The Importance of K-2 Writing with Dr. Daris McInnis

1

00:00:00,352 --> 00:00:01,582

Okay, welcome.

2

00:00:01,582 --> 00:00:03,472

Darris McInnis, Dr. Darris.

3

00:00:03,472 --> 00:00:04,252

McInnis.

4

00:00:04,333 --> 00:00:11,803

I thought that rather than doing a formal introduction, I would share about, uh, my friendship with Darris.

5

00:00:11,803 --> 00:00:14,293

And I say friendship in all sincerity.

6

00:00:14,473 --> 00:00:19,513

Uh, Darris and I started teaching together at the Inspired Teaching Demonstration School.

7

00:00:19,843 --> 00:00:24,493

I started there back in 2016, and I met Darius.

8

00:00:24,493 --> 00:00:25,843

I was the first grade teacher.

9

00:00:26,258 --> 00:00:30,038

And he was the kindergarten teacher and the rest is history.

10

00:00:30,038 --> 00:00:34,208

We've been able to cross paths, uh, many ways and thoroughly enjoy it.

11

00:00:34,208 --> 00:00:35,318

So, welcome Darris.

12

00:00:35,433 --> 00:00:41,613

I would love if you could share about yourself, your journey into education, literacy and family engagement.

13

00:00:42,998 --> 00:00:43,448

Sure.

14

00:00:43,508 --> 00:00:45,278

Uh, Aaron, thank you for having me.

15

00:00:45,278 --> 00:00:45,728

Um.

16

00:00:46,853 --> 00:00:48,533

This is really surreal, almost.

17

00:00:48,621 --> 00:00:50,841

I'm, I'm just so grateful to, to be here.

18

00:00:50,841 --> 00:00:58,168

So I was in the military, and then after the military, I became a teacher, uh, by accident.

19

00:00:58,228 --> 00:01:00,778

Uh, so I always tell people that like, it all happened by accident.

20

00:01:00,819 --> 00:01:02,679

what I was leaving the Army.

21

00:01:02,739 --> 00:01:09,681

Um, we were volunteering his schools in Petersburg and that's where I got, I found out about a fellowship with education pioneers.

22

00:01:09,701 --> 00:01:14,771

Which was in New Orleans, and I was like, okay, well I like this volunteering, I'll do some more work in education.

23

00:01:14,771 --> 00:01:17,621

I didn't think that it would be in teaching in New Orleans.

24

00:01:17,621 --> 00:01:24,761

We were doing a turnaround for a charter school and I was reading a book to some of the kids who were coming in to register with their parents.

25

00:01:24,761 --> 00:01:38,871

Their parents had to go physically in person to register the kids, and when I was reading a. it was there, there were a few kids in like the waiting area in front

of me, and one of the parents thought I was a teacher and she brought like some documents up to me and was like, Hey, you know, my child's gonna be in your class.

26

00:01:38,871 --> 00:01:41,361

And I was like, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.

27

00:01:41,361 --> 00:01:41,601

Hold on.

28

00:01:43,131 --> 00:01:44,361

I'm not one of the teachers.

29

00:01:45,036 --> 00:01:53,376

She was like, oh, you are not, I thought you were from like, how well you were reading this book and you're like, the way that like, you know how to connect with kids.

30

00:01:53,376 --> 00:01:58,296

And then it just, it, it sat with me for a while and I said, maybe this is, this is what I'm meant to, to do.

31

00:01:58,296 --> 00:02:01,026

Like when I got out the army, I had no idea what I was gonna do with myself.

32

00:02:01,176 --> 00:02:08,638

And then I finally inspired teaching program in DC and they paired me with, A pre-K four classroom.

33

00:02:09,268 --> 00:02:10,558

So this is where I met Erin.

34

00:02:10,618 --> 00:02:12,748

Uh, we were teaching in the same school.

35

00:02:12,787 --> 00:02:18,337

she was in first grade at the time, and she was one of my mentors.

36

00:02:18,397 --> 00:02:19,597

Um, and I was terror.

37

00:02:19,597 --> 00:02:20,797

I was terrified.

38

00:02:20,797 --> 00:02:22,747

Y'all terrified to do this.

