I ' ' '

int _. ,. . . ' -gh ViSual A~ts

0 ·.·.. · ·: •
erpret1ng Literature th~ ~
1
·: . -'· ·"

'

Learning T:argets •

At the end ofth. · . . ,,

is lesson, you are expec ted to: ·. , r . • . ,

• dis • . .8kills ·among children,·

cuss the role of visual arts in developing !zteracy . . . ,. - , • .. ·

• ident,ify . ': . 'vitfesfor_s~ho~l-ag~ ch_zldren:·

examples ofcreative experiences and apll . 1
, :-, • • • ., •

• refl · . ·· d . the classroom,. · ·

ect on creat ive.ex periences that can be use m , : ·

( .
.. ,
Introduction -· .·. I •

. , . T~e painting~ ~rid ·s~ulpt~r~~ of the ·1~a~in~·~r!i~· ts-~o~ the ~enaissa'nce, ~eon :
• ·· · ·, · • .0.1n~ 0f a be1Oved text..· So has theBi
da ·v·.mci· and M1chelarigel~, are prized interp retat1 . .
.
c.
msp1red visual arts for centuries, which through c~refully chosen words were
works o(arts. U~ing visual' arts ·as ~ form to.·interact with literature can
do mu_
ing
promote lit~racy·among lea;ner's ..These'yisual arts may include p~i_ntin~, sk~tch
ics;
· drawing, sculpture.(clay,.dough), photography and digital art, textiles, mosa
is n
crafts, stamping, group 'murals, fa~h1on'and fabrics, and multicultural art. This
in crafting
. · sugge~t that ·aJiteratur~ teacher ;mild teach·art and engage the students
~is
~ t1'an teach lite~ature:'Rath~r, this.strat~gy is·me~nt to make the learner see, and
know)
·. for..h_imself what special,~~aning liter~ture inay offer beyond absorbing I • ' -. ~

that
,

· There·are limitless potentials and liter~cyJhat young learners, children for-

~ r • 1 , '

of
can derive in the _study liferat~re through t~e cre~tive.arena, such as the I
visual
that po
It is the aim of_t~is Ies_son' to make yoµ ~s a future literature guru to make I • ~
• •
,
socially,
. by .nurturing the holistic development of your learners intellectually,
• •

.emptionaliy'through visual arts (Langer, 1990): ,

'
' , . . .
' )
', '

, ,' '
r

THI NK ~
• •
>" /
g,
. Our experience~ tell us _t~at some children inhibit themselves from talkin
d~e to a lack of ~acility of expression or ~u~ to'. som~ emotional issues affec
ting thelllt
a
is·where·the arts com~ in ,as powerful ·.tool to help :children express themselve
s ·
s like
,cannot do in words. When .~ords are hard to come by, ~reative expression
·painting, .sculpting, o! other visual representation of,their feelings open
c•
·options and ~lternatives t~ e,nable them to express th~mse_lves and_to show
what
'" paving'the way for healthy developme nt .and love for. learning 1,Gan
~
d'ma,. 1
h J
tere b . , .
 . en this golden opportunity to tap the creativity and ingenuity of young minds ~nd
f 1 th t
ake learnin~ su~cess u , . ~ eacher JS . d · .
GtV
a vised for that matter not to be overbearing ay.d ~,
to tJl_ eering. D1ctatmg what t~ .do or what tQ use would, and could, ~ampen the enthusiasm
do111in arner, unless it is ne_cessary when it involves developing a skill like sewing or
f 1
o .the. e n essay where .spec1'fi1c sk'll '
1 s or strategies .
need to be taught (Althouse et
.
al., 2003).
wriung a . . . . . . ~ .
Analyzing grea~ liter~tu~e, ~~ndler (2~_09\ ·<?~i~es, is just like:_exa~ining·great art,

