New Year's Resolution

If school is in session this week, have your student(s) write about a New Year's Resolution. While we often make resolutions we neglect to stick with, it's still a good idea to consider where we need improvement in life.

I suggest you encourage your student(s) to make a small, manageable resolution that is age appropriate. Very young children may want to make sure and brush those pearly whites each night before bed. Older kids may want to devote themselves to unloading the dishwasher after school... without being asked!

For this assignment, have your student get out his or her favorite writing tools: pen and paper, pencil and notebook, journal, laptop, etc.

First, assign a brainstorming session. Students should make a list of things they could work at doing or improving upon. Here are some ideas:

• make my bed each morning
• walk the dog daily
• write out assignments more neatly
• hug my little brother/sister every day
• read the Bible more often
• write a letter to my grandma each week

After the brainstorming session, your student should choose one resolution to work on. On a clean sheet of paper, have your student title the assignment with the name of the resolution. Then, have him/her write why that resolution is important, including how he/she will go about carrying it out.

Don't forget, as you supervise this assignment you may want to come up with a resolution for yourself!

Happy New Year!!!

Bite Size Writing Assignment: Favorite Christmas Song

This week we'll begin writing about Christmastime. Let's start with one of the best parts about the Christmas season: the music!

Have your student(s) sit down with his or her favorite writing tools and think about a favorite Christmas song. Perhaps it is an old hymn, like "Silent Night," or maybe it is a newer song, like "The Christmas Shoes."

Whatever the tune, have your student(s) write about what the lyrics mean and why he or she likes the song.

If your student has a difficult time selecting a song, have him or her check on the internet or page through a church hymn book. This method will also provide the lyrics for an analysis of the song's meaning.

Here's an example:

My Favorite Christmas Song

I like the Christmas song "O Holy Night." The reason I love this song is it tells about the first Christmas, long ago, when Jesus was born. The words, "...it is the night of our dear Savior's birth..." tell the story of God's Son coming into this world as a baby.

I also love the line, "Fall on your knees! O hear the angel voices!" because it puts the awesomeness of this world-changing event into perspective. We should fall on our knees when we encounter the Savior. We should revere Him.

Every year someone sings this song in church. I always cry and I probably always will. 

There are many other Christmas songs that I love. "O Holy Night," however, is by far my favorite.

Don't forget to gather together and sing the chosen song(s). Happy caroling!

Bite Size Writing Assignment: Using Adjectives

All parts of speech are important when it comes to writing. However, using adjectives is one of the least complicated ways to spice up writing. This week, have your little darlings write about anything and make it very descriptive by using adjectives.

For this assignment, have your student(s):

• Situate writing tools (paper, journal, pen/pencil, computer, etc.)
• Come up with a topic to write about (a pet, a trip, a holiday, etc.)
• Write a paragraph about the topic
• Re-write the paragraph, adding adjectives

Make sure to tell your student(s) not to add more than two adjectives next to each other. We don't want to sound too ridiculous!

Sample sentence:

Rough draft: My cat loves to play with our dog.

With adjectives added: My frisky, black cat loves to play with our lazy house dog.

Adjectives help make our language more interesting and descriptive. Remember, creative writing is meant to be fun and, well, creative!

Don't forget to visit currclick.com to take advantage of the Cyber-Monday sale. All of the units by Little Darlings Press will be discounted at rock-bottom prices, including our excellent grammar unit (A Basic Course in Grammar) that will help your student(s) become proficient in all the parts of speech, punctuation issues, and much, much more! Simply CLICK HERE to view the grammar, journaling, and writing units by Little Darlings Press.