National Encourage a Young Writer Day

April 10th is Encourage a Young Writer Day. On this day budding authors across the United States are encouraged to write a story,  poem, or any form of writing.

Here are a few tips for parents and teachers to encourage a young writer:

1. Write about anything: Doodle, scribble, or write a story about a heroic cat who saves a society of mice. It’s those simple forms of writing that encourage creative ripples into the consciousness and opens the mind to a whole world of stories.

2. Keep an idea/dream journal: Did you have a dream about how the heroic cat fought off the miserly rats and saved the mouse village from destruction? Did you forget it the second you woke up? Inspiration can happen anywhere and anytime, so keeping a journal and pen handy will surely benefit any writer.

3. Go outside for inspiration: While going outside is extremely important to stay fit and healthy it can also improve your writing. For kids, writing indoors might seem like a handful of homework. However, going outside to explore different surroundings and getting fresh air can spark new ideas.

4. Visit a library or a bookstore: Need inspiration for your hero’s backstory? What better place than the library? There, you will find all kinds of books and discover new and exciting places. Or, how about a bookstore? Being surrounded by shelves of books is every writer’s dream!

5. Read something: While you’re at the library make sure you pick up a book about the history of cats to inspire your hero’s backstory. Even if you read something simple from a magazine, or a line of poetry; reading the work of others can inspire your own ideas.

There are many who started their journey at an early age and went on to become famous authors. Even Daniel Handler — better known as Lemony Snicket — had to start somewhere too.

Some great books for your aspiring kid writers are:

• Spilling Ink: A Young Writer’s Handbook (Anne Mazer) (Ellen Potter)
• Don’t Forget to Write (826 National) (Edited by: Jennifer Traig)
• My Book About Me By Me, Myself (Dr. Seuss)
• The Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book (Jeff Kinney)

If you are a teacher with students who are brilliant writers, be sure to check out the Indiana Partnership for Young Writers for thousands of resources and information about empowering your students. As a bonus, you can also recommend a student for the National Council of Teachers of English Promising Young Writers Program by visiting the NCTE website.

Indiana Partnership for Young Writers

Let your child’s voice be heard by teaching them to write every single day. Who knows, maybe they can become the next Best-Selling, Award-Winning author.

Image source National Day Calendar.