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by Nancy Johnson

In order for a child to express him or herself well, it is important to develop writing skills as early as possible. A child writing activity can help develop the skills they need to become a good writer. This activity will allow them to practice grammar and sentence structure along with creative thinking.

The first child writing activity happens at the preschool age. They learn how to hold a crayon or pencil, and move it from left to right on the paper. Next the kindergarten child learns how to express him or herself, group objects, and put pictures into logical classifications. They also learn how to recognize complete sentences.

Beginning in first grade, children learn grammar and word usage, and begin to have a well-rounded knowledge of writing concepts and processes. They should also continue to work on their creative thinking skills using fun writing activities that encourage their imagination.

A great idea for a child writing activity is to set up a writing center. This writing center will allow children to practice their writing skills during free time. Find an area that you can set up the writing center and leave it set up all the time. A small table or desk area will work just fine. Provide pencils, crayons or markers and paper for the children to use. Make a poster to post over the area that says, Write Super Sentences.

Directions to list on the poster include:

1. See how many sentences you can make.

2. Copy the sentences on a sheet of paper.

3. Draw a picture of the best sentence.

For the writing center, label five containers (1 lb. Coffee cans work great) with:

• Describing words – Adjectives
• Who or What – Nouns
• Did What? – Verbs
• Where?
• When?

Then make 5-10 cards or slips of paper that has suggested words for each category. Place these inside the appropriate category (container). Use words appropriate for your child’s grade level. As the child progresses and words become too easy, add more difficult words to each category.

Another child writing activity to add to the writing center would be to have them make 5-10 sentences that they will put together to make a story. Let them use their creative thinking skills and imagination to write a short story. Have them illustrate their story and put all the short stories together into a binder for others to read. No matter how silly the story turns out, it is their original writing!

Nancy Johnson is a mother, grandmother, and child development professional. Reprinted with permission.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Nancy_Johnson

by Nancy Johnson

A fun kid reading activity includes acting out your story as it’s read. Puppets are a wonderful way for kids to learn to enjoy books and reading. Just about every story and book can be used with puppets.

Books such as If You Gave a Mouse a Cookie by Laura Joffe Numeroff, Little Red Hen by Paul Galdone, Curious George by H.A. Rey are great stories to use. Other classics such as Aesop’s Fables, Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll, and The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum are also fun to read and act out. The local library has an unlimited supply of children’s books and stories to pick from. Bring several choices of books to the kids, and let them vote on their favorite book to use.

If you have a large group of kids, break up into smaller groups and select different books to read. Each group will make their puppets and act out the story for the other groups. Another idea is to create a “Puppet Club” and have kids sign up to participate. The “Puppet Club” can be offered in sessions throughout the year so everyone has a chance to join.

Once a book is selected, read the story first. After you read the story, talk about the characters in the book, discuss the plot, and message or moral of the story. Have the kids decide which character they would like to use to make a puppet. Another idea is to put the characters on a slip of paper, place in a hat or bag, and let the kids pick a character.

Paper bag puppets are easy and inexpensive to make. Provide white or brown paper bags, assorted paper such as construction, wrapping, tissue and crepe, scissors, glue and markers. Used socks, garden gloves, and spoons work great for puppets. If you have lots of time, create papiermache’ marionettes. A cardboard box, paint and fabric makes a wonderful puppet stage.

Making puppets to go with children’s stories creates a fun kid reading activity. This is an activity that kids will want to do over and over again!

Nancy Johnson is a mother, grandmother, and child development professional. Reprinted with permission.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Nancy_Johnson