Book Inspiration Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson We read the poem “second daughter’s second day on earth” which contains many references to the various events going on around the country at the time that Jacqueline Woodson was born. Then, we used a timeline to learn about the historical events […]
Creative Writing with Word Baskets
Published on :Yesterday, our Creative Writing for Beginning Readers Workshop was inspired by the picture book Little Red Writing, written by Joan Holub and illustrated by Melissa Sweet. In the story, Little Red (a pencil in pencil school) goes on a journey to find words that she can put in her word […]
“The Peculiar Man” — story by Hannah Sagheb
Published on :Young Readers League 2016 Writing Contest Category 1 (Age 8-11) 1st place The Peculiar Man by Hannah Sagheb 11 years old (Grade 6) Immaculate Heart School Once there was a man, And he could do whatever he can. His parents died when he was four, He doesn’t remember it, But he doesn’t care […]
“Circus Shenanigans” — story by Adam Kakuk
Published on :Young Readers League 2016 Writing Contest Category 1 (Age 8-11) 2nd place Circus Shenanigans by Adam Kakuk 11 years old (Grade 6) Palm Crest Elementary School As I walked down a dusty road, heading to the grocery store, I saw an enormous tent with a sign proclaiming in large, red letter, “CIRCUS TODAY.” I […]
“Instincts” — story by Veronica Mason
Published on :Young Readers League 2016 Writing Contest Category 1 (Age 8-11) 3rd place Instincts by Veronica Mason 11 years old (Grade 6) Immaculate Heart School The last act of the night, me. Someone in black with a microphone rushed me onstage. Even though I have been on that stage so many times, the […]
“The Lady of the Moon” — story by Jasmine Sov
Published on :Young Readers League 2016 Writing Contest Category 1 (Age 8-11) Honorable Mention The Lady of the Moon by Jasmine Sov 10 years old (Grade 5) Sierra Madre Elementary School Sadilena (Sadie) Rose D’Moonelle had always known she was special. Even as she ate her mutton stew at the orphanage, she knew she […]
“Lavender Rose and the Magic Circus” — story by Tabitha Foster
Published on :Young Readers League 2016 Writing Contest Category 1 (Age 8-11) Honorable Mention Lavender Rose and the Magic Circus by Tabitha Foster 11 years old (Grade 6) Immaculate Heart Middle School Once upon a time there was a girl called Lavender Rose, who was, how should I put it, very special. You may […]
Creative Writing with Ashlyn Anstee
Published on :We had another terrific creative writing class for ages 5-8 with author-illustrator Ashlyn Anstee, who created the books Are We There, Yeti? and No, No, Gnome! Kids had a great time making up a funny character with crazy attributes, and coming up with a problem for him and a solution, […]
Kids’ Writing Workshop: The Erasmus Game
Published on :On Friday, Sept. 23 in our Kids’ Writing Workshop for children ages 8-12, we played something called “The Erasmus Game,” which I got to learn from PCC professor and YA author E. Katherine Kottaras. This exercise is based on Chapter 33 of the book Copia: Foundations of the Abundant Style […]
A Pig Parade is a Terrible Idea: Creative Writing for Beginning Readers
Published on :This month’s Creative Writing for Beginning Reader’s workshop (for ages 5-8) was inspired by the book A Pig Parade is a Terrible Idea by Michael Ian Black and illustrated by Kevin Hawkes. It’s a hilarious picture book that is all about contrasting the bright, shiny parade in the narrator’s imagination: […]