We’re now past halfway through the Easter school holidays and most parents are somewhere on the spectrum of thriving to about to lose their minds. Where are you on that spectrum?
Maybe you’re exhausted from all the outdoor activities as you make the most of the sunshine we’ve been missing in NSW over the past couple of months.
Maybe you’ve heard the phrase “I’m bored, there’s nothing to do” one too many times.
Maybe you’ve run out of ideas to occupy the children.
The matter of what to do with the children during any school holidays is a common dilemma among school-aged parents. Just when you think you’ve solved it in one set of holidays, another rolls around (school terms seem to fly by!) and you’re back where you started – searching for ways to entertain the children.
When you add the objective of wanting your child to continue learning and growing when school is not in session, this narrows the list of possibilities and makes the task even harder.
That’s why in this blog, we share a few fun ideas to get your child writing creatively during the Easter school holidays.
Why encourage children to engage in creative writing? Shouldn’t Easter involve other creative activities such as crafts?
Over the years, your child has probably done a range of crafts at Easter – from decorating egg shells, to creating a paper plate Easter bunny or even forming an origami bunny (that requires much skill and attention to detail).
However, the creativity shouldn’t stop there. Though it may not be the first activity children suggest for holiday fun, writing is a great way to continue to grow your child’s communication skills between school terms.
As we’ve mentioned in a previous blog, the ability to write and communicate meaning effectively is crucial for future success. We use fundamental writing strategies every day – planning, drafting, editing, and tailoring our language for a specific audience – these skills are often used without us realising it. The more your child engages in writing, the stronger their communication skills, positioning them well for their schooling years and beyond.
The key is to make it fun and enjoyable.
There are plenty of ways your child can write creatively without making it feel like they’re doing schoolwork during the holidays. To add to the fun and take a different approach, you can choose to focus on the Easter theme.
For both adults and children, journaling is good for processing thoughts, emotions and ideas through words. You can encourage your child to engage in this activity by giving them a holiday project to journal once a day and reflect on their collection of journal entries at the end of the holidays. You could even use the incentive that this will help them remember what they did during the holidays for when they see their friends back at school. Children love recounting their adventures with other children!
Here are a few journal writing prompts based on the Easter theme:
Writing stories is another way to help children develop their creativity – a versatile skill that will prove valuable to them throughout their lives. Get your child to write a short story or two using prompts to get them started. They can even read these stories aloud to the family once complete.
Here are a few Easter story starters you can use:
Try these creative writing activities with your child today and you’ll be surprised at how effectively they engage their mind and get lost in the fun of it. If they want more, we also offer Holiday Writing courses to help children discover their passion for writing and empower them to feel confident.
