Parents' Corner

A reminder about helping your child with writing assignments:

I encourage you to talk to your children about their writing. However, when your child asks for help with writing, I ask that you please do not correct, write on, type, or give your child words or phrases to use in his/her writing. These writing assignments are my way of evaluating your child's strengths and weaknesses. 

Feel free to give verbal feedback on their writing. You can offer points of praise, questions about the topic, and suggested areas for further revision. If you aren't sure how to start a conversation about writing with your child, ask him/her about what is he/she writing? What topics or modes are being covered in class? Or even about what they are writing in their writer's notebook.

I also encourage you to allow your child to see you as a writer. Lists, letters, emails, reviews all count as writing. The more children see writing as a part of life, the more comfortable they will feel as a writer.

The final way to help your child become a better writer is to encourage reading. The more a child reads, the more he/she is exposed to various types of writing. Again, allow your child to see you reading to help encourage reading. You can discuss the reading and what makes it good writing.