Mom on a Mission: Write on! – Using props to stimulate creative writing (and thinking)

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Write on! – Using props to stimulate creative writing (and thinking)

I have the privilege of teaching a creative writing mini camp this week to first through third graders. The kids are having fun and it is a great experience for me. There are a wide range of levels that make up the class.

Some of the kids read well, others are just learning and one group prefers to act out their stories. All of them worked together in their individual groups. Their teachers would be happy to know they are retaining the information they learn in school. I asked the kids “What three things should all stories have?”

One girl waved her hand excitedly, and when I called on her she said, “A beginning, middle and an end.” It was my turn for untamed excitement, “YES.” Since we were off to a good start, I jumped right into the lesson. We discussed the tools that are needed to make a silly story (our topic for that day)…characters, plot, exaggeration, etc.

On the first day the kids decorated masks and used them as a character in their story. These were the same masks that my kids had fun playing with in the store before I purchased them (the photos from my last blog).

The next day the kids made paper bag puppets. I wasn’t sure if this age group still liked simplistic crafts such as this, but had a blast. In addition to the puppets, each group had a set of guidelines they had to following creating their stories.

Each group was given a different setting, plot, and character to use in their story. For example:

Setting – a dark cave
Character – a queen
Plot – character is going to meet friends

Toward the end of each class session, the groups read and/or acted out their story. Take a look at the photos from our second day of class (Parkridge Community Center).