: ~l~ he integration ~farts m hterature provides opportunities for students on all levels ·to
strong literary skills as_we~l.as lit~r~cy ~ki!ls in ~~iting, speaking, and liste~ing. Just
as probing que~tions are_as~ed 1~ anal~~-1.ng an art :w~r~·, pr?bing.-questions ~re similarly
asked in literature...Prob~~~ and_~nal~~mg_~~~e~ted ~~r~~ ~rges ~net~ ask questi~~s, pay
ntion to details, conJecture and 1magme, and to draw insightful conclusions. Also, . .
atte . . ., , , . . . , . ~ , . . . .
brainpower is stimulated to . make _meanmg of words and .voc~bulary. In this ·pianner;
as students internali~e this habit__ of mind they dev~l~p _a~ re_aders·and _gai~ conridence
to handle and delve willingl~, _eagerly, _and enthusiastically into more ~omplex texts to
broaden their underst~nding of the world in unimaginable ways. · 1 • • · ,,
• • ' : t <• • . :~4. • • .: \ • 1 , ,' , ·, , ~, " •, ' • t' •

There _is no disputing what Eisner (1998) wrote, -"What ~annot be conveyed ·
. '. ' . .... '
~

or constructed i~ words )s often possi~le . i~ visual images ...." In: "Learning ·Art,
Learni~g Literacy," _Deford (2014),"educators· ~ith",the e~p~rtii~ and _know-how ori thi .
interrelationship between arts and iiteni~y -~xarriine books ~f thi~ n~ture to find out the .
truth behind Eis~er's w~rds. ;· . . . .. I} . .. ' . r • - •. .

.. • • ' r . • I. • r ; • ' . .. • \. ,. .; ~. I ,,,

)., • • • , • ' ••

In the first book, "The Power of Pictures,'~ the ·author explains how teachers can,
J • ' ~ I ' f ( • •. ' •l \ • • , . • ' J ' • l
through arts, urge stud~nts, particularly those ~ho'encounter.diff'iculfies in learning, make
1

great strides in the do~ai~s of b~th.readi~g-and ~riting. i Espe~i~lly with·children ~ho •

• f • ( • .. '.,j • • • ! •' (: : .·• < f ';' 1' .. r ' • , .... I ' •

, do not have the ·facility of expression, tlie author shows teache~s how teaching literary ·
• ; • ' • \ (

• • 'r•• \ '• • II ;
- ,, •
• • • + o

text through the medium of visual arts, be it a simple.art ·work,.can improve cognitive ·
• • I I • • • • ' f • ' f • ·• ' '," ~ ,'I • • - 4

skills and heighten-literacy achievement. Given ~xpo~ure to well-crafted pict~re books,

• ••

storybooks, and the like ~long with t~e-opportunity t~ dabbl~ in art,:the~~-chi.ld_ren~oozing ·

with rich .imag1nation a~d real~life. experiences, are 'able to recognize -words and make
• ( . I.,• • ' • . • •· •
artistic· representat~ons of these: With more ·encouragement, soon enough they b~come .
confident to craft and design their ~~~ creativ~·works and litei:a;y ','mas~erpi~ces." · . -.
I • • • ' ' j • , •• ' ( I • ,• •

. ' ( .
. In the second book, "Thinkil)g and . Learning through Drawing . in Primary
Classrooms,~' the author p·oints out how drawing; provides the avenue fof chiidren to· be ·
creative a~d to express them~elve~ with tnore freedom·and less re~traint. Whether they·u~e
drawing to express wh~t they feel, what they ~ee, a~d what they know·o~ to cre;tt; what their
mi~ds conceive, thi~ artistic -expression gi~es children a wider room.·to see and discover. .
the World from their limited ~orldview and an~ them with the con.fidenc
e_and assurance ,
to be themselves as they grapple to p~~s~nt their own fresh ideas in their art works. -The '.
_book infuses a new perspective in ·the teaching of literatu~~ by pointing out the uses_ of .
~rawing as a powerf~l to~l ·in lending support and encouragement to how children _tbmk_· ..
' , ' • • ~ ~ , I
 and learn. It equally gives compelling reasons for competent auth~rity to look into how arts,
considering their practical uses, merit, and relevance, can be ~ntegrated into the curriculum.