39

00:02:22,797 --> 00:02:26,217

, Could not think of, uh, anything more terrifying.

40

00:02:26,217 --> 00:02:27,472

Even more terrifying than the army.

41

00:02:27,747 --> 00:02:32,067

So if you're, if you're wondering, is it harder to lead soldiers or little kids?

42

00:02:32,662 --> 00:02:33,592

It's the latter.

43

00:02:33,898 --> 00:02:36,028

that's when I found education.

44

00:02:36,118 --> 00:02:37,948

That's, that's, that's sort of my journey.

45

00:02:37,948 --> 00:02:39,538

I, I loved it so much.

46

00:02:39,538 --> 00:02:46,138

I stayed in that age group and taught, um, pre-K three and kindergarten.

47

00:02:46,272 --> 00:02:49,032

and yeah, that's sort of my journey into literacy.

48

00:02:49,737 --> 00:02:50,547

I love that.

49

00:02:50,547 --> 00:02:51,327

Thanks Darris.

50

00:02:51,327 --> 00:02:55,347

And I think teachers can always spot other teachers.

51

00:02:55,347 --> 00:03:01,227

So the fact that someone within a school building came up to you and thought you were a teacher probably shows that that is.

52

00:03:01,577 --> 00:03:03,677

Indeed what you were, were meant to be.

53

00:03:04,067 --> 00:03:07,127

Um, so you mentioned your background is mostly in early childhood.

54

00:03:07,393 --> 00:03:12,673

This podcast is gonna focus on K through two writing strategies and Darris.

55

00:03:12,673 --> 00:03:19,573

You've worked in early childhood, so what are some of the developmental milestones for K through two in writing?

56

00:03:20,443 --> 00:03:20,923

Sure.

57

00:03:21,133 --> 00:03:25,773

So I'll first say for people who are listening, these are just milestones.

58

00:03:25,803 --> 00:03:30,153

If your child is not doing all of these things by these grades, that's okay.

59

00:03:30,153 --> 00:03:37,223

Doesn't mean that it that it should raise alarms, but, you know, it should kind of help us to think about like, what kids should be able to do by these ages.

60

00:03:37,223 --> 00:03:42,753

So in kindergarten, they should be able to print their upper and their lowercase like letters.

61

00:03:42,843 --> 00:03:43,923

Pretty legibly.

62

00:03:44,133 --> 00:03:45,878

They should be able to write their name labels.

63

00:03:46,253 --> 00:03:55,973

Some pictures with words or even like some phrases or like songs that they know they should be able to do either invented or phonetic spelling.

64

00:03:56,523 --> 00:04:00,123

Based on their knowledge of the letter sounds, they should be able to begin.

65

00:04:00,913 --> 00:04:03,073

Maybe like some simple sentences.

66

00:04:03,403 --> 00:04:05,233

So like, I like dogs, right?

67

00:04:05,233 --> 00:04:12,993

Like even before the, like, the explanation of why they should be able to start a sentence, they should know print directionality, right?

68

00:04:12,993 --> 00:04:14,823

So left to right, top to bottom.

69

00:04:15,393 --> 00:04:25,383

Especially if they read books a lot and often with their teachers with their friends or their families and they should be able to use pretty basic punctuation, right?

70

00:04:25,383 --> 00:04:33,553

And so they should know that the capital letters start at the beginning of, a sentence they should know their periods are at the end of the sentence.

71

00:04:33,973 --> 00:04:38,923

By first grade they should be able to write full sentences with correct.

72

00:04:38,923 --> 00:04:43,303

And I say that in quotations, but correct grammar and punctuation.

73

00:04:43,303 --> 00:04:50,803

So that's all respective based to or based on their language and the ways in which they speak and communicate.

74

00:04:50,803 --> 00:04:52,903

So that's why I said the correcting quotes.

75

00:04:53,213 --> 00:04:55,283

They should be able to spell comments.

76

00:04:56,283 --> 00:04:57,543

That they see often.

77

00:04:57,883 --> 00:05:03,253

They should be able to use different word endings, so like walk walks, walking, walked.

