Friday Freewrite: Teddy Bear
Today’s freewriting prompt:
Look at the image above (a child is dragging a teddy bear by the arm across the grass). What is the teddy bear thinking?
New to Freewriting?
Freewriting is that wonderful key that unlocks the writer within. It’s the vehicle by which we trick our inner selves into divesting the words and ideas that we want to share but are afraid won’t come out right on paper if we do. So, read the freewriting prompt, set the timer for 5-10 minutes then write whatever comes to mind. Just keep the pencil moving!
Need more help? Check out our free online guide.
[Podcast #257] The Right to Play: An Interview with Eloise Rickman
What does it mean to be adultist? Do children have a right to not brush their teeth… or the right not to have cavities? Eloise Rickman joins the show today to discuss her new book, It’s Not Fair, Why It’s Time for a Grown-Up Conversation About How Adults Treat Children.
We have a big juicy conversation about:
- human development,
- education,
- societal structures,
- lived experiences,
- and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
If you’re looking for absolute answers, then this episode isn’t for you. But if you want to hear three homeschool moms discuss how they find the daily balance between guiding children and listening to them, you’re in the right place.
Show Notes
What is Adultism
Adultism is the concept that children across all areas of society tend to occupy a minoritized, discriminated against position. Adultism is a structural concept, not something that is happening in individual homes. Using the lens of adultism, we can critically examine things like educational policies that are harmful to children’s full development and current environment.
Being a Responsible Adult
What does it mean to be a responsible adult through the lens of adultism? Does it mean you should let your child eat only candy, never brush their teeth, and stay up all night? No, it means engaging with your child in a respectful manner, honoring their individuality and development stage.
Eloise points to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child as a starting point for adults, and even kids, who are curious about this topic.
Resources
- Connect with Eloise on Instagram: @mightymother_
- Check out Eloise’s website is: EloiseRickman.com
- Find her book, It’s Not Fair: Why It’s Time for a Grown-Up Conversation About How Adults Treat Children in the Brave Writer Bookshop: bravewriter.com/book-shop
- Learn more about the Brave Writer Literature & Mechanics programs
- Check about all Brave Writer class descriptions
- Click here for the Class Schedule for Fall
- Learn more about Becoming a Critical Thinker workbook
- Start a free trial of CTCmath.com to try the math program that’s sure to grab and keep your child’s attention.
- Read the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child
- Watch “School Circles”
- Sign up for our Text Message Pod Ring to get podcast updates and more!
- Send us podcast topic ideas by texting us: +1 (833) 947-3684
Connect with Julie
- Instagram: @juliebravewriter
- Threads: @juliebravewriter
- Twitter: @bravewriter
- Facebook: facebook.com/bravewriter
Connect with Melissa
- Website: melissawiley.com
- Substack: melissawiley.substack.com
- Instagram: @melissawileybooks
- Twitter: @melissawiley
Produced by NOVA Media
Instead of Control—Connection
We wish there were a formula for raising kids.
I wish we cared more about the privilege of knowing them.
If the parenting tricks and tips don’t work for you, could it be that your goal is not connection but control? Control through the “guise” of relationship?
- Know your children.
- Drop the shoulds.
- Stay curious and connected.
Cooperation is for your comfort. Relationship is for theirs.
Be interested in why they threw their food or won’t stay asleep or hate wearing shoes or refuse to listen.
Lean in.
Know your kids: who they are over how they are.
This post is originally from Instagram and @juliebravewriter is my account there so come follow along for more conversations like this one!
Friday Freewrite: Color Change
Today’s freewriting prompt:
One autumn, a lone tree decided to turn their green leaves hot pink instead of their usual orange. Write what happened!
New to Freewriting?
Freewriting is that wonderful key that unlocks the writer within. It’s the vehicle by which we trick our inner selves into divesting the words and ideas that we want to share but are afraid won’t come out right on paper if we do. So, read the freewriting prompt, set the timer for 5-10 minutes then write whatever comes to mind. Just keep the pencil moving!
Need more help? Check out our free online guide.
Get Ready for Essay Writing
Whether you and your teen are waiting for our Essay Prep: Research and Citation class to start or you’re tackling essays on your own, check out this conversation idea that sets the stage for scholarly discourse.
Warmup Exercise
Help your kids learn the difference between a qualified statement and a sweeping statement.
Sweeping Statement
Here’s an example of a sweeping statement:
White sugar makes kids hyperactive and unruly.
When you make a statement like the one above, the reader feels motivated to invalidate it. They want to find an exception! So they search their minds for the one kid who eats sugar all day long and is mostly a sweet, sleepy kid.
That’s not what you want in a persuasive essay.
Qualified Statement
Instead, make a qualified statement—which invites the reader to consider if they’ve seen that correlation:
For some kids, white sugar can create hyperactivity and sometimes leads to unruly behavior.
Immediately, the reader tries to validate the argument by finding examples from their own experience that match the statement.
Qualified statements seem like they’d be less persuasive, but they are actually MORE persuasive and much more effective in academic writing.
With your student, create other examples of sweeping and qualified statements.
Essay Prep: Research and Citation
Once upon a time, students got their information from books at the library, not the internet. Remember that? One thing’s for sure, the academic terrain is different from when we were in school!
You need a refresher. Your kids need the low-down. That’s why we created Essay Prep: Research and Citation.
This class teaches:
- How to find reliable, essay-worthy information on the internet
- How to take notes and collect your research effectively
- The most current expectations surrounding how to format an essay
- How to cite sources (to avoid inadvertently plagiarizing!)
- The trick to skilled paraphrasing
Print the materials from this online class, and voilà! You have a handbook for all your teen’s academic writing needs until college, and without fretting over skills you’ve forgotten!