Arts are a powerful tool for literacy. 'Smith ·a nd Heri-'ing (1996) recognize the arts as
"hands on" experiences to build problem-solving and critical thinking skills. This is true, as in
t,-ie cas~ when a student is given an a~ work to:accomplish, and the student has to muster all
the s~ills like critical thinking, decision-JV.~king, analysis, focus and concentration, negotiati(?.n
ancl bargaining, communication, tea~ work, ~nd collaboration tQ·ac~ieve his purpose. Th~se
neces.s.ary set skills come
. to the
.
fore
'
and .come in
' ,
han4y on times ,
like this ,(Siks, .1983). At the
same time,. this leads the student to ii.time of reflection, contemplation, aQd self-aw~i:eness;,
• • • I\ • • I

When arts ~ctivities are integrated into .r eading lessops, it is amazing how children
. . .
art
'

do not get tired telling and retelling stories about their expe·r ience in creating their
' .
work. This validates what Mathieson (2015), in her action research study, found about the
impact of arts activities upon the: learners' literacy skills.

Catterall (2002) goes further in ·saying that the s<,1tisfacti~n, fulfillment, and the breadth
of experience a learner derives from arti~tic reasoning, visual arts instruction, ~nd fashioning
art works translate into improved writing skills such as organizing and sequencing ideas
and interpreting texts or reading between the lines besides enhancing rea~~ning and way of
thinking and eagerness for reading_. Othe~ studies also present evidence how the delight and
pleasure in art-making experiences encourage students to use and ·hone their skills in the
. '
performance of their tasks aside from intensifying their interest in learning activities.

Finally, Fung (2013), in an earlier study, P.<?ints out how the integration of meaningful
and purposeful artworks in the s~udy of literature.serves as a fertile·ground for innovativeness
and cr~ative ideas, in addition to developing and enhancing self.s:confidence and promoting
teamwork and collaboration. It, thus, behooves teachers to· impart learning in meaningful
ways to make the learner ever willing to learn.
 J
I I LE SS ON 10 ·.
I • \ .'

-;; ;rp fe tin_

•

g _
Li_ter at ar e .th ro ~g h Dr am a a.':'~ .P~ay· : .
· · •ng Targets ,.. ' 1 . •
Learn• • · . . ". ,.
, •
, . _
At the end of this less~n, you are -~~pe~ted ~~: : /.
,
1

.. . ' ,, . , ., .. ,
•, · . · h w e"+e ctive dra ma can serv e as a teaching tool in pro mot ing stud ent
• recognize o :11~ . , . !Ueracy; 1
, , • _ • • • . • • • . •
• . distinguish the _differe~ce betw een !e~ t-~e nte
r~d a~~ Text~~d~ed J?~~m~ ~~ t~e mai,:i .
· tegories in educational drama; and ·. • . •
ca . , .
·. • J i . • ~ . •• . . . _
. . . .
the ~on cep ts of .pu ppe try· and Rea der 's : The ater _in the Tex t-Ed ged 'Dr
• , .
I app 1
y ama .
•
. . ~ .
Jeature' "Teacher-in-Role." '· · , , , .
: ,. -. · . · . · .. . , ._
i.
I •

Introduction I , •
. ,.
• ~
.
•• • (. ' !
.
~
-
, Using dra ma as a teac hin g·_tool promotes the • I , ~ f , r-,. •

inte rest s of stud(?f:1tS.in_literacy. It is

based on_the premise th~t ~n in~olved child is an
interes~ed chil d, ~nd an i!ltere~ted .c hild
will l~arn. Drama, in this ca~e, dir~~tly i~vol~es
• the chil d, so it is an inv alua ble too l in • ' ! ._ ~
·literacy development (McMaster, 1998). It encomn
\ I f _ I
• ' ' ,
• • •

asses the fou r· mod alit ies of lan gua ge

•
.
I I
,. .
·arts: listening, speaking, read ing~and writing. Chi :

ldre n who·are cha llen ged by wri ting and

reading ~~u ld mos t li~ely.r~sp~nd positively t~ the'
ima gi~ ativ e and mul tise ~so cy leam i~g
offe~ed by dra ~a. .Since dr;m a· is_'a' n~tural par t_
\ '~f chil dre n's iive s, this art fo~ ' c~~ be··
• •• <,

used to encourage students to le~rfl: interactivel

( •
• \
• •

y and actively as it enc our age s stud ents

:. .,

·to understand and express ,various· points

. . '
. .
of view. Stu den ts also •develop sof t skil ls. like
. . ;

fidence, emp~thy~ coo per atio n, Jeadership,. ·

creativity, . ~ommunic~tion, inqu iry; ~elf-con ·., ' '

