Author: Shelley-Ann

From Reading to Writing

Even though definitions of literacy include reading and writing, most people focus on reading when they talk about improving literacy. Many literacy programs stop after getting participants reading and don’t move on to getting participants to express themselves beyond responding to what they’ve read.

It’s true that writing and reading are like two sides of the same coin, but it’s important to note that one focuses on receiving information while the other is about expressing ideas. So after reading is done, and the discussion is finished, it’s time to move on to the writing.

It’s true that when students do comprehension questions they have to write their responses, so technically it’s writing too, but creative writing is more than that. It’s about creating new content, sharing new ideas. And that’s the part that challenges many children.

So how do you move children from reading and understanding to expressing their own ideas?

Here are three suggestions.

1. Have the child compose their own story/article from the main idea of what they’ve read. For example, if they read an article about a famous person, talk to them about other famous people and have them write about someone they admire who is famous.

2. When reading, look at various aspects of how the writer presents ideas. Identify a few of these and have students practice them. For example, look at literary devices like metaphors, similes, and imagery, and have the child write a piece using the device highlighted.

3. Consider the vocabulary in the writing. After making sure the children understand the meaning of each word, have them select one of the words they find fascinating, different, or otherwise different (maybe they think the meaning is funny) and use that as a catalyst for creating a story.

There are other methods and options that you can try, but remember that your aim is to move beyond the content of the reading to the creation of new content.

Writing and Baking a Cake

I like to use hands-on experiences to teach these kinds of things. If you’re willing, you can use the opportunity of making a cake or any other multi-step recipe to teach the writing process. Making a cake is the easiest one, though, because changes in the order of the steps can affect the way the cake comes out. That’s an important concept when teaching the writing process.

PREWRITING

*Cake* First you have to decide what type of cake you want to make then gather and measure out your ingredients. It’s also helpful if you select a recipe to work with.

*Writing* When writing, you first have to come up with a topic to write on then brainstorm ideas. Selecting a recipe is like creating an outline. The format and structure would help you when you’re writing.

WRITING

*Cake* When making a cake, you need to mix the ingredients in a particular order in order to get a moist, fluffy end product. You also use utensils such as bowls, whisks, measuring spoons, and pans to get things just right.

*Writing* In writing, this can be likened to appropriate paragraphing, grammar, sentence structure and other mechanics that allow others to read your writing easily. Putting the information in the correct order (like the ingredients) also make for an end product that your readers will enjoy and benefit from.

EDITING

*Cake* Once the cake is cooled and trimmed, it’s ready. It’s already a good cake and can be eaten as is, but it will look nicer and be received better by audiences if it’s frosted. Before the final touches, the base frosting is done to even out the surface of the cake.

*Writing* It’s the same way editing affects writing. A piece might contain good details and well structured information, but then there are spelling errors and punctuation errors etc. that would make it less readable and less appealing to readers. Editing helps you remove all of that and makes writing easier to read.

REVISING

*Cake* Baking the cake and preparing for frosting are important steps in getting a great cake. The temperature and baking time make a difference in the quality of cake in the end. After baking and cooling, sometimes you’ll have to trim the edges in order to make the cake look its best.

*Writing* Content alone will not make great writing. You have to revise what was written to ensure that the information is presented in the right order and the right way for audiences. Sometimes, revising might mean moving things around, removing some things, or even adding things.

REWRITING

*Cake* Once the base is frosted, then the cake can be decorated and additional things added to make the cake look beautiful.

*Writing* Now you’re ready to present the final written piece. You must write it over to make it neat and presentable and blend in all the changes made during revising and editing. Readers will appreciate it.

ADDITIONAL CONCEPTS


1. Different people like different types of cake, so you have to know who you’re baking the cake for. You must think about your audience. This happens before making the cake, in the prewriting stage.

2. Not everyone is going to like your cake (your writing) and that’s ok.

3. Writing is a skill, just like making cake is a skill. If you practice and learn different techniques, you’ll become a better writer.

4. Everyone can make good cakes if they follow recipes and instructions carefully. Great cakes come from those who add a little of their own flare and who study cakes and how to make them better. It’s the same with writers. Good writing can be learned. Great writing takes practice.

5. You can use different types of cakes to talk about different kinds of writing – narrative, descriptive, and expository. 

