Writing is a process of discovery. It is a meaning making activity. Language is dynamic, the means by which we make sense of the world. Through talk, inner speech and writing, language allows us each to construct our image of the world, our understanding of it. And it is an active and engaging activity. That is why writing, and talk, can be so compelling.

Most young writers have plenty to write about.  Writing can always come from the child’s (and the adult’s) own experience -real and imaginary. Children need to know that what they might regard as ordinary or of little worth is of worth. Equally, they grow through authentic experiences which raise questions and provoke curiosity; experiences that provide the context for writing that matters.

Writing, and reading, happen in the world. The greater and more varied one’s experience of the world, the greater the resource that underpins what we write. The preoccupation with genre and the constituents of different types of writing emphasises the surface form rather than the process of thought. And so the writing loses its intrinsic interest. Rather than being a process of discovery, a way of making sense of something, it becomes a form filling exercise, even if the writing frame is a subtle one. We need to think about the reasons why a child might write an explanation or a report and, rather than contrive an excuse for this, place the writing in the midst of a compelling experience -a visit to the poor house, walking to post a letter, pond-dipping, the preparation of a tea party.

Sometimes, adults and children find that simply handling an interesting object, investigating it, provides the impetus to write. Teachers’ writing groups like to meet in museums and galleries, at railway stations, by the sea, in parkland. The experience provides a context for exploring the world through writing.  Although we may plan with writing directly in mind, we also plan with the idea of enriching our lives, our cultural capital. Our experiences seep into our thoughts, our language, our writing.