Childhood is one of the most creative times in a person’s life. Without the time constrictions on free time that adults have, children can write daily. Whether free writing, journaling, or writing stories, writing is a useful skill. Since children have many distractions (technology, even siblings and sports), you can inspire young writers not only to take the time to write, but also to enjoy writing, with a few tips.

Inspire Your Child Not Only To Write More, But Also To Love Writing

Writing should encourage joy in your child. Never make writing a punishment or unhappy activity. Instead, share with your child how much you enjoy writing. Show them something you wrote (a letter, email, or text is fine if you don’t write much). Explaining that writing is important to you will help your child understand why writing matters.

How To Inspire Young Writers

As a mother who loves to write, I enjoy sharing this passion with my children. Writing is part of my life, and I hope it becomes part of my daughters’ lives too. Check out three tips to inspire young writers to truly see themselves as writers.

1.) Help your child become a better writer.

Struggling with basic literacy skills can make writing an unhappy experience. Build your child’s skills by setting time aside to read together. Since children copy their parent’s behaviors, you can read separate books near each other. Quiet reading time is a nice, calm time in my home. We also have quiet writing time. Sometimes I write articles, while my daughter works on writing books and short stories.

Read children’s books aloud often. I try to read three children’s books aloud everyday, although on busy nights, it’s only one or two.  Sometimes, instead of focusing on the story, go over the spelling of words or sentence structure. Start this at a young age, and continue as your child gets older. Ask questions about the story, and encourage your child to question the story aloud too. 

Ask your child about the author’s point of view and background. Since my daughter was a toddler, I pointed out the author’s name and explained the author’s role in creating the book. We also talk about the publisher and the illustrator – even the copyright date and the place it was published – to help her understand how a book is made. Last year, she loved being able to interview an author via Youtube, and was excited to receive a video response. Check out the article about this fun experience here.

Visit book festivals, and go see authors read their books aloud. Connecting with authors shows that writing is about more than just the technical skills, while revealing that with an imagination and determination, you can get a book published. 

2.) Give your child the supplies, time, and space to write.

Double check that your child has everything necessary to write. Take a special trip to a bookstore to pick out a journal with a nice cover (or two). I also keep many inexpensive composition books around the house. Having easy access to paper at all times makes writing a simple activity to do. Double check that your child owns a good pencil sharpener – the electric kind is best for sharp pencils – and some mechanical pencils as well.

Block out writing time for your child. Whether you set aside time daily or weekly, a schedule is important to have or you won’t make it a priority. During this time, don’t mention chores or homework. As long as your child is writing, you shouldn’t interfere.

When you are setting up a writing space, a desk is ideal. Writing space should be separate from the craft area. In my home, the art table is never clean. Double check that there is plenty of natural light as well as a lamp for writing in the evening.

To give your child the space to write, check that the area is quiet. If you have multiple children, encourage them to write separately at the same time. You can also have the older sibling be a peer teacher to the younger one, but make sure that you give the older one time to write without distractions too.

3.) Provide prompts and feedback.

Listen to your child’s writing. Make a big deal about finished writing projects, and help bind them into books or allow your child to type them on your computer.

Do shared writing activities together. Even updating your social media can involve teaching your child how to write. Sometimes I ask my daughter to pick out her favorite picture from our day together, and she helps me come up with captions to write. We can do this during out busy work and school day without setting much time aside.

Writing doesn’t have to be quiet time, sitting in isolation in front of a paper. We play many games at home that teach storytelling. You can check out some cooperative writing games and activities here. 

When your child is doing independent writing, help with prompts and suggestions. To help your child get started on a story, check out this list of More Than 50 Writing Prompts For Kids.

If you see a place that could use more details, ask questions about the story. Encourage your child to add descriptive words and to explain what happens next.

What Makes You Want To Encourage Your Child To Write?

I’ve always loved writing and surrounding myself with writers. My grandmother wrote newspaper articles her whole life (frequently sharing stories of her travels abroad with my family), and she co-authored a book about Dottie West. This was a big inspiration in my life. 

Share in the comments what led you to this article. Why do you want your child to write more?

For more parenting tips, you can find Theresa’s Reviews on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, Flipboard and Youtube.

About The Author

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Theresa has been writing since 2010 in magazines and online. Her lifestyle and parenting expertise has been featured in publications, including ShopSmart and Scholastic. She earned an M.Ed in Elementary Education from Vanderbilt as well as a BA in History from Flagler College, and she is a certified teacher.

