The write start - Jennifer Hallissy 2010

Places to Go, People to See
Guidelines for the Activities

WHAT DO MOST super-successful people have in common? An aptitude for creating an agenda.

An agenda is a basic plan of what to do and where to go when. Children crave a schedule because they love to know what is going to happen, both now and later. In fact, the only thing they like better than knowing the schedule is helping to create it. Involve kids in furthering their own agendas, and you’ll find that they’re eager and willing to put their big plans in writing.

MATERIALS

∗ paper

∗ pencil

HOW-TO

1. Put your plans for the day on paper, with your children’s help.

2. Encourage your children to consult their agenda periodically, to check off items they’ve completed and find out what’s happening next.

Variations

For Scribblers: Involve pre-writers in creating and following a picture schedule of the day (using basic line drawings or photos) and you’ll see that they’ll quickly get the hang of the routine.

For Spellers: Using a combination of pictures and words, help Spellers make a schedule on a big piece of paper (it will help them get the big picture regarding the passage of time).

For Storytellers: Storytellers can handle making a simple schedule with items numbered to indicate what happens first, second, and so on.

For Scholars: Scholars can go by the clock, making a schedule with times going down the left side of the page and things to do alongside.