. and negotiation (Fan~er, •20~1) . .so, it ·com est~ developing literacy, inco rpo rati ng w~en
drama in the curriculum and class dynamic wil l
.. '
eJ?,r ich the lear nin g' process. .: . :.►• ~
.. .•
. 1.' • •
'
t •
I .. .

.... \.
• I j J \.. ! ' t, ,\ J
• •, l
' . ,.
.,,: ,
• _.. •

.·
I • ~

'\ . .' '· : •'

. ~ij,---.·T~-•~K I.·.:.
'' , t "!
'

I
'· . .•
.
f \

I
\ o t I

' .
•;

. •·~
I •·
.. ,.

-, ( • •, • I• - •
•
•. •
• : \I ; !i l , • ,• • , \ 1
, •, ' • • f
According to Lite rary Dev ices (2017), the d~~ma • I

is a mod~ ~f fict iona l rep rese ntat io~ -'~ .

through dialogu~ and per form anc.e:. A~-d ram ~ is·c
omp ose tl'in ver se or pro se.t hat pre sen ts·
a sto~y either in pan tom ime or dial~gue. Thi~
dram atis
typ e· 9f lite rary ·for m is a g~oci 'wa y . for. ,:
.
ts to spe ak to thei r read ers and audien~es directly. Cha ract
• { J
a~ a V~hicle to convey cert ain thoughts
. I ., • ' ) .. ' .
ers th\ stor y ~re·use d ~
I'
in
and values. Thr oug h spo ken wor ds· aiicl dial ogu
•• • • • \ :

-~lue~ are given a~ ti;> the cha~acters' ·._(eeli~g~, es

' backgro~nd~, 'arid p~rso~~litie:s . ·s~ · .as· ,
·, colle~~ton.of ins~ructional approa~hes, th~ dra • • . • . . I' • • ·• ,

ma)
. ~~uses them to talk.abo ut wha t they are learning ~.abl~ to ~tigage lea~~ers )~ a.\~iay th
. '
. . ' i- . . . • ' ' ; . I '. 1 I ..
\ '\ .-~ • ' ; .. , • I .• / \ ; - .. •• ~.
 The use of d rama m . t h e c Iassro om helps make
• connections
. in reading ' whether
it be text-to-text, text-to-self, ~nd text-to-world. So, whe~ •It ~omes to· inspiring and
motivating learners by using multiple intelligences, drama _is proven to be effective. For
one~ drama allows students to express and understand themselves a~d others bett~r. Thu
communication skills are develope~. Dram~ is also___ inc~~s_iy~. It_~llo~s the. students t~
use the seven bits of intelligence and acco~modates vanous learnmg styles student of
:bird, dra1na is social as it involves children as activ~ le~r~ers, so: they a~~ ~ble·t~-{inpro~::
invent, and discover different ways to sol~e problems ..Fi_n3:lly, d~ama is thinking. It allow
the use of Bloom's Taxonomy of thinking skills. Kno~le~gelc~mes in wh_e ~ student~-r~cit;
or retell stories ~sing puppet~, f?r exampl~ ..C~m~reh~?s~on is s~_e n when st~d~nts explain
and pro~id~ e~~~ples ~si~g acoons. Apph1cation •~ ev1d~nt w~en studen_ts p~eten~ to be ·a
character, while analys1s,1s seen when st udents ar:e able to contrast two· characters usin
. ' . . . ' ' .• g
1n1me. When students begm to create, reinvent, or look at a story in a new way, synthesis
happens. And of course, when stud~°:ts start ·evaluating and relating themselves with the
story, evaluation is taking place (Kwasnica, 2006). Here we see"that drama integrates all
modes of communication and literacy. ; ·