About Reading Comprehension

The reading-writing connection is so strong that it makes sense teaching reading comprehension alongside writing strategies. When we write, we are sharing information. Quite often, we get that information from reading. Reading is the best way to build vocabulary, and it allows writers to observe the skills of other writers. For many children, however, understanding what they read is a difficult task, resulting in frustration and distress.

Understanding what we read requires several skills that can be grouped under two headings: vocabulary comprehension, and text comprehension. While knowing what individual words mean is essential, it’s just as important to recognize that when words are combined they form relationships and greater meaning is created.

Over the next few weeks we will discuss reading comprehension in more detail, how it connects with writing, strategies for developing reading comprehension, and how to make reading comprehension more fun.

So, join in the discussion, ask questions, make comments.

Lie #2 – I Can Only Write When I’m Inspired

Ahhh, there’s nothing that screams INSPIRATION like a moldy wall with flaking paint. You can’t get better than that! Right?

Well, that’s a matter of opinion. I don’t know about you, but I would have just walked past that wall, probably wondering why the hell I was there in the first place. Even with my creative mind, I would not have come up with something like what’s depicted in that photo.

When people say “beauty is in the eye of the beholder” they have no idea how true that statement is. Beauty is, indeed, in the mind of the beholder…your mind’s eye, so to speak.

In truth, beauty can be found many places, but more often than not it’s most precious where it’s created. Yes, when we look at something and find it soul-stirringly profound, it’s more of a testament of who we are than what that thing is. Five people can watch the same movie and come away with five different perspectives. Ten people can listen to the same music and reveal ten different emotional responses.

You see, we each connect with unique parts of the world around us. Our experiences, education, influences from the people around us, and literally where we’re standing at a given moment, all shape the way we view life.

Yet many people believe that writers have some specially assigned cosmic muse who whispers magical words in their ear as they write. Loads of aspiring writers struggle to find that inner voice because they’re looking for it to come from the outside, when by definition it must come from within.

Here’s what I want you to understand: you can develop the ability to inspire yourself every day.

“How?” I can hear the wheels of the skeptical mind grinding away as you wonder whether to throw your head back and laugh at this absurdity, or shake your head slowly from side to side with a dismissive and disapproving tsk, tsk, tsk.

So let me get to the task of proving it to you.

You can stop believing the lie of cosmic inspiration by choosing to live every moment of every day. Yeah, that’s it. Sounds simple, but for most of us bustling through life, it’ll take some doing before we truly get it. We can’t recall what we had for breakfast last week Monday, let alone the color of the plate we used. Opening yourself up to the wonder of the mundane is the answer, and it’s something you can learn.

I often play storytelling games with my daughters to celebrate their creativity and refine my own. These aren’t the type of games that cause you to gather around a table with family and friends, however. They are ongoing games that crop up anytime, anywhere. We add voices to animals, create conversations between birds on a wire, dogs trotting about, and even butterflies flitting from flower to flower.

We pick random strangers out of a crowd and give them a back story based on the way they’re dressed and their facial expressions. We provide plausible reasons for the erroneous placement of objects and create a rationale for actions and behaviors.

And we notice the little things – the shadows dancing on the ground as wind blows through the trees at sunset; the varying shades of gray on clouds as the sky prepares for rain; the way sunlight sparkles differently on different objects; and how an ant seems to float aimlessly like an anomaly in a weird snow globe when you put a drop of water on it.

Everyday life is full of details that we constantly miss, details that are funny and amazing and keep us full of wonder. It takes nothing but a few moments to stop and notice.

When you can reimagine the world around you, there is no shortage of inspiration. It’s nice to say, “Go out there and find beauty,” but I prefer to say, “Go out there and create it.”

Following on the heels of your response to Lie #1, you would have, at this point, already scheduled some writing time. Now, as you buckle down to respond effectively to Lie #2, all you need to do is to write at the allotted time.

At first, it won’t come easy, but after some time of letting your brain know “This Is Writing Time!” you’ll find that ideas come, and writing will take place.

If you’re working on nonfiction, use the time to make notes on relevant articles or topics. You can even respond to a video or documentary you looked at. If you’re working on fiction, use the time to enhance your character or setting description as you create worlds and people. Whatever you do, when you sit to write, make sure that you write.

