How to Give Your Child a Limitless Life

May 3, 2009

istock_000001228374xsmall-copyThe world is on fire.

An inferno of evolution is sweeping the planet, pushing us faster and farther than ever before. Communication is now instant and it is those with the sharpest skills to clearly communicate who will be the ones to mine the most from the future’s rewards.

Skilled communication isn’t innate, it is taught. Too often in this right here and now however, it isn’t taught well enough. I look at the world around me and sigh; I cannot fail my children by preparing them for a world that is already sinking in the tar of extinction. I want my children to live a limitless life, and know it is verbal currency that will pay their way.

Many of today’s schools are not meeting the needs of our young writers. They need consistent modeling, time to write, a prompt or topic, and honest response and feedback. They also need exposure to a wide range of genres, text, prose and poetry.

Ask yourself the following questions. Do you know where your child is in the writing process? Where is your child developmentally?

  • Are they an emergent writer, with a basic awareness of sights and sounds?
  • Are they a developing writer, starting to insert stylized sentences into their writing while making connections to real world ideas and internal emotions?
  • Are they an independent writer, who has already internalized the writing process and exhibits their fluency with rich vocabulary and a fundamental understanding of mechanics?

Knowing where your child is at this moment will help you determine where they need to go.

My wife Cindy has been teaching now for twenty years. Her specialties are reading, writing, and early childhood development. We’ve discussed building an online school since back when five minutes for a static page was considered a speedy download. An outstanding institution must be built brick by brick or plank by plank. The virtual world’s no different. After many months of planning, our first wing of the school is nearly complete.

Our Writing Roots Writer’s Workshop will not be fully ready until September, but we will be accepting a pilot group of young writers at the beginning of summer. Spots will be given on a first come first serve basis and space will be limited.

Please sign up below if you are interested. Whether you are in public school, private school, or home school – this is for you. The newsletter is free and will offer regular tips for teaching your children to be a better writer, along with information on our upcoming pilot program. Hope to see you there.

Writer Dad

Sean Platt is a ghostwriter and dad. Receive updates in your inbox or RSS reader (for free!), twice weekly!

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  • J.D. Absolutely right, and I believe that when we are writing, we are also learning how to improve the timbre of our thought. I can’t wait to see where the world takes our young a decade from now.

    Dan: Sign up for the newsletter if you have any doubts. It’s free and the pilot program will be offered at an exceedingly generous rate. Seriously, like a couple of movie rentals per month.

    Lance: Thanks, Lance. I appreciate the support! Maybe I’ll hit you up for a button or something. I have one in the works. It might be a nice way to quietly spread the word.

    Jan: Thanks, Jan! I would really appreciate it. This is definitely our newest baby.

    Daisy: The new look is ALL Dave. It makes me so happy just to look at it. As far as your son, that’s awesome that he’s really getting into reading. That is definitely a gateway to better writing for sure. Just keep doing what you’re doing and encouraging him to write and the rest should fall rather easily into place. There doesn’t seem to be any set period of time when children most easily contract the writing bug, we just need to be observant enough to catch when it can happen. Do sign up for the newsletter. It is free and will have monthly writing tips, even if you don’t sign up for the workshop.
  • Sean - sorry it's taken me SO long to finally come by and see your new digs (I've been relying on google reader) - I really love what you've done t0 the space! Nice!

    And, on to the topic of writing and kids.. I have to admit that right now, I'm just SO thrilled my guy has gotten the reading bug. In the past I'd say 8 months or so, he's gone from non-interest (yeah, he listens to the books we read, but it's not his favourite thing to do) to now, a real love for reading. He's gotten to the point where he's reading independently, and whammo, a whole new set of books have opened up to him - they are so much more interesting than the first readers books.

    So.. to make a long story short.. I'm currently way too interested in his reading.. and not even thinking much about him writing just yet, though that is also certainly something he enjoys. He draws a picture and writes a few sentences right now, and sometimes, he even makes up a book, however, when do you or Cindy find do the kids start to really take up writing?

    Daisy
  • I'd find a way to make this a part of one of my future posts. A lot of my readers will benefit from this worthwhile project, I'm sure.
  • I'm so excited for you. My son attends a Montessori school and much of their lessons focus on advancing communication skills, and I love that he's getting wonderful input so early in his life. Written communication continues to be vital, but too often botched in personal and professional settings. I'm looking forward to learning more about your program and wish you great success with it.
  • Hi Sean,
    Writing is a powerful way to communicate - this I've learned through experience and years. The sooner we can get our children focused more on this, the better off we're preparing them for their future.

    I wish you and Cindy much success with this program - and know that I'm here if there's any way that I can be of assistance.
  • I might shoot myself that I won't be able to get in on this for the pilot group, but I am, however, looking forward to later sessions come September. This seems like an excellent project and I can't wait to see it happen.
  • Limitless life is the way to go!

    I'm a fan of skilled living and part of skilled living is skilled thinking and communication. How we communicate to ourself and others shapes the quality of our lives ... big time. There's a world of difference between self-critic and coach ... or pain in the arse vs. pleasure to work with ... or optimist vs. pessimist.

    I think by far the most important skill in this life time is thinking. Thinking is just asking and answering questions, so ask better questions to get better answers. I think the biggest influence on the question we ask is the company we keep and the mentors we look to throughout our life times.

    Show me the ways Sensai.
  • Craig: I agree. Writing well opens up SO many other doors. It is a fundamental skill too often ignored.

    Laurie: Thanks! Exactly. That's who this first edition of the workshop is designed for. We ran a pilot program with a group of fourth graders earlier this year. They need the help and are certainly not getting it.

    GreenJello: A love of words is easy enough to instill. It's a shame that more of us don't do it. Can you imagine a world where everyone was hip to great communication?
  • Two of my girls are writers. My 14yo is in the midst of her first novel, horrible spelling and all. :) I expect that my 16yo will be published within 10 years.