. ~ Facilitating dr~matic.e~periences.th~t are based on literature is vitai because acting

- out stories rilo!ivates students -to process . and share information. Story· ·d ramatization
introduces children to the writ~ng pro~e~s_th~t allows them to creatively expre~s.their ideas
an<;I feelings, as well as develop their ~ocial skills (Rieg & ·Paquett~, 2009)~ Since drama
• I • I ' , _

combines action .and ac~ivity, the brairn is aJ::>le _to retain and learn information easily. There
are various teaching strategies in d~ama that 'teachers ca~ ~mploy depending on .the lesson
objectives. This lesson discusse~ ·two ~atego;i~s of educational dra.:na-Text-Centered
• • ' ' /, . ' l I ' ~ • ,

Drama and Text-Edged Drama. · ''· , .. , - ·

\ • • 't • lf \
Ac~ording to :Wolf (2004), Te~t-CeJ}tered Drama can take many forms, but its primary
,virtue is the
. .
·text.- J'his
.
means interpreting
,,.
the words·on
.
the page is the driving force. One .
famous type of Text-Cent~red Drama is . Reader's •Theater. : It develops re·a ding fluency
because it involves childr~n readi~g p·a ris in scripts .. A stage i~ unnecessary,·and students
I • • ,. (' ' • - • • •

can .simply_sit or stand in a semicircle. Students do not n~ed to memorize their parts, but
. ,, they would need to reread it m~re than once~ The ·1?est types of scripts· use for this one to
are scripts with a lot of good dialogue. As a teacher, it is important ~o sensitive to the ~e
capabil_ities ~nd reading levels of the students to be able to assign ~r~per reading parts to
. the students carefully., Reader's Theater' i~ .a strategy ·that -combines reading practice and
pe;forming. it en~ances the _child~s reading skills''and confiden~e because they pra~tice
~eadin~ with expr~ssion and_with a_purpose (B~filet 2003). -; _· · ~
• r ' •1 I • • • ' I I • • •

A~othe; form of Text~Centered .Drama is Puppetry. Puppets are movable d~lls ~at
a ·p~ppeteer minipulates. The body ·moven1:~nt~ provide · v'is'ual -iin~ressi?ns that ~onv~y
emotions and thoughti through movement. These can be used to te~ch an array of topics 10
. . . t
the classroom. For primary students, puppets de":elop o~l ~nd langri~ge _skills. Once a puppe
 s the children listen. They also identify ·an4 und~rstand different w~rds a~d phrases. ·_
spea:h' students, puppetry is recommended b~caus~ spe~king t~rough a pµppet shifts t~e
for . y , ttention away from the students, which will then make t~em more con~dent with
8
ud1ence s a . . . . . . .
• . ·n public (Belfiore, 2013). •· 1 •. ·, • • ,·
speaking t . . . . . . ·. . ,. . i •• ·. • ,

The other·ca~egory of.educational dram~ is Tex~-Edge~ Drama, ."'.'hich emp~asi~es a

. . •·
to
.. . pproach drama (Wolf, 2004). Children sta~t with a text-whet~er from a book, _.
d1alog1c a .. .
· • ture
play pie , 'J ob1ect, or film clip-and
• . ,
then•
explore it. .Rather than
.
simply performing
, .
it, .
stud~nts elaborate upon it. They b~gi1;1 to think carefu~ly ~bout t?e conte:"~ of the t~xt and ,.· .
· w this reflects various roles and people's social standing. This me~ns .that there is an .-.
::pbasts on connecting one.',s s~lf and ~eeing .things fr<?m new ·perspectives. Groups may
·be assigned a certain scene or i~ea, and no "learner i~ responsible for, one·particular _r~~e or ,
.character. This is beca~se expl~ration ~s everyone's r~~pon~ibility: , . - , · . · ·
,. . I I , • I. . ..
• ' I • • • '

Texf-Edged Drama ·has a :'Teacher-In-Role~' feature, which is. the _pra~tice of t~acher
s~cturing within .the drama by participating in fictional encounters with their students
. (Heathcote,' i995). This means teachers p·articip~te stde-by-side with students. Note, however, 1

that the tea~hers are not domineering:

. .. '.
For
.
ex~mple, the teacher
. ,, .
can play -the role
- .
of a missing. .

character, or be a new character in an ongoing scenes or be the one to ask questions and join the
discussi~n among other characters: These' inteiventions will lead to furthe~ ~xploration ofthe
• • • ,! I t, ' • . , ; ' • .,•. I , . • , , • \ ' ; • .J t 1' • • • • • • I - ~ •
,,
text ~nd in the way the' students interact wit~ each oth~r during the dramatization. ·This way,
~ • I ) , • A. , • • I • f .; • <' • • • ' ' f • f ' _- • , ..
1

both
-
students and the teacher
' • •• • ,
are engaged. in. the'.Iearning
,,.1 ·· ,. • •. "
experience.
i . - '. •
. t '
· ' • ·• t
Anoth~_r fea!W°e of ;r~xt-Edg~d Dr~ma .!~c~tical ·sp~~e. _Critical _spa~e allows childieii
, ~nd their teachers ~o live in the l~fe qf t~e ~ran~.a and then !step out irito real life by critiquing ·
it (Wolf, 2Q04). Put simply, this feature focuses on ·critical evaluation of the dramatic exercise. .
Questions that the-teacher can ;aise· ~t this J~p~rtant ·part or' the pr~~~s~ can be \is simple
as asking, ~'What.do y~u -think about,' the dance of the main character?'; or it
' ,I
also be
•• v. ' . ~, 'I i : • • - ..
can • " ,_

something like, "C~uld rou feel the pclin of th~ antagonist i~ the performance?" these types
of critiquing questio~s 'create a deeper ~onnection to the tex~ among students, making lea~i~g
• • I 4 • • 1 ' • f' • • ., I\ "\ ••

more 1:l}eaningful; .(\.s ~hild~en1 develop new perspe~tives ,throuijh _drama, they ·explore creative
ways to.·express themse~ves~ whether i~ w~it~ng, speaking~listeping, and reading.
• • • , ~ • ~ I ~ • • • I '

t • • . I
• ·I
.. ,
f , ; ' ' '
~ -·,·· . .

iDt8rpreting ~i~er~t~'-r ~ through _

.c~·e_a tive,writin'9. ·: ..
• I

;,
ning Targets I •
Lear .. .
\
\ ' 1 ' .•
,, . ~.
Id oif this lesson, you are expected to: I t

At the en .. . . J • ' •

, discuss the role of creati~e writin?, _in ~eve~o1:ing li_t ~qcy skills anio'ng _children; , ,
1 7
, apply va.ri(!~s creati_v_~,yvr~ting ~tr~tegie~ i,:i the ~l~s.s_roo':'. ~~tting i~clud~~g Literary,
Response Journ_a.ls, f_reewri~ing, .. a~d Per~ona_l Jyarrative Writing; and . · 1 ·; ,

, shar~ ;ne's person~! $tory with oth~r~ as a w~y ofpublishing one'~ work.·
, r
,
'' . . . ... . {
• l ;·
Introduction (
I
• I
~ • • • ~ ' # • I r • ' •: • • • "'1 I ' ~ •. I' ! I I : ~ I ,- ~ , ') • •,,, • '; ,1 • .... _,

American writer Ursula K ; Le. Guin_says this about the value of_cr~ative writing ..
• • I • I ' I ~ ' I , • , • , • • t j .. ~. ' •

A writer, she says, is someone who cares about what words mean, what they say, and
how they say it.. Words liber,ate and become .the way' toward tr~th and fre~dom. This is
wh; it behooves
I .•
w~iter~ to cho~se. their ·word~ w~ll, with both ~repidati~n and pleasure. ·
,\ • . . •
To Le Guin; storytellers and poets strengthen their souls by using words and spend most .·
- '
·of their lives learning the skill and art of using words well because it is these words that . • I •

make the ·souls of their readers. · · \

• • • I ,, ! • 0 )' ; o • 0
0

Creative wtiting_unlo'~ks a child's imigina~ions, i~spiring them to' have·~ love for
words by sharing
•
..•their
•
personal
-
narrative:
• - '
A~·~llild~en
I .
exp~ess their own nar~atives I • t • •

through writing, they let-us into their inµer .~<?rlds.· Th!s intricate process of writing ··
a.nd sharing their st~ri~f invol~e the skills ~nd elements necessary so .th~t.literacy is
,· -., • I I • f l f I • I t •" -

