The write start - Jennifer Hallissy 2010

Travelogue
Guidelines for the Activities

BEFORE YOU HIT THE ROAD, add one more item to your packing list: a travelogue. You won’t regret it. New adventures always spark new insights. And you will definitely be glad you have a place to preserve them all.

When children record their travel reflections they are in good company. Many writers throughout the years have written about their experiences in far-off places. When you read about their trips, their writing transports you. Kids will be able to revisit their own journeys as well when they reread their travelogues. It’s like taking a vacation all over again (only without the jet lag).

MATERIALS

∗ blank notebook, journal, or handmade book

∗ pencils

∗ markers

∗ tape

∗ glue stick

∗ shoebox or small suitcase (optional)

HOW-TO

1. As you travel, encourage your children to (briefly) write the names of places they’re going, as well as ideas about what they saw and how they felt about it.

2. Kids can also collect bits and pieces along their travels, such as maps, ticket stubs, backstage passes, luggage tags, transportation schedules, receipts, currency, stamps, postcards, and photos.

3. During downtime, kids can embellish their travelogues by cutting and then pasting or taping their found ephemera onto the pages.

Variations

For Scribblers: Pre-writers can store their souvenirs in a shoebox or a small suitcase, and then browse through them when they want to reminisce about their trip.

For Spellers: Snap a picture of Spellers at various locations along your way. They can put these photos in their book and label them “Me at the Grand Canyon” or “Me riding a mule.”

For Storytellers: Storytellers can narrate their adventures and add illustrations too.

For Scholars: Scholars can include some scholarly details, such as the history of the places they’re visiting, the route you’re taking, the daily itinerary, restaurant reviews, and so on.