Four Tips To Encourage Your Children To Write This Summer

Summer break is just around the corner, and with it comes days at the pool or park with friends, camping in the backyard, bike rides, and a lot of ice cream!

That’s right. No school means plenty of time for fun.

But unfortunately, it also means learning loss for many children.

So, if you’re looking for a way to beat the summer slide this year, read on as I share with you four ways to encourage your teens or pre-teens to write and keep them learning over the summer break.

Buy A Vacation Journal

Whether you’re planning a trip abroad with your family or simply want to go on fun local adventures together with your children, investing in a travel vacation journal can be a fantastic way to keep them writing throughout the summer. For instance, you could encourage your kids to sit down at the end of a busy day filled with adventures, write down everything they’ve done, and reflect on their experiences. This will make writing fun and allow them to reminisce about these exciting times when they’re older.

Get Them To Write A Mini Book

I’m yet to find a young writer who doesn’t get excited about seeing their work printed into a book! You could, for instance, prompt your children to write a story and add their own illustrations or photos to bring their narrative to life.

And the good thing is that they can even use apps to create their digital book and get it printed. While you’ll find many apps to create online books for kids, I love the Book Creator for its simplicity and interactive features, which foster creativity and keep children engaged.

Check Your Local Youth Writing Project

I believe that writing contests are up there for encouraging children to write and turning writing into a passion for them. Writing contests often feature a theme or revolve around a genre, and children can sometimes even win a prize.

You can either find online writing contests, some of which run a few times a year like the Write The World Competitions or the NaNoWriMo Young Writers Program, or look for writing summer camps or local youth writing projects in your area.

Buy A Vacation Scrapbook

Creating a vacation scrapbook is another fun way for your kids to keep writing while recording memories. When I was younger, I used to love looking at developed photographs from our family holidays and stacking them together in a family photo album.

The idea with a vacation scrapbook is the same!

Buy a Polaroid camera and encourage your kids to snap away as they go on little adventures every day. Then, prompt them to write about their days and add pictures and other memorabilia representing their adventures and activities. Not only does this make writing exciting, but it’s a fun activity you can all enjoy together when they show you their work.

And why not make a family scrapbook where you all contribute?!

And if after following all of these tips, you find that your children still don’t like to write, don’t hesitate to get in touch. I’ve been helping children find their inner writer for years and would love to help yours too! Sparking children’s curiosity about writing can be challenging, but it’s also extremely rewarding.