Third grade is the perfect time to master basic writing skills. A good foundation will help your child communicate ideas effectively whether he is writing a report, giving a presentation, or keeping a journal.
The key to teaching your child to love and enjoy writing is to go slow and steady. Jumping into the deep end of the writing pool can be overwhelming. Take a moment to explore our series of blog posts that cover the steps to good writing one at a time.
Master the skills in Writing: Part 1, Writing: Part 2, and Writing: Part 3, then jump into these 3rd-grade writing standards.
My secret tool for writing success with kids is the mighty freewrite. Like building muscles for sports and exercise, the freewrite builds writing skills for mastering all kinds of writing. A freewrite is a simple exercise of putting a pen to paper and writing with no rules. Whatever comes to your mind, put it on paper. Editing will come much later. In a freewrite, you can let the words flow without thought to spelling, grammar, or even punctuation. The idea is to get your thoughts on the page. Here are clear instructions for how to help your child with freewriting from Brave Writer. Freewriting can be used with fiction and nonfiction writing. It can even be a brainstormed list to get started. Pick up a pen or pencil, set a times for 3-5 minutes, choose a prompt, and write your heart out.
Learn how to help your child take notes and research a project here.
Visit Reading Rockets to view samples of third-grade writing and get suggestions for common errors.
More on writing with third-graders from Great Schools.
Visit the Richland Library's SC Education Standards page.
The titles below will help you and your child explore writing. Want us to pull books for you? Contact us at 803-799-9084 and request to have books sent to your nearest Richland Library location.