Are you a kid who loves to write? Are you struggling to come up with epic story ideas? Look no further! We have the perfect tips and tricks for coming up with amazing ideas for stories.
Writing can be incredibly fun, especially when it comes to creating your own stories from the ground up. But coming up with great story ideas can sometimes be challenging, especially if you’re new to writing or just don’t know where to start.
Luckily, there are some tried-and-true methods that can help you come up with lots of amazing story ideas.
What Are the 5 Basic Writing Skills?
Writing is an important skill for students to have as they progress through their education, and there are five basic skills that can help them develop it:
- Students need to learn how to use grammar correctly, structure sentences correctly, make clear transitions between ideas, select appropriate words and phrases for the text, and use punctuation accurately.
- These fundamental writing components are the building blocks of strong written communication skills.
- With proper instruction and practice, these skills not only help students become proficient writers in school but also equip them with a valuable skill to take into life beyond the classroom.
If you want your child to learn more writing tips for kids – or are perhaps looking for guidance yourself – don’t hesitate to sign up for writing lessons. You’ll learn all the writing tips you need to know, like what you see in the video below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYyBvG3wCpA
Creative Writing Tips for Kids
One of the most common obstacles for a writer is the ability to come up with story ideas. Though all children, and adults for that matter, have them lodged somewhere in their brains, the trick is getting them out and on paper. So what are the best writing tips for kids to release their inner Shakespeare and develop a great plot line? Here are a few ideas to try out…
Draw on real life experiences
One of the best writing tips for kids for finding great story ideas is to draw on real-life experiences. Has your child recently won a big game? Overcome an obstacle? Reached a goal they set for themselves? These experiences can be used not only as the basis for a story, but to draw out emotions in the reader as well.
Keep a creative notebook
One of the simplest writing tips for kids is to keep a creative notebook to log interesting phrases and conversations they overhear; notes about images, locations, and people; or just thoughts about the world around them. Items logged in a creative notebook can easily result in new ideas, dialogue, plot twists, and more for an upcoming story.
Brainstorm
For children having difficulty deciding on a plot, encourage brainstorming. For each of your child’s possible plot lines, have them examine multiple possible outcomes. This will often help them identify their best option. Example: Suppose you have a protagonist that suffered a sports injury during a game at the beginning of the season. What are the possible results? He or she could discover another passion, the injury is overcome, the player becomes a coach, and so on.
Play “What if…”
This is one of the most effective writing tips for kids when you’re brainstorming story ideas. Start with “what if” and fill in the rest with ideas from common to crazy!
Go people-watching
Have your child sit down somewhere, such as a park, restaurant, or coffee shop, and write down not only what they observe but conversations they are exposed to. Overheard stories offer ample opportunity for creativity, especially when changed slightly and given a fun creative twist.
Use visual stimulation.
From newspaper photographs to surrealistic paintings, parks, and other interesting geographic locations, images can evoke both emotion and creative ideas in your children.
Read
Reading the works of other writers, ranging from classic books to local newspaper columns, can inspire an array of story ideas your child may not otherwise be able to come up with on their own. Bonus: This is one of the writing tips for kids that can also improve their vocabulary, grammar, and reading retention!
Write regularly
Great ideas often come from the simple act of writing regularly, whether it’s a paragraph or a full-blown essay. This can be one of the most difficult writing tips for kids, however, especially when they’d rather be glued to the TV or the computer. Writing for even just 20 minutes a day, however, keeps creative juices flowing and prevents stagnation. For a fun creative writing exercise when your child (or you) are drawing a blank, try Scholastic Story Starters.
Write fast
Don’t overthink it! Ideas are more easily generated when you write as much as you can, as quickly as you can. Explain to your child there is no need to think about the complete story or even sentence structure when trying to come up with a plot line or purge ideas onto paper. A large volume of unencumbered writing allows the brain to unload, often containing a wealth of story possibilities and a variety of thoughts that can be incorporated into your child’s work later on.
More Great Writing Tips for Kids
Writing can be a daunting task, but it doesn’t have to be. Whether your kid is writing an essay, a story, or a fantasy novel, these writing tips for kids can help them become the author they never knew they could be.
From coming up with ideas for their stories and creating vivid descriptions to developing characters and crafting plots – let’s dive into some great writing tips for kids!
Essay Writing Tips for Kids
Writing essays can seem daunting for young and inexperienced writers, but fortunately there are several strategies that can make the process simpler.
First, it’s important to ensure your essay will answer the prompt by brainstorming ideas and constructing an outline. This allows kids to plan for a coherent and well-structured response.
Kids should include their own voice in the essay by using concrete examples from their daily life or from books they have read to illustrate their point. Finally, they should always proofread and edit work carefully before submitting it as this allows them to identify any typos or mistakes they may have made while writing.
Fantasy Writing Tips for Kids
Encouraging kids to write fantasy stories can open many creative windows for them. It can be helpful to provide some guidance on how to get started, such as engaging in pre-writing activities like free writing or brainstorming; creating a storyboard that outlines the main elements of the tale; and establishing character goals and motivation.
Kids should also understand that fantasy stories do not always have to include magical creatures such as dragons or elves – there’s plenty of room for modern fantasy too! Additionally, interweaving strong themes into their writing can help them explore ideas or represent parts of themselves.
Story Writing Tips for Kids
Want some tips for writing a kids book or short story?
The first step of any good story is coming up with an idea. To get the creative juices flowing, encourage your kid to look around their environment and observe what’s happening in the world.
Perhaps there’s a unique character in their neighborhood or an interesting event taking place at school that could serve as inspiration for the plot of their story. Once they have some ideas down on paper, encourage them to elaborate on each one until they find one that really resonates with them.
Once they have settled on an idea it’s time to start developing characters and creating descriptions. Help them come up with physical attributes for each character so that readers have an image of what each character looks like in their head.
Additionally, it’s important to create backstories for each character so that readers can connect with each individual person in the story. Similarly, help your kid come up with interesting adjectives to describe scenes and settings within the story so that readers will be able to form vivid images in their heads as they read through the text.
Crafting a good plot is all about making sure each scene moves the story forward without getting bogged down by details or subplots that aren’t necessary for the main narrative arc.
Encourage your kid to ask themselves how each scene contributes something new or different from those before it? Does it introduce new characters? Provide backstory? Move the plot forward? Once all these questions are answered then you know you are on track towards crafting a compelling plot!
What is the Easiest Way to Teach a Child to Write?
With these tips, coming up with great story ideas will be easier than ever before! Brainstorming, using your senses, and doing research are all excellent ways of inspiring yourself creatively so that you can create amazing stories that will captivate readers from start to finish. So get out there and start writing – the possibilities are endless!
So what is the easiest way to teach a kid to write?
One-on-one lessons with a great tutor who has writing and publishing experience can really help your child develop their writing skills. Established authors, teachers, and tutors can help young writers with the creative process, plot line and story structure, grammar, and style, challenging them in ways the typical parent cannot. Tutors are seen as an unbiased source, so the encouragement and constructive criticism they give can be incredibly helpful.
The next time your child is spending hours staring at a blank page, help them set their ideas free with these simple writing tips for kids. Get those creative juices flowing and they’ll be hard-pressed to put the pencil down!
Photo by Alexandratx
Megan L.