1. Show your child how revision is necessary in life.
“Show how recipes are revised through tasting,” she says. “Revision is just part of life.”
2.Help your child see revision in her own life.
For example, she might try on an outfit, take a step back, see what can be improved, and then add some accessories.
3.Talk about how much you write in your daily life: emails, memos, letters, text messages.
“There are so many opportunities for writing in the real world,” Witte says. Show your child how you review an email and make changes to improve it before sending.
4.Let your child know that every occupation requires writing.
Doctors write. Artists write. Athletes write. Look for examples everywhere you go of people writing as part of their professional lives. Encourage adults in your child’s life to point out examples of writing and revision.
5.Encourage your child to write letters.
Not the electronic kind but old-school, handwritten letters. Whether she writes to a grandparent or a pen pal in another state or country, she’ll gain valuable practice expressing herself through words. “Writing a letter is such an emotional, personal thing,” Witte says.
6.Show your child how writing can help him work through problems and find a solution.
If something is bothering him, have him write about it. Or if your family is having a problem, such as feeling overscheduled or not being able to stick to a budget, have your child write down potential solutions.
7.Help your child tackle math problems with writing.
Sometimes writing a paragraph about how you plan to solve an equation can help. Really! “If ever there were a skill that crosses every curricular area, it’s writing,” Witte says. “Writing can help you get a better handle on an abstract concept.”
8.Emphasize reading and writing as two of life’s great pleasures that go together.
“Writing shouldn’t be held in isolation,” Witte says.
9.Give your child opportunities to showcase his writing.
Check out the National Gallery of Writing. Sponsored by the National Council of Teachers of English, the site allows anyone who follows the guidelines to get published and promotes writing as the “quintessential 21st century skill.”
10.Read your child’s writing and comment on it.
Take time to praise your child’s writing, even if it’s a routine assignment that comes home in the backpack. “Audience is a big part of motivation,”