78

00:05:03,583 --> 00:05:10,603

They should be able to write a short narrative or like an opinion piece, like why they like a book or why their toy is the favorite toy.

79

00:05:10,943 --> 00:05:23,043

They should be able to begin sort of planning and revising with their teacher's support and also spaces between their words to maintain the legibility by second grade.

80

00:05:24,043 --> 00:05:30,503

They should be able to write about a page or more, maybe about like their personal experiences or things that they're passionate about.

81

00:05:30,653 --> 00:05:37,133

They should be able to use more complex sentence structures and some varied vocabulary.

82

00:05:37,293 --> 00:05:42,763

You know, at that age they do like to play with some words that, that they know and that they hear.

83

00:05:42,913 --> 00:05:45,533

They can organize their writing from beginning.

84

00:05:46,013 --> 00:05:48,873

And middle and end with some clarity there.

85

00:05:48,933 --> 00:05:52,503

They use their punctuation much more consistently at this age.

86

00:05:52,893 --> 00:06:00,263

They're able to revise and edit with guidance, and then they can also begin to use source materials with informative writing.

87

00:06:00,498 --> 00:06:00,618

I.

88

00:06:01,408 --> 00:06:01,908

Thank you.

89

00:06:01,908 --> 00:06:02,418

That's great.

90

00:06:02,418 --> 00:06:04,778

I loved hearing you describe the punctuation.

91

00:06:04,778 --> 00:06:11,823

It brought back memories to when I taught first grade, we taught you know, ellipsis the little dot but to help the student.

92

00:06:12,458 --> 00:06:14,838

We said, it's saying, dun.

93

00:06:15,078 --> 00:06:16,818

And I will never forget.

94

00:06:16,898 --> 00:06:23,618

The students just had so much fun writing and incorporating that into their writing and saying dun.

95

00:06:23,718 --> 00:06:24,563

As they were writing, so.

96

00:06:25,033 --> 00:06:26,743

Punctuation can be fun too.

97

00:06:26,803 --> 00:06:27,823

Just throwing it out there.

98

00:06:28,193 --> 00:06:32,373

So you mostly talked about writing pencil to paper.

99

00:06:32,473 --> 00:06:43,063

And you know, I know a lot of parents out there probably are wondering how important handwriting and pencil and paper based writing is, especially in today's digital environment.

100

00:06:44,063 --> 00:06:49,553

So one, I am a big proponent of fine motor skill development.

101

00:06:49,833 --> 00:06:54,653

Handwriting really does help to build that strength and control in in small hands.

102

00:06:55,613 --> 00:07:01,003

So we're thinking about things like tracing, playing with Play-Doh, picking up small beads.

103

00:07:01,343 --> 00:07:05,223

All of these things sort of help to to develop their fine motor skills.

104

00:07:05,578 --> 00:07:10,128

Dexterity we want to think about things like tactile and spatial feedback, right?

105

00:07:10,128 --> 00:07:23,578

And so the tactile and spatial feedback of traditional writing can really kind of enhance their memory and their fine motor skill development in ways that tablets almost always, they're not able to replicate all the time.

106

00:07:23,918 --> 00:07:27,878

Even with the most fancy technology you know, the battery can die.

107

00:07:28,278 --> 00:07:30,348

There can be a smudge on the screen, right?

108

00:07:30,378 --> 00:07:35,448

These things can complicate that even though, you know, they can be effective with a sty.

109

00:07:35,938 --> 00:07:37,888

But again, it's not always reliable.

110

00:07:38,248 --> 00:07:48,538

There's also this sort of I think about, cognitive development in kids and how handwriting can improve their cognitive processes, like memory, attention, right.

111

00:07:48,538 --> 00:07:50,428

Language processing.

112

00:07:50,528 --> 00:07:57,188

And often, like I liken this to, and I ask adults, like, why do you take notes while you're learning a new thing?

113

00:07:57,188 --> 00:07:57,398

Right?

114

00:07:57,398 --> 00:08:02,798

Like, you're reteaching yourself this thing as you're writing, kids are doing the exact same thing.

115

00:08:03,798 --> 00:08:04,578

Yeah, I know.

