English writing

[piggys]

That's exactly what I'm talking about Stokers. Well done to your ds !!

I see too many dull, contrived pieces of prose stuffed full of similes, metaphors and in which every single noun must be preceded by a catalogue of pointless adjectives.

[Walthams]

I guess some children are probably natural writers and as such they don't need to be taught how to improve their writing. Also, if Stoker's dc was writing story continuation, then perhaps other things were more important than decorating his writing with figures of speech. But in case of description or story writing, I feel Ros82's advice might be very helpful to get my dc into the habit of employing varied techniques in her writing. We could practise this way for a while just to get her to remember to vary her language choices. It is a structured approach and it gives me something 'tangible' to work with. Writing is this elusive area where I find it so hard to guide my dd towards improvement. Piggys, how do you teach a child to write this "accurate, lucid, descriptive prose" you say examiners are looking for? I see it is our goal, but without clear instructions/methods I do not know how to reach there.

[Kingfisher]

The more DC read and see this in literature, the more likely they are to be able to use language in a fluent, engaging way.

I concur with the view that the piece must not be forced. An overuse of techniques makes for a stilted piece of writing and is less likely to be relevant.

[piggys]

Yes, lots of reading is vital. I would also recommend reading a good variety of texts and to get your dd to try and do some for herself. So, for example, it you start getting 'The Week Junior', which is an excellent weekly roundup of news for youngsters, she can start thinking about how to construct news articles, interviews and reports.

When you are studying texts which require an extension/continuation, the key is to think about the characters: what are they like? what do they say and do? how would they be likely to behave and so on? Think about the setting: where is it and what is it like?

Avoid cliché too; no 'then I woke up and realised it was all a dream' for goodness' sake! and please no killing , fighting or video-game inspired writing as it is totally unimaginative and limited.

You mentioned an example of a title which was 'A Famous Person'. Look for ways of interpreting the question. If your dc chooses to write about Usain Bolt or whoever, they would need to offer some kind of discussion and analysis about why they are famous and what they have contributed - what/who/how do they inspire and what is their legacy?

[piggys]

And btw Ros82, 'dialogue' involves TWO or more speakers, not one, as you claim. 'Silky soft slippers' is an example of SIBILANCE. Repetition does NOT 'typically gain marks'. Are you a qualified English teacher?

[Kingfisher]

We know what Ros82 meant. And sibilance is a type of alliteration but we wouldn't expect primary school children to know what a plosive, fricative or sibilant sound was. Alliteration is the general 'umbrella ' term and that's fine.
With regard to dialogue - yes, it involves 2 or more voices, but we understand the meaning.

[piggys]

My point is that posters should not mislead.

[ale21279]

I'm with piggys on this one - when DS sat the DAO exam, he got a perfect score (25/25) for the creative writing element. They invited me in to read his piece and stated explicitly that he recieved this mark because his piece was a completely natural follow on from the extract - he had understood the dynamics of the relationships, was using the same language, etc. There was no mention of literary techniques and there were certainly spelling and grammar mistakes. So, I would focus on getting your child to appreciate the unique quality of pieces of writing and how they can continue that, rather than worrying unduly about a check list of required techniques. As a teacher of my DD once said (when she was focusing too hard on cramming in techniques at the expense of quality of writing), sometimes grass can just be green!

Stokers, I'm intrigued and inspired to hear your DS got full marks for creative writing at DAO exam, well done to him! My DS is sitting DAO in Sep and is struggling with creative writing. He can continue the story ok but tends to go off on a tangent with irrelevant nonsense and plenty of spelling and grammar mistakes! Did they say that they're not looking for the literary techniques but rather fluency and excellent understanding of the text and characters? Any advice gratefully received, many thanks