This summer, one of my goals with the boys is to get them writing more. Reading is important, but the teacher in me does not want the writing to slide over the time off. As JSL finished kindergarten, he seemed to be on a major writing kick and I did not want to let go of this enthusiasm. He was writing story after story, and loved alternating with fun poems that he would illustrate.

JSL’s writing book also came home from the school year and I could see growth within that small journal (photo above). A simple sentence that was likely copied, quickly became several sentences with his own inventive spelling based on his phonemic awareness.

One day when it was raining, I asked JSL if he wanted to write a new story or poem and start a book for the summer. He immediately said yes. To change things up and help inspire him, I gave him a new booklet of stickers with his composition notebook. Within minutes, the newly minted first grader was off and writing. He picked a sticker and started to write a poem about dogs called Woof. The next day, he asked for the notebook again and wanted to write more. The next thing I knew, he was sharing two more poems called Meow and Tweet.

I love watching him write and enjoy it. This was my favorite age to teach because of the way you could literally watch their reading and writing grow each and every day. An added bonus at our house was NHL’s reaction. At almost ten years old, NHL is a reluctant writer. For a variety of reasons, he has a hard time getting his thoughts on paper (typically, his brain is going a mile a minute and his hands can not keep up), so he uses tech devices to assist. Suddenly, he asked for a notebook, pencil, crayons, and stickers to start his own book. He began with a table of contents and then wrote a story about a doggy ball game and after that started something about fish. My next idea is to work on something that is more interactive with both of the boys. More about that coming soon.

Do you work on writing over the summer with your children? I would love to know what you may do with them. As always, Tuesday Tales is all about sharing our love of books. Please let me know what you have read recently. Be sure to link up to your book posts in the comments below. Include something you read on your own, with a child, or someone else.