No one told my kid that publishing houses don’t publish works by 10-year-olds. I don’t want anyone to let him know. Shhh….
My littlest guy, William, thrived in fourth grade this year when they introduced history and social studies into the curriculum at his school. My sweet boy, stuck at home with very boring parents and both older siblings at college, dove into history with gusto via Youtube videos, online encyclopedias, and books. He had a dizzying roller coaster variety of interests from Ancient Egypt to the Civil Rights Movement back to World War I and World War II and over to American Colonial history. He talked with his dad about history and man/boy-splained it to me at dinner (foolish mother who can’t remember dates of battles or what dynasty King Tut was from) and then, he wrote.
No one said he had to write. Maybe three out of the dozens of papers and books he has written this year were part of an assignment in school. While his teachers encouraged his various interests and supplied him with books and pairing him with other kids who liked the same topic, for him, research and writing were forms of play.
Playing, that self-initiated amusement to test the waters physically, socially, or intellectually and explore the norms and rules that surround us, is vital for childhood growth and development. Playing with words is also essential for our growth as writers. Journal writing, ungraded written work, ungraded class composition work (types of low-stake writing) are ways that instructors can encourage playing with writing. Choosing something that interests the student is also helpful to encourage time spent playing with words and new ideas.
My William prefers to write about history, and via our dinner table conversations, I told him that I find history more memorable through historical fiction novels. So, when his class started using the “I Survived” book series for discussion and book reports, Will decided to experiment with historical fiction for me. I am sharing with you word for word, punctuation as written etc. the first chapter of his draft of a book he entitled “I Survived the Miracle at Dunkirk 1940” because I am his mom, and I can.
Chapter 1
Daniel could barely breathe. Surrounding him were remains of ships. Some fishing boats. Others small row boats. He heard shouts of soldiers, gunfire, and screaming. He gave up trying to swim. He was already dead in his eyes. Then, a tugging on his coat dragged him out. Was it a Nazi come to get him? Was it just the pull of the waves? Or was it an angel pulling him to heaven?
At the Writing Center it is a pleasure to see students experimenting with new genres and researching topics they are excited about, but it took my child’s writing to remind me that research and writing can be playful. Be brave; try playing again. Like my now published 10-year-old, write for fun and discover the joy exploring with words.