.de~e.l?P.ed. / .. :. ... '° . · ., ·

· · · lhcorpo~at1ng .creative writing i~ the· ~lassroo~ .h~lps· students ~xperie~~e and ·.
✓ • ' • ' , •, \

develop a differe~t way of communicating that ,s refl~~tive of ~he.ir •writirig styles. If .

this happens~ students fo_~m a .spedal co~~~~tion with.the ·practice ~f ~riting, wh.ich .
· provides the motivation tq develop higher-leve,l li'teracy skills. J'Qis is why it is beneficial
· for teachers to learh about 'creative.writing a strategy.for including.more writing and , . ·
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a~ I • f • ,. • • • - \

reading in the classroom. . · , . · .,

' .. .
 -0; THINK
· · . ·creative writing as a strategy, is, "Why
Per~aps the first thing t_o ask when u~1;,!, Knowing what motivates a· child to pick
would children want to write m the fir st pla : tial because it is the motivation th
. d on paper is essen at
u~ a pencil and write thoughts own . . to this question has something to do ~ith the
tnggers the learning process. The answer . . · .
.. . . s (whether it be a story, poem, or others) that learners
teacher's ab1hty to select hterary piece .
4

. . . h O e students are able to make a personal connection with

can personally 1dent1fy wit. . nc . . . • . -
. · . . • ·to their imaginations would be relatively easy. They Will
t h e literary select1on, tappmg m . . . .
. . d t t rt.ting their own thoughts down
- • simply because
. • they can
a Iso b e mspire to s ar w · . .relate
w1t• h t he 11tera_ry
. · k , whether through the theme,. the plot, or the characters. This process
wor . _
·prov1·des the opp<?r · tu ni·ty to develop higher-level
. • literacy skills.. .,

Remember that writing is much more 't han technical skill.. It is a fundamental
expression of the writer's mind. W~en learners.are ,abl~ to express their own though~ in
writing a~d interpret ideas of others through reading,_then the basic thinking patt~r~s. are
developed, and Iitera_cy skills are hon_ed. So, teaching children lite~acy skills i_s ·no~ ju_st
about students knowing how to read and write, but more importantly; it is for them to
learn how to think. Diff~rent creative writing
. strategies can .be used in the
,
classroom that
naturally motivates students· to. acquire-these·needed skills.
. .
/ . ,
,,,
. \

One effective strategy, i~ th~ use. of literary i-espo~se jo~rn~ls. These.journals are
a way for children. to write down their thoughts about te~ts that include their personal
questions, predictions, feelings; and observations. about the texts .they ar~ reading (Wolf,
2014). Students write ~n tp.eir literary resp~ns~journais.before~ during, and.after reading
the t~xt. Guided by the principle that writing fa~ilitates learning,.literary r~sponse jo-ii~als
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involve not just th~ student_'s thou~h~s, -~ut the teacher'~ as 'r~ll. The thoughts that children .
write on their journals give te3.:chers the ability to track their•s tudent's thinking process and
progress. Significa:nt que~tions te.achers'_ca~ ~ask·are, "~~a~ are quotes they take note of!"
I

"Which characters and plot points do they_most relate to?" or "_W hat are they saying . about
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the theme and messagt? in their ?wn life .experiences?" How students interact.bas~d on their
_experience with th(? lite.._rary texts .a re significa°:t points to coi:isider·to dete~ine if learning
·is taking pl~ce. To maximize the u~e of litelary response journals, .it is beneficial to·know
that there are three _kinds of responses that learners give. or w,ite· about in their journals.
.,. f I I • ,

These ar~ summarizing, anticipating predictions or asking questions, and cri_tiquing th~
text. Critiqufng can be as simple as writing what they.like or don't like about the text.
. .. . . . . -· .· \ :

Another strategy that de~elops literacy is free~riting- · a writing ~trategy developed

