We are approaching the end of the year and may be thinking about gifts and new diaries. Even though we can find the date quickly on our phones, it is nice to have a calendar to remind us of the days and the passing of the seasons. You might like to create your own calendar … Continue reading The Names of the Months
Tag: words
What cats really say
Different languages have different words for the sounds that animals make. You may think that bees buzz but in Bengali they bhonbhon, in Japanese they bunbun, in Estonian, summ-summ and Korean they have a choice between boong-boong and wing-wing. Cats say ngeong in Indonesia and in Nahuatl (Mexico) they say tlatzomia. The Scottish poet, Alistair … Continue reading What cats really say
Words you didn’t know existed
The English language is full of words from all over the world, brought to us by traders, refugees, conquerors; collected by travellers, emigres and empire builders. It is one of the reasons for the richness of the language, and for the difficulty of its spelling. The words we have reflect who we are and the … Continue reading Words you didn’t know existed
Gobblefunk
I came across a copy of the Gobblefunk Dictionary yesterday. It’s a dictionary devoted to words that Roald Dahl invented and used in his novels, especially in The BFG. There’s a real pleasure in inventing words, and if you are reading a story by Roald Dahl you will have a head start. How about your … Continue reading Gobblefunk
Homewords
We’re going to keep going with words this week. It is a simple practice that you can weave into your day: first thing in the morning, after lunch, or just before when you are waiting for that bell to ring. You don’t have to write them down. Everyone can just put one word in their … Continue reading Homewords
Body of Words
Hello! We’re back. Let’s think about that quick activity which really spotlights words and phrases. Many of us start a workshop with a list of words -words we like; words that have a special meaning for us and words that sound good; proper nouns -place names, brand names, friends’ names; small words like if and so; … Continue reading Body of Words
My Place
‘People exploitwhat they have merely concluded to be of value, but the defendwhat they love and to defend what we love we need a particularizing language, for we love what we particularly know.’ Wendell Berry Robert Macfarlane quotes Berry in his book Landmarks, drawing attention to the moral dimension of looking closely and naming carefully. We could begin … Continue reading My Place
The Thingness of Things
Today's posts inspired by Robert Macfarlane's book, Landmarks, and there will be more to come. Landmarks is about language and landscape. It contains wonderful glossaries and a great deal about the naming and thereby conserving the natural world. Children love to be outdoors and so this is a chance to write outside, to look carefully … Continue reading The Thingness of Things
I’d Rather Be …
This little rhyming game is described in Sandy Brownjohn’s The Ability to Name Cats. It starts out as an oral game but can be transferred to individual writers. The game can be played with any number of players. Each person takes it in turn to supply a line using the pattern ‘I rather be … than … … Continue reading I’d Rather Be …
[in Just-]
The spring break has crept up on me. Perhaps you have already finished school. Here is an idea, and a natty tool, that will be useful well beyond spring time. There is much to be gained from writing poems using an existing text. For many years I have used cut up poems. Children are given … Continue reading [in Just-]
Writing Box 