of some new languages. In fact, it brings back memories of my college friends and I trying to teach an exchange student English while she taught us a bit of Farsi. The way we chose to do it? Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes!
Auryn has a number of other apps for kids. One of them, Teddy's Day, received the 2011 Appy Awardfor books. Several other of their apps have received highly favorable reviews from Kirkus.
Bunny Fun: Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes for the iPad is free from now until the 15th. Why not give it a try?
Strategies: Encouraging Voice to Help Your Child Become a Strong Writer
Writing is an essential skill for this generation. Email, texting, written reports ... A facility with language can only be a good thing. Since strong writing shares several traits, the good news is that even if writing isn't your thing, there are still many things you can do to help your child become a strong writer. We'll take them one at a time over the next several weeks.
One of the most important traits of good writing is VOICE. It's also the trait that tends to get children the most tangled up. Is voice his personality on the page? Is it the same for everything she writes? Is it the same as Point of View? How can a writer tell if her voice is strong? What can she do if it's not?
The best way to encourage a strong voice is to use examples. Ask your child to tell you what it's like to walk to the bus stop or the mailbox in the rain or snow. Then read her this wonderful book, Straight to the Pole
, and ask her which is more alive.
If you need another example, ask her to tell you about going to the grocery store or picking berries or apples. Read her Blueberries for Sal
and listen to the amazing voice.
, and ask her which is more alive.
If you need another example, ask her to tell you about going to the grocery store or picking berries or apples. Read her Blueberries for Sal
and listen to the amazing voice.
Once you and your child discover the magic behind a strong voice, you'll be able to identify voice in all types of writing. Why not make it a game to see how many strong voices you can find!
Strategies: Developing an Idea to Help Your Child Become a Strong Writer
Writing is an essential skill for this generation. Email, texting, written reports ... A facility with language can only be a good thing. Since strong writing shares several traits, the good news is that even if writing isn't your thing, there are still many things you can do to help your child become a strong writer. We'll take them one at a time over the next several weeks.
One important trait of good writing is a strong IDEA. Getting from a topic or general idea to a specific idea is not easy. As a writer, I find it one of the most difficult parts of getting started. It's not enough to know you'll write about dogs. A writer needs to know what about dogs it is they'll write about. Will it be about puppies, old age, the things a dog needs, the type of foods they eat, why they make good pets? Maybe it will be about pets in general, or cats, or kittens. Just because the first thought was to write about dogs doesn't mean a writer settles down to write about dogs.
You can help your child get better at this by helping him brainstorm. Brainstorming is a process where a person, or more than one person, comes up with all the possible associations a word or group of words has. The ideas can range all over the place. The key is to let the ideas come and follow where they go until the "aha!" moment is reached and the writer - your child - has a solid idea.
With a solid idea, strong writing is a snap!
Strategies: Using Word Choice to Help Your Child Become a Strong Writer
Writing is an essential skill for this generation. Email, texting, written reports ... A facility with language can only be a good thing. Since strong writing shares several traits, the good news is that even if writing isn't your thing, there are still many things you can do to help your child become a strong writer. We'll take them one at a time over the next several weeks.
One of the simplest traits of good writing is WORD CHOICE. The better your child's vocabulary, the more words they have at their disposal. Think of it like crayons for the color blue. You want your child to have more than one hue. You want her to be able to use navy blue, sky blue, indigo, azure... The more colors, the more nuance, the more powerful the writing will be.
With young kids, start by reading books like, Big Words for Little People
or Cookies: Bite-Size Life Lessons.
Be sure to talk about the words while you're at it.
or Cookies: Bite-Size Life Lessons. Be sure to talk about the words while you're at it.
Where to start with the older crowd? Explain that words are just containers for ideas and concepts. They get us close to what we mean but not all the way there. "Angry" is a good example. We can use "angry", "very angry," or "so angry I couldn't believe it." Wouldn't it be better to know words like "angry," "irate," or "furious"? Words that give us just the right shade of meaning?
A good thesaurus like the Scholastic Children's Thesaurus has synonyms and definitions. Pick a word and make a game out of using the synonyms. The more often you do this, the stronger your child's writing will become.
Technology and Dance!
This looks like a lot of fun! It's also another way to tell a story - with technology that makes sense to your kids!
Joe's Movement Emporium of Mt. Rainier is hosting Affectations, a piece commissioned by the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Art and created by Laura Schandelmeier & Stephen Clapp of Dance Box Theater.
Affectations combines the technology of controller free gaming with the kinesthetic movement of dance. "The movements of the dancers trigger a response by the controller and there are different triggers," said Charles Phaneuf, Managing Director of Joe's Movement Emporium. "A certain kind of action will trigger a specific graphic element. If you turn your arm 90 degrees suddenly, then you can trigger a different kind of graphic."
Put it all together and you have a piece that explores the full range of possibilities. "The movement is freeform and the idea is that the video
enhances and works with the idea of the piece," said Phaneuf. "It adds another layer that’s kind of a reflection of what they’re doing
in terms of movement.”
Check it out for yourself on Thu - Sat, Mar 10 - 12 at 8 pm; Sun, Mar 13 at 7 pm; and Thu - Sat, Mar 17 - 19 at 8pm; and Sun, Mar 20 at 7pm. Details and Tickets
Strategies: Using Organization to Help Your Child Become a Strong Writer
Writing is an essential skill for this generation. Email, texting, written reports ... A facility with language can only be a good thing. Since strong writing shares several traits, the good news is that even if writing isn't your thing, there are still many things you can do to help your child become a strong writer. We'll take them one at a time over the next several weeks.
One of the most important traits of good writing is the effective use of ORGANIZATION. Tell me a story that begins with one idea, hop to another and back again and you've lost me. You've told me a story that was impossible to follow because the organization was lacking. There was no beginning, middle and end. There was only a jumble of facts.
You can help your young child, up to grade 3 or so, with organization by having them tell you about their day from start to finish. Start with the morning, make your way through to lunch and on to dinner. Everything they need to know to tell you the story in step-by-step fashion has occurred in step-by-step fashion. That makes it easy because all your child needs to do is to tell you what actually happened that day.
Once he can do that easily, have him help you make up a story. You can begin by saying anything from, "Once there was a boy who wanted ice cream so he ...." Let your child fill in the next step. Once he's filled that in, ask him, "then what?" Continue in that way until he's told you an entire story.
The more often you do this, the more facile your child will become with putting events in order.
For older kids, ages nine and up, help them organize their thoughts by asking them to tell you about something they know about. It can be about a type of music, playing an instrument, ordering pizza. It doesn't matter what because the important thing is to give them practice with a strong lead (first sentence), body (details and examples), and conclusion (last sentence).
For instance, a well organized piece about pizza might be: "There are many types of pizza. Some has pepperoni. Some has sausage and peppers. Some even has pineapple. Some like only one type or another. I like them all."
Make it a game at dinner time. Play it as you're driving around on the weekend. Just keep it fun and pick topics that interest your child and you're good to go!