• I .
by Peter Elbow in 1?73.. Freewriting is .a process of writing withoui stopping, edjt~ng,
sharing,·and worrying about gramm~r. it is part of the pr~-writing process that can take
around 10 to,15 minutes and is focused on generating ideas. This can be done daily or .at
least three times a week. .Freewriting is also called "automatic w~iting'.' that brings .togethet
. .
• / I 't •
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. , h -'process' of pr_oduciq.g. words and putting them down on .a pa·g.e· .If th':is . is . . ( · r .. •.
· te . . . · .. , , . . practiced i
1
,
· larlY it will make• wntlng less blocked because words wi'll - . ·
regu ' . . . , . · . com~ ~o~e easi1y. Today,
sida Cowell, award-w1nn1n g children s author and illustrator ..
for ch'ld ,s book series,
Cres . , · · ,, . " .· . i ren
'~ffoW to Train Y~ur Dragon and ~he W1zards of ~nce,",pas~ionately advocat~s cre~ting - I

a space for creative floW among pru~ary sch~ol chll4:ren through the creative classrooni·
revolution called "Free W~iting Fr~day" .campaign., that ~ims to inspire ·mor~ children to I ,•
•

. write for ple~~ure. ,· , ... ,

_ 'Ai ~~e -A~ba~~ad~-; f~~ Th~ Na~ional Li~erac~ T;us~ in ~he,UK~:Cow·~1i' ~ay~ ~hat to .
help ~he. writin~ ·. ~ow, prifl:1ary. ,sch~ol children ought to be allowed to write .wha! they ...
want to writ~ about without ,that fear of gettingi red µi~rks or corrections on:"tµeir ·work .
with regard to spelling, grammar, ·or punctuation. She urges that children have ·a notebook
to write or draw f~r th~ f~n of it._She draws from her .pers·onai· e~pe;ience ·as an ~uthor, · ..
where her best-selling books started out as a series of doodles.and notes in her own private .
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notebook.' Freewriting can.be done in the classroom by giving writing prompts to the class
~d have them write ·a nything abo~t i~ during the set tirrie. Children can also be encouraged
to· draw _a 'map 'o f th~ir imaginary place or dr~w a picture of a chara~ter they _a~e thinking
~ abo~t. Re:-w..
r iting a :favorite story. can
'
also
.
be good topic for this creative process.
.
I , a '

. . .

· Another. sirategy that is eff~ctive ·in developing literacy skills is narrative. writing.
: l I - ~ • I
•

This type of writing is characterized ,by a fictional story that has the main character in a
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·spec'ific setting who encounters a'problem or event. Writi1_1g t]:iis_narrative will involve the
· writer's tone; purpose, voice,, ·and structure. It will also naturally.teach sentence s_tructure, .
orga~ization, .and word' choicef According to Samantha Cle~ver of_We .t\re Teachers, th,is' :· • I • \ J • • • \ • \ I • • • • ._'
• • " • • I '

strategy is more• than just telling stories.I It teaches students to think• like
•
the authors' they • >
•

l~ke to read. In ·e arly el~me11:tary s~hoo,, t~~c_h ers _can alre~dy begin teaching ~bout ~a!rativ~ .
by readi:J;1g aloud ·fiction and nonfiction·sto,ries; ~fter readin~, students can·.as~ questi~ns ,
a~out the components; of the st~ry. ~n .t_h~rp ~~d·tourth ·gra~e, :11a~rati:vi .w~itin'g b~com~s ·
clearer ·arid .students ·are-now able to write their own storie~. At this 'phclse, _te~chers can
help ~t~~ients' orga~ize th~ir narratives by .usi.rig t.i melines an_d outlines,' a~ we~l as~teach I

t~em how to create ~trong introd~c_t_ions~ ,e ndings,__an~ to add i~t,~resting d~tails· t~ ~?e ?O'w
story. To make things more personal, teac~ers can . let stud~nt's wr~te a !'ers,~nal n~~ra~1.~~
that draws from· the st~dent~.' ow.n stories from real-~ife. • . ,. · ·. ·. ' .-
..
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