    I credit their writing success to the huge amount of reading I did with them when they were little, always being surrounded by books, and learning the joys of words at a young age.
  • Laurie
    Good luck with this program Sean! It seems here where I am, there is not as much emphasis spent on writing until the 4th grade where the kids have to take a state writing test. Then it is panic state to learn how to become good writers. In 5th grade, it's importance once again drops to the background.

    Being a great writer is empowering. It gives confidence and control. I wish you well on this. My boys are well on their way to adulthood, so I will share this with friends who have younger kiddos.
  • Great idea, with the way the schools are going any supplemental teaching/encouraging is fantastic. I always tell my kids that writing is the most important thing they can get out of school.
  • Tracy: You will be very happy with the workshop, especially our planned follow up for pre-writing and early phonemic awareness. Good stuff on tap.
  • You know what I just thought would be fun? A class for parents of pre-writers to help us learn to encourage our children's love of stories and words without being pushy and sucking all of the fun out of it. My four year old is a long way from being able to read and write but that boy can weave a story like nothing else!
  • Judy: Thanks for the comment Judy. As far as help, just spread the word however you can. It is an exciting project that could make a tremendous difference for many people. Please send it wherever you think the message will be heard. Eternal thanks!

    Randi: Ooh, a creative writing class for 5th graders sounds like a LOT of fun. Go ahead and send Cindy or I an email with info and we'll be happy to give you feedback or suggestions. Sign up for the newsletter. There will be writing tips for young ones at the very least and if you sign up for the workshop, you can use it with the entire class.

    SingleParentDad: You are doing more for him in those moments than any of us can ever truly know. Bravo.

    Tracy: We will eventually get to all categories, special needs included, though I don't know how long that will take. I know which three are first in the queue and they are more general. However, you can always contact Cindy or I for specific questions (whether you're in the workshop or not). Smiles.
  • That sounds really interesting! I know my 6 year old would love this. He's going to be traveling most of the summer, so we'll have to wait for your Fall offerings.

    I'd be super interested in a workshop for children with special needs.
  • Good on you.

    Will be keeping an eye on your work, as my son gets older (he's four now). And the last thing we do at night, without really thinking about it, is having a made up story. After reading, and lights out, we then have a made up story. Hopefully this will help his creative side.
  • I am excited to see this coming along so well. I agree with you, that children who cannot communicate effectively are going to be lost in the future. Writing has become so much a part of everything we do, whether it be in emailing, faxing, texting, blogging, or selling online. I have had to deny potential employees a job just because their grammar skills on their resumes were so horrendous that I didn't dare let them email our customers.

    In my fifth grade class this year, I really noticed a disparity between the boys and the girls. I required that they do journals. The girls loved it. They wrote on and on and on, and embellished their journal entries with illustrations. They eagerly looked inside when I handed them back, anxious to see what I had written to them--they seemed to love the two-way communication.

    The boys were less than enthusiastic. They would groan when it was journal time and would often hand in their journals with one sentence recorded. One boy would frequently refuse to write anything. Do you think this is common for this age group?

    I am doing a creative writing class with them one day a week this summer and was wondering what your thoughts were.
  • Judy Dunn
    I taught language arts at the elementary level, from a self-contained first grade classroom to a special, all-city gifted program and everything in between. I can say of all the subject areas, writing has been most neglected. It doesn't always go hand-in-hand with reading. I think if kids worked on those two simultaneously, some amazing things could happen.

    I am very excited that you are starting this online school, Sean. I would love to stay in the loop. I think you are right. The future belongs to those who can communicate their ideas. Let me know if I can ever do anything to help.
  • Trina: Absolutely! I did get your email. A reply is on the way.

    Mary Anne: Journaling is an amazing way to get in touch with your own intelligence. That's awesome that you guided you wee one in that direction. I promise to keep the Internet abreast. : > )
  • What a fantastic idea! Writing is soooo much more than just a communication tool. Even in some of the finest private schools, children aren't fully educated as to the lifelong significance and inherent value of becoming a "good" writer.

    But I'm preaching to the choir, yes? :-)

    When my son was 9, I showed him how to journal. He'd be the first one to tell you what a difference this made not only in his academic studies and grades, but in his current levels of success and happiness in his career and life as a whole.

    Hats off to you two in this wonderful endeavor! Please do keep us updated on what's coming, Sean.
  • Trina
    What a timely offering, my gal has been asking me if I could ask some of my online contacts for feedback pertaining to her writing....looking forward to helping you share your skills. Would like to chat more about particulars.
    Came back to edit, see you answered about an age group. My gal is 14, but perhaps we could chat more anyhow
  • Janice: Thank you Janice. Your endless support is always appreciated and never forgotten.

    Sal: Great question. We will cover all the bases from early phonemic awareness to independent middle grade writers. Our first workshop will be called "Writing Roots" and focuses on elementary school aged children. The newsletter, however, is a catch all for everybody and does not cost a cent to sign up for. Details will be given there.
  • Sal
    Just got a quick question to help people decide...what is the age group you are looking for? Obviously, they need to be able to write, but just as a general frame of reference, what age range are you willing to accomidate?
  • Cindy and Sean - I'll do everything I can to support this venture and help you earn your living from your talents and your love. Loving our families and the beauty and power of the written word is where our hearts met and melted. I share the longing you have to empower the children who will inherit our planet, our twilight years, and the creative best of our time here. You know my background and my mission. If I can ever be of any help behind the scenes, please let me know.

    Touch a rock and you touch the past. Touch a flower and you touch the present. Touch a child and you touch the future. ~ Anonymous (but it touched my heart a while back on Writer Dad)
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