Archive for the ‘Writing Exercises’ Category

NaNoWriMo for Brave Writers!

NaNoWriMo for Brave Writers

What is NaNoWriMo?

NaNoWriMo, which stands for National Novel Writing Month, is a month-long creative writing endeavor and the largest writing event in the world. Participants eagerly sign up to write a 50,000 word novel in 30 days! The challenge encourages a warm community and oodles of fun surrounding writing—speaking directly to our Brave Writer hearts!

The Young Writers Program

The Young Writers Program (YWP) is the K-12 version of NaNoWriMo. Instead of the 50,000 word-count goal of the adult-version, YWP helps students set individualized word-count goals and divide their work into daily, achievable milestones. Click here for a grade-based chart on choosing word count goals.

“Tell your story, whatever story matters to you. It doesn’t matter how you tell it, just that you get it out into the world. Students, even those who thought they hated writing, get invested. It becomes the best part of their day. By the end of the month, they’ve worked so hard, developed confidence and new skills, and have their very own novel to show off!”

—Marya Brennan, Young Writers Program Director.

NaNoWriMo for Brave Writers

The Young Writers Program offers a free online forum where students can

  • connect with other Wrimos through a private chat room,
  • update their novel writing progress,
  • receive encouragement and more!

The Young Writers Program is private and is only viewed by other members of the Young Writers Program. It is also monitored regularly by NaNoWriMo staff.

We have created our own online classroom where Brave Writers can connect. Brave Writer staff will occasionally check into this classroom, but please keep in mind we will not be reading students’ novels, assigning any grades or determining word count goals. We will check in to see how everyone is doing and provide plenty of cheerleading!

To join the Brave Writer classroom:

  1. Visit the Young Writers Program and sign up for an account.
  2. You will be prompted to join a classroom by entering a code. Our classroom code is: CKXQFLWR
  3. Our classroom name is NaNoWriMo for Brave Writers!

Free Resources

Will you join us in this fun, month-long roller coaster ride of words in November?

P.S. Keep your eyes peeled for chances to win fun NaNoWriMo swag! UPDATED: Go here for giveaway info.


NaNoWriMo for Brave Writers
Classroom Code: CKXQFLWR

7-Day Writing Blitz HIGHLIGHTS

Brave Writer 7-Day Writing Blitz Highlights

Brave Writer’s 7-Day Writing Blitz upends the dynamics of writing and invites your kids to play with words in brand new ways!

Thousands of homeschooling families around the world launched their writing programs this year with the free 7- Day Writing Blitz Guide as a launch pad for creativity. These parents led their children into a creative romp with words that culminated in sharing their writing as a gift!

Kids wrote words everywhere! Words were scrawled on mirrors, pavement, fingers, t-shirts, and dishes. Kids wrote with chalk, paint, mustard, markers, and lipstick. Our Brave Writers wrote sitting in trees and blanket forts, cuddled with dogs and even hanging upside down!

You can use the Blitz any time you’d like to bust through boredom and recast the writing experience.

Each day of the blitz entices young writers to throw out their stale habits and embark on a new relationship with words: whether you trade the pencils for glitter pens, scribble on fence posts, or mash up a couple of poems to create a brand-new verse. The sky’s the limit!

Take a look at what thousands of children like yours did in our first blitz! Use the hashtag #bw7dayblitz when you share your children’s writing on social media so we can celebrate with you!

At the end of the 7 days, print certificates for your kids and celebrate! Your writing life is about to change. Can’t wait to see how! Download the 7-Day Writing Blitz Guide now. It’s free—just like writing.

7-Day Writing BLITZ!

Brave Writer's 7-Day Writing Blitz

Introducing the 7-Day Writing Blitz!

What is a 7-Day Writing Blitz? It’s about EXPLODING the dynamics around language and helping your kids take that deep plunge into writing in an invitational, fun, enchanted way. Because writing is not about performing for school; it’s about life and self-expression.

For seven straight days, your kids will write, but it’s going to surprise them. Our FREE PDF comes with seven days of manageable writing projects appropriate for all writing ages. These daily prompts will encourage your kids to

  • play with language,
  • use unconventional writing utensils and surfaces,
  • and cultivate good writing habits.

