I'm very blessed to teach at a school where I get asked by parents, "What can I do to help him/her at home?" In regards to writing, this question is not always easy to answer. There are so many areas under the writing "umbrella" that it can get overwhelming thinking of just one place to start. Spelling? Grammar? Test practice? Starting sentences that don't begin with the word 'I'?" Parents don't need as much guidance from teachers on how to assist their children with more concrete concepts (math problem solving, memorizing, classifying, etc.) Writing is so much more broad and intricate. However, it is our responsibility to be able to answer questions such as these and provide a little inspiration!
Over the years, I've heard positive feedback on a handful of specific, effective activities that parents can do with their fourth graders (or any intermediate-grade child, really) at home. It was difficult to be concise enough to fit all my favorites onto one page, but I managed to do it!
The most important thing to tell parents is that children should have daily opportunities to write, and writing should not stop when the school day stops. Now with this list in hand, we can give them a starting point to make that happen! Enjoy!