You can even be cheeky and write something like, “I’m sitting here thinking about what to write and nothing seems to be coming, but this article I read said I should just write and so I am doing that…just write.”

Then reflect on that sentence and write the next thing that comes to your mind.

Or you can be a bit more proactive and decide ahead of time what you’ll be writing about and then sit and write about that thing.

At any rate, it really will only be a matter of time before you get into the habit of writing, of producing, and then the magic will happen.

So, dispense with the lies you’ve been telling yourself about waiting for inspiration, and get started on actively creating it.

As always, happy writing.

Lie #1 – I Don’t Have Time to Write

This particular lie is number 1 for a reason. I told myself this lie for many, many years…when I was working 7 am to 7 pm, when I was raising 2 children, when I was on vacation, and even when I was unemployed. It didn’t matter what I was doing, or not doing, I was convinced that I didn’t have time. And guess what, I didn’t. 

The devious nature of this lie gets us believing that we are too busy to write that novel that’s been on our minds for the longest while, or the article that could get us paid, or even the story for that annual writer’s competition we were told about more than 3 years ago (true story). 

We believe the lie because our preoccupation with everyday things and lack of organization has us darting from activity to activity like a honey bee desperately collecting nectar. The thing is, though, the honey bee has purpose and direction, but we lack both.

When we see the hours and minutes ticking away and everything else in our lives seems so urgent and important, and a thousand things a day are loudly demanding our attention, we believe the lie. We believe we don’t have time. So we set aside our dreams, and we quiet the voice within us that’s screaming for us to share our thoughts and ideas with the world.

We don’t have time to live because we’re busy existing.  But the voice inside telling us (even begging us) to share our story simply would not shut up. We try to drown it with more activities, with activities we pretend have meaning, with drink and food, and the company of friends until we believe we can’t hear it anymore.

Yet the moment we pause, the moment we stand still long enough to recognize our own breath, we hear it again…words that are so much a part of us we can’t think of anything else.

This lie does nothing to satisfy the hunger and yearning to share our voice with the world. It only temporarily numbs us.

The only way to deal with this lie is to recognize the fallacy, and understand that the reason the lie exists is because we’re afraid.  

Yes, we’re afraid of our own voices. We’re afraid of failure. We’re afraid of success. We’re afraid because we know that to write means to connect with something beyond ourselves that we don’t control, and that lack of control is scary.

And these are real fears. Make no mistake, there are actual concerns and legitimate feelings brewing inside you that are halting your writing or preventing you from getting those words out.

But here’s the thing: you can move beyond those fears. Courage is not the absence of fear, but the embracing of the thing that once kept you in the shadows while you step into the light. You get to tell everyone that you were afraid, but you did it anyway.

Fear doesn’t have to be something that keeps us back. It can be something that lets us know what we’re doing is significant. If we weren’t afraid from time to time we’d never truly understand the importance of anything.

So, notice the fear and take steps toward overcoming it. Choose to give those words coiled in your soul the light and life they need for you to truly live.

Ok, lots of inspirational words, but I know that’s easier said than done, so here’s my #1 recommendation for getting out of that rut and dealing with this lie: Get a writing buddy. 

You’d be surprised at the number of people who are stuck and would love the support of another writer going through something similar. Great places to find writing buddies are through online or in-person writing groups and at your local library.

Co-working is a thing. If you’ve never heard the term, it refers to a situation where different people who are working on different things come together to share a space. In this context, it means two (or more) people working at the same time, in the same space (whether online or in-person), but on different projects.

It’s not collaboration or coaching because you’re doing your own thing without discussion or interruption from the other parties.

The way it works is that there’s a commitment created when an agreement on date and duration is settled, and there’s an expectation created because someone else is counting on you to show up. That’s the motivation that many people thrive on.

You’ll definitely need to let others know that you’re in the market for someone to sit and write with, and you may even have to explain a few times what you’re looking for. But once you get that sorted, you’ll be well on your way to writing. I’ve done it and continue doing it to help myself get my stories and books out.

So, go out there, find a writing buddy, and get your writing done!

Remember, there are people out there who need to read what you’ve written, so get the support you need to get your writing done.

And as always, happy writing!