Creative Short Story Writing For Kids With Scriptive WriteStories

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Last Updated on September 16, 2024 by Sarah McCubbin

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One of the best ways to teach and practice fun communication skills is with short story writing with Scriptive WriteStories. Kids love the creative process and are often overflowing with too many words.

Delays in reading skills often limit children’s creativity, but exciting and easy to use software for kids have made this a thing of the past! All kids can write Now regardless of their reading ability! 

I remember when my oldest son was 5. I was a super motivated mom and I was determined that he would have a great start to his education and get off to a good start reading. He was also motivated…so it worked out. He jumped through all the educational hoops and by 3rd grade was mostly independent in his learning. Reading…writing…arithmetic..it all worked well because he could read early on. 

Fast forward a couple of kids. And my daughter struggled with reading. None of the early learning came as easily. She wasn’t reading at 5…or 6…or 7. She really started at 8 and 9. So even in 5th and 6th grade, her writing skills were more limited than her peers. Delays in reading limited her writing!

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Imagine if reading and writing skills were taught completely independently. What if your struggling reader didn’t have to be a struggling writer? What if THAT child actually loved writing without ever picking up a pencil and without knowing how to spell? 

Recently I had the chance to use a program called Scriptive WriteStories. In a nutshell, children choose a beautiful picture book that looks interesting. None of the books have words. Your kiddo provides the words. 

Page by page using built in voice to text software, kids describe what happens next! And by the time they are done, they have written a story without every picking up a pencil! 

Why Scriptive is a Great Choice For Homeschool Families:

When homeschool parents are choosing curriculum, we are looking at so many factors trying to determine of something is going to work for our children and family. No one wants to waste time or money on something only to deal with a frustrated student!

Scriptive WriteStories is DIFFERENT. In 17 years, I’ve never seen something like it. It’s exciting and fun and doesn’t feel like writing at all!

• It Encourages Reluctant Writers: Using illustrations helps struggling writers become confident and creative communicators.
• Caters to All Skill Levels: WriteStories is suitable for both advanced writers and budding authors, accommodating every ability.
• Flexible, Self-Paced Learning: Children can progress at their own speed, with assignments and deadlines tailored to fit their needs.
• Engages Parental Participation: Parents receive their own account with an interactive dashboard to monitor their child’s progress.
• Inspires a Love for Writing: Encourages kids to craft personal, enjoyable stories, helping them develop a passion for writing.
• Guarantees Internet/Content Safety: All books on the platform are reviewed by experts to ensure they are safe and appropriate for all users.

Why We Love WriteStories Short Story Writing

I told my son we were going to try something new to write stories. Immediately his imposter syndrome popped up, “I can’t write well,” he said. 
“That’s no problem. There is no writing involved” I assured him. I pulled up the software and he chose the book called “A Million Cats” to narrate. 

After a few minutes of practicing the “voice to text” feature, he was off and running. It didn’t take long and he was laughing as he wrote. I had to remind him to speak clearly several times because he was trying to narrate while he laughed. 

If a kid is having this much fun while they, “Write,” its hard to call it school work! But that is exactly why WriteStories is genius. It doesn’t feel like any kind of school work that you have to struggle through. Kids get to write a compelling story using their own voice. Using voice to text is the BEST way make writing accessible to kids of all abilities. And my son loved it. 

I should note that voice to text is not a perfectly edited final copy. Once your kiddo is done, you will need to go back through it with them and clean up the writing. Just like the voice to text on your phone, it sometimes picks up background voices. It might need you to add capitalization and punctuation. Essentially child gets a good story base down and then you can go back and easily refine what they wrote to make it better. 

For a child to narrate a whole story will take 10 to 30 minutes for most kids. It’s easy to do a few pages at a time or a motivated child will do the whole book at one time. The first time your child uses WriteStories, plan to sit with them and help them use it. But before long, they will be off and flying…and hopefully laughing outloud as they go! 

Simple Steps To Using Scriptive WriteStories

Over my many years of homeschooling, I’ve realized that there is a secret to a curriculum being loved by parents and children: it is one that allows students to learn mostly independently regardless of their age. If a child can learn and progress without a parent by their side every step of the way, it fosters independence and confidence! 

Here are the simple steps your child needs to take to write their first story! 

1. Look Through The WriteStories Collection of illustrated books
2. Choose the Book You Will Write About
3. Customize with Helpful Features – opt to use voice to text or type your own story!
4. Share with a Parent or Guardian

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Unique Elements of the Scriptive WriteStories Program

Most story writing curriculum begins with instruction on the story writing process, plot points, story structure, creating the main character and more. Students begin with a first draft and then edit their short stories to create their final version. The problem is, students usually begin with a blank piece of paper and often struggle with writer’s block. They might have a great idea but the whole process is too labor intensive and any barriers to writing make it take too much time. 

Scriptive has done an amazing job of removing the most significant barriers to writing faced by young children. 

Best Features of the WriteStories for Kids in Grades K-6: 

• They can flip through the entire story before they start to add words
• There are different genres of picture books so kids can find something they like. 
• ​Beautiful illustrations make it easy to describe interesting characters
• There are tons of short story ideas to choose from. 
• There is no pencil and paper involved.
• Kids get to write on the computer which is fun and exciting. 
• The story sounds like their unique voice
• When they are done with their story, making that second draft is quick and easy with a parent’s help.

Best Ways For Parents To Help Students Edit Creative Stories

1. Read the story through with your child
2. On each page, you can help your kids add more detail by asking Who, What, Where, When, Why
3. Talk about different topics like making strong characters or point of view
4. Help your child make the story read more clearly.

FAQ About Scriptive WriteStories

What Grade Is WriteStories For?

WriteStories is designed for kids from grades 2 to 6. However, it could be used with students who are younger with parents help!

What Kind of Story Books Are Included?

WriteStories includes books that convey meaningful lessons on kindness, respect, courage, trustworthiness, helpfulness, positivity, and the value of hard work.

It steers clear of inappropriate or sexual content, profanity, and suggestive language. It also avoid stories that promote disrespect or inappropriate behavior towards any group or individual, as well as those with political messaging.

How Much Does WriteStories Cost?

You can find current pricing here!

Build a Love of Writing With Your Kids

One of the most valuable gifts we can give our kids is their voice! When we give our kids the ability to communicate early, it helps them develop other areas too! I love that WriteStories harnesses the creative energy our elementary students have and gives them a way to make it productive in writing! I hope you get a chance to try it! It really is so much fun!

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