116

00:08:04,578 --> 00:08:09,138

I, if I really wanna remember something, I will write it down by hand.

117

00:08:09,138 --> 00:08:23,948

And I I know there's lots of softwares out there now that keep lists, but I still love writing out a. List and drawing the little boxes

and checking off the boxes as I'm going through the list, there's something very satisfying about that too, so I'm glad to hear that.

118

00:08:24,168 --> 00:08:31,188

You also mentioned in talking about the developmental milestones, invented spelling and phonetic spelling.

119

00:08:31,188 --> 00:08:36,918

Can you explain that a little bit for teachers or families that may have never heard those terms?

120

00:08:37,463 --> 00:08:37,943

Sure.

121

00:08:38,053 --> 00:08:44,923

F phonetic spelling is, when kids are writing sounds excuse me, they're writing some letters.

122

00:08:44,923 --> 00:08:51,293

The ways in which the letters sound to them invented spelling is similar.

123

00:08:51,403 --> 00:08:57,673

But this occurs when kids write words like, based on just completely how they sound, right?

124

00:08:57,673 --> 00:09:00,613

Before they know what the quote unquote correct spelling is.

125

00:09:00,613 --> 00:09:06,458

So for example, if a child is to write special, let's say that they're saying, my birth.

126

00:09:07,028 --> 00:09:11,768

They is special, they may write S-P-E-S-H-U-L.

127

00:09:11,768 --> 00:09:12,038

Right?

128

00:09:12,038 --> 00:09:19,878

That is literally how it sounds because if you think about the way that it sounds in your head, that CIA does not sound like shh.

129

00:09:19,938 --> 00:09:20,238

Right?

130

00:09:20,238 --> 00:09:26,898

Like in their heads or they may leave off an e for like in cake, right?

131

00:09:26,913 --> 00:09:28,563

They may put KAK, right?

132

00:09:28,953 --> 00:09:39,533

It's effective because what it does is it encourages kids to take risk when they're trying to make sense of the letter word connection, or excuse me the letter sound connections.

133

00:09:39,533 --> 00:09:43,223

And it helps to sort of build their, know their knowledge and their confidence in writing.

134

00:09:43,733 --> 00:09:51,963

And it really helps you to understand how deeply they understand, different sounds, different phone names and words.

135

00:09:52,033 --> 00:09:53,953

And are they able to actually write that out?

136

00:09:54,163 --> 00:09:54,523

Right.

137

00:09:54,733 --> 00:09:59,493

Are they making that connection between the ways in which they sound in their head?

138

00:09:59,493 --> 00:10:01,433

Because that's, I mean, that's where they're getting it from, right?

139

00:10:01,433 --> 00:10:05,693

It's in, it's, you know, it's in their head and from their memory and writing it out.

140

00:10:06,693 --> 00:10:13,323

And I think the challenge probably for families is not correcting the spelling then.

141

00:10:13,473 --> 00:10:15,963

So I'll use your example of special.

142

00:10:15,963 --> 00:10:16,803

I love that one.

143

00:10:17,023 --> 00:10:17,113

Because.

144

00:10:18,078 --> 00:10:39,338

CIAL is a very complex spelling that you really wouldn't get to until like an upper elementary grade, but you shouldn't prohibit your child from writing the word special

and including it in, let's say, a birthday card or some other authentic writing just because they don't have access to the phonics at that point to be able to spell it.

145

00:10:39,458 --> 00:10:41,258

So I, what I would say.

146

00:10:41,683 --> 00:10:49,553

To parents is if your child spells something like special and looks at you and says, is this right?

147

00:10:49,913 --> 00:10:52,523

Then you're kind of in a difficult spot, right?

148

00:10:52,733 --> 00:10:55,643

So what I say to my daughter, for example, is.

149

00:10:56,328 --> 00:10:57,288

Did you spell?

150

00:10:57,288 --> 00:11:01,068

Did you write down all the sounds that you heard in that word?

151

00:11:01,368 --> 00:11:03,348

And does it look right to you?

152

00:11:03,768 --> 00:11:07,578

Then there's less pressure on you to go in and correct their spelling.

