This year I’ve found it hard to get my kids excited about writing and poetry. We have many different components to our curriculum that incorporate these parts. The problem is the dread I feel when I know it is time to do them. I know I am going to get push back and endless whining. Some days I just said forget it and went on to something else. I tried silly writing prompts. That worked the first time I did it. The next time I brought out the book I received looks of torture. You know the look. Then the whining would pursue. I’ve tried workbooks. I even went as far as to purchase Minecraft writing books thinking that would be the golden ticket. Unfortunately even their favorite video game did not excite them for writing. Our overseeing teacher gave me some ideas that also never took off. We have had much success with Night Zookeeper online, but I felt they were really missing the pencil to paper component. I had to come up with something fast as I did not want them to get behind. Then, I found it. I found the missing link. It was me!
I decided to partner with them in their writing journey. Everything I was asking them to do, I did too. If it was copy work they are assigned, I sit right there with my pen and paper and copy it as well. Then we discuss it together. We did a unit with writing in different codes. I did the codes right along with them. Then we would all exchange papers and decipher the codes. I realized that with every other subject we are learning I am doing it with them. In Science I am hands on for the bookwork and experiments. With history I am reading it aloud with them and helping them with their projects. I oversee them as they are doing math. The only subject that I was not coming along side them in was writing. I was pretty much hands off until it came to editing. I noticed immediate results when I realized they wanted me to be a part of this subject too. They were not only excited for us all to sit down and write together, they were genuinely excited to see what I wrote. When we go over the grammar and punctuation together now, they are much more engaged and understanding of the concepts. Not only is it easier for me to teach, but it is actually a lot of fun!
Now poetry was another beast. They did not seem interested in it at all. We have been taking an online class that involves poetry. They listen to poems and learn the different types of poetry. I felt like it was going in one ear and out the other. We also read a lot of Shakespeare, and they always seem to be really engaged in it. Well, it was because I read it aloud to them, and then we take turns reading different parts. So I decided to make poetry fun and something they looked forward to doing each week. I started Thursday Tea Time. On Monday we all pick a poem to memorize. The boys like Shel Silverstein and they are easy poems to commit to memory. I also memorize a poem from the same books. We take a minute each day to read our poem and work on memorization. Then on Thursday I set up for tea time.
Tea Time is a special time for us to gather at the table and recite our poems. I also thought what better time to teach the importance of etiquette. I get out a nice table cloth and set the table with napkins, small plates, silverware, and of course tea. I put a plate in the middle of the table with refreshments. This week we had Lunchables spread out nicely on the plate like a charcuterie board. Other times I may have cookies or another sweet treat. We all sit down and place our napkins on our laps. This is how we start the session. I’ve had a great opportunity to teach them how to properly set a table, and basic table manners. I pick a topic each week to go deeper into, for example, how to introduce yourself and others. This week we talked about holding doors for other people, and how to politely decline something we do not like. Etiquette goes far beyond please and thank yous. This is a great setting to not only teach these properties, but execute and implement them.
The last thing we do at our tea time is recite our poems we’ve memorized. It is so fun hearing the feelings they put into the poem as they are saying it out loud. They take a lot of pride in their poem of choice and like to have the floor to speak without interruption. This gives them a better understanding of the cadences of poems and emphasis on words. It puts everything they have been learning into motion. I like to take this time to also discuss their poems. I then read a poem out of our Shakespeare for Kids poetry book. We discuss this poem and break it down. I like to hear their thoughts on what they think the poem is about. We have some of the best discussions at our tea parties, and it doesn’t even feel like school. That’s the best part. They don’t realize they are learning. It also breaks up the monotony of our regular schedule.
If you have a child that is reluctant to write, or doesn’t see the point in it, you may want to give this a try. We’ve been doing it for a semester, and the boys look forward to it. In fact this week I suggested we skip it to do something else and that was a hard no from them. It’s a bit more work for me to prepare, but it is a lot less stress in the long run. Seeing their smiling faces and reading their work makes it all worth it. I hope that this helps you. Hopefully partner writing and tea time help ease your writer’s struggles too.