Creative juices flow from play to paper when parents create an environment for writing in the home. At school, structured lessons are the norm, but at home stories have space to expand and freedom to fly. They germinate in a nurturing environment, not dependent on a grammar lesson, the fear of spelling or punctuation errors, or a letter grade. When parents fill the house with inspiration, a child’s writing options are endless.

Pre-writing 
Just as playing with dolls may inspire a story, providing a variety of experiences and props to stimulate the senses or thought processes gives kids a jumping off place for a written story or poem. How a writer responds to a pre-writing activity is impossible to predict. Creative thoughts will leap out in response to any of the following pre-writing activities.

Offer a Picture. From a folder of collected pictures, the writer chooses one that provides an idea for a story. Unusual pictures will prod creative thinking, for example, a woman’s face covered with butterflies or a polar bear alone on a chunk of ice.

Music. Play songs that conjure up a place, person, or feeling. Be eclectic with your choices: jazz, bluegrass, symphonies, music from other countries.

Touch and Imagine. Fill a basket with a selection of textures: silk, felt, sandpaper, a stone, pine cone, velvet, a feather. With closed eyes, the writer reaches for one object. This tactile prompt will mean something different to each person.

Smell a Poem. Dip or shake an aromatic oil or spice on a cotton ball and place it in a paper sack. The writer opens the sack to let the odor out. It reminds her of a place, person, or event. Unpleasant odors work too: an unwashed athletic sock or a strong-flavored chunk of cheese may help your writer invent a villainous character or an abandoned cave.

Word Potpourri. Unlike collections of coins, figurines, or hats, words are free. Collect words and write each one on a small piece of paper or index card. Nouns and verbs are the best. Nouns become subjects and verbs give the writing action. Keep a jar, pencil, and cards handy so the collection grows and is always ready for a spur of the moment writing session. Words in isolation are playful. They leap about, sometimes in an orderly sentence fashion, other times in free-form poetry.

Moving Things. Watch clouds drift in the sky, a cat walk a fence, a tree branch respond to the wind, or a ball roll down the street. Your writer may create a story character or action that is similar to the item moving.

Openings. Supply your writer with possible openings to a story or poem: I am…, I remember…, I want to be…. The following poem came from the I am prompt:

I Am 

I am a girl with red hair.
I am a little sister to Jeremy.
I am afraid of turtles.
I am friends with boys and girls.
I am nuts about penguins.
I am crazy for ice cream with chocolate chips.
I am learning to ice skate.
I am worried about falling.
I am a lover of books.

By Trudy, age 7

Writing
Stories and poems evolve from pre-writing activities. By discussing a prompt and then writing together, you form a partnership in writing and a shared interest in creating stories. Show how you are inspired to write because of something you felt during the pre-writing stage. Listen, and don’t judge what your child feels after the shared experience. Next, sit down together, set a timer (10 minutes to start), and write. When the timer rings, stop writing and listen to each piece. Realize these quick writes are rarely finished, but they will spur conversation about what each writer wants to do next. As these writing times increase in frequency, the young writer will look forward to more time to write and ask you to supply another pre-writing activity from your stash of ideas.

After several home writing sessions, a pile of stories and poems will beg to be shared. Once they are edited and ready for other eyes to see, send them by email to out-of-town relatives and friends. As additional family members join the writing times, you can proudly state that yours is a writing family that creates and shares your love of writing stories.

Judy Ware, Ph.D. is a freelance writer. She was a past Writer in the Schools for The Cabin and is inspired by young writers who share their creative stories.