153

00:11:07,608 --> 00:11:10,098

It's still affirming the approach that they took.

154

00:11:10,148 --> 00:11:11,498

So I love that.

155

00:11:11,528 --> 00:11:14,858

And speaking of authenticity, I gave the example of.

156

00:11:15,138 --> 00:11:16,278

The birthday card.

157

00:11:16,278 --> 00:11:24,258

Can you also, can you just explain what authentic writing means and how might families encourage authentic writing at home?

158

00:11:25,258 --> 00:11:25,548

Sure.

159

00:11:25,623 --> 00:11:28,723

So authentic writing is writing with, and.

160

00:11:29,583 --> 00:11:40,503

And based on your truth, right, your culture, your habits, your home life what I think is great about it is one is the motivation, right?

161

00:11:40,558 --> 00:11:48,658

The best way to motivate a young child to write and to write more is to make it meaningful and connect to their lives and interests.

162

00:11:48,658 --> 00:11:48,988

Right?

163

00:11:49,328 --> 00:11:54,098

And that authenticity really makes writing more engaging and relevant, right?

164

00:11:54,098 --> 00:11:56,913

And then it also can increase their willingness to put.

165

00:11:57,228 --> 00:11:58,848

Participate in it, right?

166

00:11:59,198 --> 00:12:01,478

There's a real world connection that's happening there.

167

00:12:01,478 --> 00:12:09,278

So when you're connecting this writing to real world things and purposes, it really empowers them to become more confident and effective communicators.

168

00:12:09,568 --> 00:12:14,128

Particularly because I. You know, if they're helping you write a grocery list, right?

169

00:12:14,188 --> 00:12:24,118

And then they see you take the list that they wrote and their writing, their spelling their font, their pressure on the paper, and you take that and you go shop, right?

170

00:12:24,118 --> 00:12:26,668

Like, like imagine what that can do for their confidence.

171

00:12:26,668 --> 00:12:31,738

One, they've gotten the opportunity to practice their writing, and then two, you're actually using it, right?

172

00:12:31,738 --> 00:12:35,103

Like it's you know, it's, it is you know, authentic to them.

173

00:12:35,443 --> 00:12:37,183

They can write some letters to pen pals.

174

00:12:37,368 --> 00:12:38,898

They can create some comic strips.

175

00:12:39,178 --> 00:12:41,308

They can make a sign for a school event.

176

00:12:41,538 --> 00:12:45,638

You can label some high some household items, you know, around the home.

177

00:12:45,878 --> 00:12:47,138

They can write thank you notes.

178

00:12:47,168 --> 00:12:48,458

They can write apology notes.

179

00:12:48,638 --> 00:12:49,628

They can label.

180

00:12:49,678 --> 00:12:51,208

D different things around their room.

181

00:12:51,238 --> 00:12:52,528

They can create a family story.

182

00:12:52,558 --> 00:12:54,628

I mean, I could talk about this all day, right?

183

00:12:54,658 --> 00:12:59,768

But they, but there's so much writing that happens or that could happen at home.

184

00:12:59,898 --> 00:13:03,498

And I would just encourage folks to take advantage of those moments, right?

185

00:13:03,788 --> 00:13:05,948

Write letters to people, to your teachers.

186

00:13:06,048 --> 00:13:10,818

Help them create like a, you know, a wishlist for the holidays, right?

187

00:13:10,858 --> 00:13:15,428

So many different ways to think about this, like this this element of authenticity.

188

00:13:16,243 --> 00:13:23,853

I love that, and it's bringing back some of the print that, as we discussed earlier, is missing in kind of a digital age.

189

00:13:23,853 --> 00:13:29,643

I, we, at my house received a catalog, like a physical catalog from Amazon.

190

00:13:29,853 --> 00:13:48,563

A couple weeks ago, which really brought back a lot of nostalgia for me, of getting a Toys R Us catalog around the holiday times and inside of this physical catalog,

even though, you know, Amazon is a digital is a website where you order things, there was a place with lines on it, child friendly lines to practice writing.

191

00:13:48,563 --> 00:13:53,393

So just as you mentioned, I got pretty excited, you know, as a literacy nerd about this because it created.

