We all love a good story.  Some of us can even write a good story.  Very few of us, though, know how to teach other people the (seemingly) difficult art of creative writing.  And to teach it to kids?  Most of us would just throw up our hands in defeat.  Tony Wilson, however, is not one to give up so easily.  Not only does he know how to tell a good story, but he also knows how to impart that priceless gift to others - even to little kids!

What’s more, Tony doesn’t think that he is uniquely talented in this regard.  He thinks that other people can also learn the art of teaching others (in particular kids) how to write a good story. In this series of videos Tony explains step-by-step how to teach kids to write interesting and compelling stories.   With that said, though, many adults can learn quite a bit from these lectures themselves.  The principles involved easily transfer from child to adult, it’s just the method of explanation that needs to change.

So, if you want to teach (or learn) the fine art of creative writing - then check out this insightful series of videos from master story teller (and teacher) Tony Wilson.

Teaching Kids the Art of Creative Writing

Points to Remember

Start by teaching kids the 5 Questions

1. Who are the characters?
2. What is the plot?  What is happening inside the story?
3. When does the story take place?  [This is part of the setting of the story]
4. Where does the story take place? [This is also part of the setting of the story
5. Why? [Ask kids why other stories that they read/know happen]

Visually show kids the 5 questions.

Step Two - Telling People How

The job of an author is to tell people how the story happens (using the information we have from the 5 questions).

There are four basics aspects of ‘how’ that need to be taught:

1. Description - paint a picture with your words.  Describe something to the kids with their eyes closed so that they can get used to the idea of painting pictures with their words.
2. How a character feels (using emotions) - don’t state the emotion directly, use the heart (or other body parts) to describe the effect of the emotion (or to visually illustrate the emotion).
3. Use the 5 senses - describe events and scenery using the 5 senses.  Have kids describe scenes using different senses (walking past a butcher shop with a bad smell, walking barefoot on a stony ground, etc.).
4. Dialogue - Stay away from words like “said” and “say”.  Rather, write about how the voice sounds (the emotion of the voice, how the location of the dialogue changes the sound of a characters voice, etc. )

Model the Techniques of Good Story Writing

It’s not enough to just tell the kids what to do, you have to actually demonstrate the techniques that you are trying to teach them

Visit Tony’s Websites

• www.tonywilsonstory.co.uk
• www.tonywilsonstoryteller.co.uk