Day: October 1, 2019

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7 Unique Tips to Incorporate Creative Writing

incorporate creative writing

Writing offers a long list of benefits: practicing effective communication, exercising creative thought, growing imagination, and providing a place for self-expression. Creative Writing activates large regions of the brain responsible for thinking, language, healing and working memory. Here are unique ways to incorporate creative writing in your homeschool.

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Incorporate Creative Writing

Family Short Stories. Pick a common topic for everyone in the house to write their own one-page short story. A place, person, season, etc. all make great topics each family member will have familiarity. Share these short stories after dinner. You’ll be surprised the many different stories everyone creates from the same “topic”. This opportunity also gives shy students the opportunity to speak in front of others without judgement and criticism.

Two Sentence Starters. Write out 2 descriptive sentences to start a short story. Then pass around the story to each member of the family until someone finally arrives at a rather interesting ending. Rather than count turns think of setting a time limit. This fun story writing exercise includes everyone in the family and usually ends in hilarity. Whoever comes up with the most creative sentences gets to pick dessert.

Create a Poetry Journal. Some students are intimidated to write their own poems, so start easy. Suggest adding a line from a favorite poem, “Hope is the things with wings that perches in the soul”. If you have a confident writer give them a new journal to try their hand at poetic verse. Read 4 Reasons Students Should Read Poetry or try Grammar of Poetry.

Looking for a poetry curriculum​?

Students analyze not only poetry, but words and language using classical imitation. ​

GET FREE LESSONS
Grammar of Poetry Student Book


Find a Pen-Pal. Who doesn’t love getting something personal in the mail? Cousins, grandparents, and far away friends make great pen-pals. Buy some stationary and start writing colorful explanations of family events, or the ridiculous snoring dog. It’s not a traditional way to incorporate creative writing assignments, but it’s a great start to writing more often!

Create Mad-Libs. Mad-Libs are a genius sneaky way of teaching Language Arts to younger students. Have older students create the bones of a mad-lib. You’ll be surprised, it’s (adjective) than it sounds.

Recreate Favorite Fairytales. What if Cinderella’s Fairy Godmother slept in late? Could Gaston be the hero? Was Maleficent just misunderstood? Disney added sweet safe alterations to the the original dark Grimm Brother’s stories. Why not let your student add their own changes to make these familiar fairytales, unfamiliar and different.

Incorporate Creative Writing

Find Free Writing Prompts. The white page of death stares back as my aching knuckles clutch the drained up pen of creative thought. Stuck on how to start short stories? Find free writing prompts online. Writing prompts are a short quick exercise to keep thoughts flowing.

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4 Reasons Students Should Read Poetry

why read poetry

In a world of hashtags, LOL’s, and emojis, we now express ourselves much differently from the beautiful flowing language that once created such lovely imagery. Homeschool students might be wondering, why ready poetry?! Metaphors, personification, and other non-literal language can be hard to understand. Middle schoolers might feel uncomfortable with romantic sonnets. So, is poetry dead?

What is poetry? Wikipedia defines poetry as: literary work in which special intensity is given to the expression of feelings and ideas by the use of distinctive style and rhythm.

Why Read Poetry

4 Reasons Students Should Read Poetry

Before assigning random poetry for students to memorize, just for memory work, consider the benefits of regularly reading poetry.

  • Poetry Improves Verbal Skills. 
  • Poetry Improves Critical Thinking. 
  • Poetry Develops Empathy & Insight.
  • Poetry Encourages Creativity.

If your students think poetry is just a bunch of red roses and bedroom balcony declarations of love, introduce them to different types of themes and topics. Epic of Gilgamesh, the Iliad and the Odyssey, Dante, Edgar Allan Poe, Rupert Brooke, or Marjorie Pickthall.

Regardless of your own poetry knowledge, it’s never too late to start reading poetry together. Read to get started in the morning, during picnics, or afternoon tea. When studying Geography look up the “National Poet of (that country)”.

Start younger children off reading Dr. Seuss and Robert Frost. Introduce daughters to the great works of Emily Dickinson and Maya Angelou. Feel closer to nature with Ralph Waldo Emerson. Most importantly, follow up each poetry reading with great discussions: did you like it? Why did you hate it? How do you feel after you read it? What spoke most to you?

Hope, Emily Dickinson

“Hope” is the thing with feathers –
That perches in the soul –
And sings the tune without the words –
And never stops – at all –

And sweetest – in the Gale – is heard –
And sore must be the storm –
That could abash the little Bird
That kept so many warm –

I’ve heard it in the chillest land –
And on the strangest Sea –
Yet – never – in Extremity,
It asked a crumb – of me.


Encourage high school students to keep a Poetry Journal. Suggest writing down favorite lines from poems they have enjoyed. Offer a writing time each day to create their own flowing words. Provide topics if they feel “stuck”: seasons, religion, politics, nature, etc.

If your student is less interested in writing poetry themselves, create Poet Studies. Pick one poet to discover. Many writers lead interesting lives. Some recluse. A few never published during their own lifetime. Some poets created entirely different styles of poetry yet to be written at the time. Discover amazing poets!

Looking for help teaching Poetry? Try Grammar of Poetry.

Grammar of Poetry

Grammar of Poetry is designed for a semester at the middle school / high school grade level. Grammar of Poetry is appropriate for anyone with basic writing skills and the desire to learn poetry. This class carries a 1/2 high school credit.

Looking for a poetry curriculum​?

Students analyze not only poetry, but words and language using classical imitation. ​

GET FREE LESSONS
Grammar of Poetry Student Book