192

00:13:53,553 --> 00:14:04,093

An authentic opportunity for me with my kids to look at the catalog and write down our wishlist items and then, you know, kind of prioritize which ones are important to us.

193

00:14:04,093 --> 00:14:05,293

So I love that.

194

00:14:05,293 --> 00:14:13,453

And I would say too, in the community, as much as you can point out how people are writing in their everyday lives, that becomes authentic.

195

00:14:13,838 --> 00:14:15,608

Two, I'll never forget.

196

00:14:15,948 --> 00:14:25,608

My husband, when we went out to a restaurant one time, pointed out that the server was writing down what we were ordering as we were ordering our food.

197

00:14:25,848 --> 00:14:31,038

And then when we saw our daughter playing at home, she got a little notebook.

198

00:14:31,038 --> 00:14:34,758

She was playing restaurant and started taking our orders.

199

00:14:34,758 --> 00:14:38,778

So there was like a clear, authentic connection between.

200

00:14:38,883 --> 00:14:43,933

The world and her dramatic play that she was doing at home with

201

00:14:43,978 --> 00:14:46,528

That's, that is clear authenticity.

202

00:14:46,768 --> 00:14:50,138

And I haven't, I don't know the last time I've seen a catalog.

203

00:14:50,168 --> 00:14:50,498

Right.

204

00:14:50,738 --> 00:14:53,018

And I also think about too, like maybe if you received the.

205

00:14:53,378 --> 00:14:54,068

Newspaper.

206

00:14:54,098 --> 00:14:54,518

Right.

207

00:14:54,908 --> 00:15:04,448

Or if you receive any other types of magazines or I love the idea of the mimicking of the writing process too.

208

00:15:04,908 --> 00:15:06,198

I didn't even think about that.

209

00:15:06,198 --> 00:15:07,158

That is, wow.

210

00:15:07,158 --> 00:15:08,858

I it's happening all around us, Aaron,

211

00:15:09,163 --> 00:15:10,133

Yes, it's fun.

212

00:15:10,253 --> 00:15:18,368

Print is really making a comeback and I think it's because families, parents are remembering some of the things that they did.

213

00:15:18,943 --> 00:15:24,873

When they were a kid and having some nostalgia for it, and then wanting to give that experience to their children.

214

00:15:24,873 --> 00:15:26,463

So I think it's great.

215

00:15:26,793 --> 00:15:31,683

So one thing that I'll give an example of a reading experience.

216

00:15:31,683 --> 00:15:44,013

I was at a parent teacher conference and just like all of the families was explaining like, you should read to your child every night, or, you know, every day, that's something that teachers always recommend.

217

00:15:44,788 --> 00:15:50,848

Her response to me was, well, in our culture we don't read as much what we tell a lot of stories.

218

00:15:50,998 --> 00:15:54,538

And I felt a little stuck that I didn't have advice for her.

219

00:15:54,538 --> 00:16:08,598

So similarly to writing, what recommendations or advice would you give to families who have a very strong oral telling oral storytelling culture, but maybe not as rich of a printed writing culture?

220

00:16:09,598 --> 00:16:12,228

Yeah, I think for this one I think.

221

00:16:12,868 --> 00:16:20,848

I love that you talked about how rich it is because I think it's, first, it's always important to empower folks, right?

222

00:16:20,898 --> 00:16:29,118

And just to remind them that these oral histories and their oral communication and with storytelling, right?

223

00:16:29,168 --> 00:16:31,538

Particularly for different folks in different.

224

00:16:32,003 --> 00:16:33,443

Communities throughout the United States.

225

00:16:33,603 --> 00:16:35,103

All of this is relevant.

226

00:16:35,143 --> 00:16:42,263

And one thing I am a strong believer in is that these histories have to live somewhere, right?

227

00:16:42,603 --> 00:16:46,133

Not just in our heads but it's important to write these things down.

228

00:16:46,493 --> 00:16:47,903

So I think one is.

229

00:16:48,723 --> 00:16:50,493

To sort of think about how do you bridge the gap?

230

00:16:50,493 --> 00:17:01,713

So connect these oral storytelling traditions with writing by encouraging kids to write down their favorite stories, to create some new ones based on their family ties or their family.