43 Responses

  1. Kimberly

    These are such great tips. My kids are still learning and just learning to write letters, but I will definitely start using as many of these as I can to help foster a love for writing in them as they get older.

    Reply
  2. Shelah

    Being a good writer can help in so many areas of life. From getting a good grade on an assignment to being able to craft the perfect complaint letter, good writing skills are so helpful. You have some wonderful tips on how to foster a love of writing!

    Reply
  4. Stacey Herrera

    Excellent tips! I think it’s so important to encourage and nurture children. And the arts hold a special place in my heart, especially writing. Creating an environment where children can explore their crafts is beautiful… and it provide a lifelong foundation for expansion.

    Reply
  6. Debbie

    Awesome tips!! I find that kids always drag their feet about writing, but it’s such an important skill, no matter how technological this world becomes. We will always NEED writers! I’m always telling my child how powerful writers are, and how important their written words can be. The book ‘Billy’s Booger’ by William Joyce is another great inspiration for young writers.

    Reply
  7. Sue Parke

    I love to write, and I truly hope my daughter grows up loving it too. Such a great way to express emotions and be creative. This is a great post, pinning for future reference!

    Reply
  8. robin masshole mommy

    Love this. My 12 year old has expressed an interest in writing recently, so I want to make sure I encourage him as much as possible.

    Reply
  9. Jessi

    My daughter is almost 4 and learning to write her letters. She is getting really good at it though. She can spell her name and write it (mostly) without help. We do read almost every night, it is one of her favorite things!

    Reply
  10. Cara (@StylishGeek)

    This is a fascinating piece you wrote and I do love it! I like the idea of motivating our children to write. My daughter is now a teen, but when she was younger I tried my best to encourage her to read and write. I started with asking her to do a journal, and she is not limited to just writing. She can do brainstorming, draw, or other things too. I was surprised that to this day she still continues to journal-write. And that makes me proud. 🙂

    Reply
  11. katriza

    I like that we should provide some prompts to get them thinking! I think it’s so important to get our kids to love to write! It’s a great way to learn and express ourselves!

    Reply
  14. Amanda Love

    I think it’s wonderful to encourage your kids to write, it allows them to be more creative and to use their imagination as well. This will inspire them to read more too, so that they can enhance their writing style.

    Reply
  17. Silvia

    Yes to all of these tips! I loved writing as a kid and my mom would give me random topics on which to write about. I loved it!

    Reply
  20. Roxanne

    My kids are still pretty young, but I want them to love writing as much as I do! It has been a source of stress relief and an creative outlet my whole life!

    Reply
  22. Megan

    Very informative and helpful. I don’t have any children but as a blogger, I believe that clear writing is a sign of clear thinking.

    Reply
  23. Rachel @ Kitchen Cents

    What a fabulous article to share. I have a little sister that likes to write. These would be great for her. 🙂 Encouragement is nice no matter if you’re a beginner or expert I think.

    Reply
  25. Heather

    My kids absolutely love writing – at least now at the very young ages of 8 & 6. I try to always encourage them with their stories, and don’t try to have them self-edit (spelling/grammar) so that they can just get their ideas out.

    Reply
  26. Liz

    This is a great post. I love your idea about putting the written pieces they do together in a book. I think my daughter would love to do that with me.

    Reply
  28. Jalisa

    I always loved writing as kid and throughout high school. Now I’m starting to write as a living. I never knew it would catch up to me.

    Reply
  32. Melynda Sorrels

    Wonderful ideas. I think that encouraging writing from a young age is so important!

    Reply
  33. Justine

    Hi! This is such a great article! With social media taking over and 140 characters becoming the norm, I cringe when my students write “gonna” and i tell my husband — “our kids will not write like this!!!” Thanks so much!

    Reply
  36. Amber

    These are such great tips! I don’t have any kiddos but as a creative I can say that some of things surely helped in fostering my art!

    Reply
  38. Lianne

    I love these tips, eventhough I don’t have children yet. When I do, I will definitely do the quite reading and writing time. So important!

    Reply
  39. Tilly Smith

    Very much helpful and wonderful tips. You hit the bull. Normally children do not behave against the thing taught by us until we are giving them less time. Providing them books and then ask them to write in their own words may also a very beneficial to make them a best writer.

    Reply

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