How to Encourage Creative Writing in Your Children

Creative writing in kids is more than just an academic subject that is taught in school. This is
a skill that will help your children express their thoughts by using language as an art.
Several research studies have proven that good creative writing skills play an important role
in a child’s success in school and beyond. Apart from academic benefits, creative writing
skills can contribute to the emotional well-being of your child as well as help in developing
stronger self-awareness and observation skills. With characterization used in creative
writing, children will develop empathy as they put themselves in other people’s shoes
Here are some tips to encourage creative writing in your children.

 Use Writing Prompts
Creative writing, like any other skill, will need practice to master. As your child starts to
learn to write creatively on any topic, they may often experience writer’s block. The easiest
way to help a child overcome this is to give them cues in the form of writing prompts. These
prompts can help in stimulating the child’s imagination by giving a certain direction to his or
her writing. Some of the commonly used and helpful prompts can be – describe the setting,
visualize the weather, pretend you are the main character’s best friend, and what if it starts
to rain suddenly.

 Emphasize Creating a Pre-Writing Plan
Before your child starts writing, have them visualize their story and plan their story or their
writing piece. This pre-writing plan can include important elements of the writing piece such
as the plot, the characters, the setting, the problem, and the resolution. When this skeleton
is ready, it becomes easier for the child to stream it all together.

 Insist on Elaborate Descriptions
The best way to encourage children to write creatively is to allow them to elaborate on
describing the setting or the characters of their story. You should encourage your kids to
add details that will make their story compelling and convincing for the readers. You can
give them some ‘feeling’ or ‘sensory’ words that will enhance their creativity or provide
them with a journal of describing words to ease them into writing.

 Encourage Reading
A child who loves to read will develop an intrinsic fondness for writing. Encourage your child
to read books of the genre they prefer so that they get accustomed to using good
vocabulary and this can further enhance their writing skills immensely.

Creative writing is more than framing grammatically correct sentences. It fosters
imagination and inspires young children to dream as they learn to express themselves in compelling ways. There is no denying the fact that a child who is an eloquent writer and
effective communicator will have an edge over his or her counterparts in all areas of life.