Also in our free packet we give you directions for how to build a Writing Blitz Jet Pack (pictured in the image above) to help you enchant the writing experience for your kids.Brave Writer's 7-Day Writing Blitz

Download the guide HERE

And if your child decides they want to change the prompts? Excellent! There are no rules in Brave Writer. This is about being brave.

 

#BW7DayBlitz

Nature Journaling

Best of the Brave Writer Blog: Nature Journaling

The world is mud-luscious and puddle-wonderful. ~e.e. cummings

Nature Journaling is an important part of the Brave Writer Lifestyle. Turn the exploration of the great, messy outdoors into a joyful writing opportunity!

The Basics

  • Walk together.
  • Collect little rocks, leaves, twigs, mosses, acorns, flowers, and feathers.
  • Bring them home.
  • Set a few of them on a large sheet of white paper in the center of the table.
  • Using drawing pencils and paper, sketch one or more of the items.
  • Then record a few details about the object or the day. One good sentence about the color, or texture or the memory of collecting it or what it looks like, or what it reminds the writer of, is perfect.

Branch Out!

Here are three blog posts full of tips that will enhance your nature journaling experience.

If You are New to Nature Journaling

Nature Journaling Wherever You Are

Writing Exercise: Make Your Nature Walk a Color Walk!

Also, Brave Writer offers an online class each spring and fall that is designed to make nature journaling a natural part of your life. Click on the image below to learn more.

Nature Journaling

Ten 30-Second Writing Exercises

Ten 30-second writing exercises
Here are ten writing exercises that will take about thirty seconds each. The aim is not to create a masterpiece or change your entire writing life–the aim is to write for at least thirty seconds.

Also, for children in the Jot It Down or Partnership Writing stages, parents should feel free to transcribe their kids’ thoughts for 30-seconds.

Pick an exercise, set the timer, and GO!

1. One Sense

Sit down and pick ONE of your senses–sight, smell, hearing, taste, or touch. Then describe everything you feel with that sense, right now. Do you see the sky out of the window and your dogs on the sofa? Do you hear the clock ticking and traffic outside? Whichever sense you choose, write down as much detail as possible in thirty seconds. Go!

2. Song

Put on a song you love and write as the first thirty seconds play. How does it make you feel? Happy, sad, moved, inspired, impassioned? Why do you like it? Do you have strong memories linked with that song? Jot it down.

3. One word

Open a dictionary, close your eyes, pick a random word, and write about it. Go on, see how much you can write about one word in thirty seconds. It doesn’t matter if you think it’s great or silly or you think it’s a beautiful word that everyone should use in every conversation. Write it!

4. Special memory

Pick a favorite memory, a day that was special to you. Why was it special? What did you do? Who was there with you? What was the best moment? List those out.

5. Sum it up

Think about the previous day of your life and sum it up in one phrase. Something like “Best day ever,” “A total drag,” or “Dull but productive.” Then do the same for the day before yesterday, and the day before that, and the day before that, until you run out of time.

6. Alteration

Write a sentence of five words. Now quickly change the sentence one word at a time. For example:

“I love my fluffy cat.”
“I love my fluffy slippers.”
“I lost my fluffy slippers.”
“I miss my fluffy slippers.”

See where it takes you in half a minute!

7. A conversation

Pick up two nearby objects, put them side by side, and write a short conversation between the two of them. What would your pencil case say to your hairbrush if they were in love? What would an argument between your pen and your eraser be like? Or imagine that they met for the first time.

8. Forward in time

What do you plan to do as soon as you’re done writing? Then what after that? And after that? Keep going till the timer stops.

9. One letter

Pick the letter of the alphabet that your name begins with then write down ten different words that begin with that letter. Give your vocabulary a 30-second workout!

10. It’s a fact

Write a fact about yourself–the more interesting, the better. Then change ONE word. For example, “I love wearing hats” could become “I hate wearing hats,” or “I love wearing earrings.” Once you’ve got your new statement, write down a name you like that’s not yours. That is the name of a character you’ve just created.

Enjoy! Later you might expand some of these freewrites into writing projects.

Brave Writer Online Class Middle School Writing Projects