231

00:17:02,358 --> 00:17:07,428

Tales or recipes that have been passed down from generation to generation.

232

00:17:07,428 --> 00:17:09,078

Like where do these things live?

233

00:17:09,528 --> 00:17:12,978

I think it's also great to think about some prompts for storytelling, right?

234

00:17:12,978 --> 00:17:18,618

Where you can use to help your kids developing their understanding of a sequence, right?

235

00:17:18,618 --> 00:17:20,533

The beginning, the middle and end.

236

00:17:20,748 --> 00:17:23,838

It's really a great way to help them think about like, how do they express.

237

00:17:24,088 --> 00:17:27,418

Themselves, both through illustration and through writing of words.

238

00:17:27,758 --> 00:17:31,718

I'm also a big fan of people who record their voice, right?

239

00:17:31,928 --> 00:17:33,368

And then transcribe, right?

240

00:17:33,368 --> 00:17:37,448

So that you can use the voice notes on your world for Apple users.

241

00:17:37,688 --> 00:17:42,008

We have voice memo on your phone where you can record some family members.

242

00:17:42,523 --> 00:17:48,993

Talking about their favorite memories how their family has migrated from one place to the next.

243

00:17:49,283 --> 00:18:00,173

Different types of careers that, you know your elders have held their favorite memories and then transcribe them or write and response to those memories, right?

244

00:18:00,433 --> 00:18:02,503

Or you can create some family books, right?

245

00:18:02,503 --> 00:18:11,723

I know that there are some folks who are listening who have those old school, the books where it almost looks like the CD catalog where you have like the CDs in them.

246

00:18:11,723 --> 00:18:19,198

I know some people have like pictures there where they may have some letters that are like, you know, that accompanied the pictures or maybe some writing.

247

00:18:19,198 --> 00:18:27,188

Like for us, you know, for our generation when we had the Polaroids, and remember there's like the little white space at the bottom of the Polaroid where you can hand right there.

248

00:18:27,248 --> 00:18:29,648

You can go get like a Polaroid camera, right.

249

00:18:30,008 --> 00:18:31,418

Document some different.

250

00:18:31,483 --> 00:18:47,643

Parts of their life where I've seen some families do that where I worked with a family in Philly where there was a woman who has this

little book with some Polaroids, and for each of her daughter's birthdays, she had her daughter write down on the bottom of the Polaroid.

251

00:18:47,883 --> 00:18:48,783

My first.

252

00:18:48,848 --> 00:19:00,338

Birthday and then you could just see the progression of her writing from the time she was, well, well, not first, but I think it was like her, I think she started her third birthday up until the time when she had gotten to like fifth grade.

253

00:19:00,388 --> 00:19:01,528

It's it's really beautiful.

254

00:19:02,343 --> 00:19:02,958

I love that.

255

00:19:02,958 --> 00:19:05,658

It reminds me also of something my daughter did.

256

00:19:05,718 --> 00:19:07,368

They did self portraits.

257

00:19:07,908 --> 00:19:12,318

So a drawing of their self similar to the photograph, and then write your name underneath.

258

00:19:12,318 --> 00:19:18,108

And it really is fun to see, especially with really young kids in a very short amount of time.

259

00:19:18,468 --> 00:19:22,788

Their ability to draw and write just transforms.

260

00:19:22,788 --> 00:19:30,738

And it's hard to even remember like many things in childhood you know, where they started from point A to point B, and it's just fun to go back and look at.

261

00:19:30,738 --> 00:19:32,218

So, thank you for sharing that.

262

00:19:32,218 --> 00:19:37,588

And then, you know, we talked about oral storytelling, so what about families?

263

00:19:38,143 --> 00:19:46,513

That just parents, let's say, that never have seen themselves as a writer, they never developed strong writing identities.

264

00:19:47,513 --> 00:19:50,793

How can they, I mean, can anyone become a writer?

265

00:19:50,793 --> 00:19:58,413

How can families inspire their children to develop a strong writing I identity if they don't have one themselves?

266

00:19:58,751 --> 00:20:04,191

Yeah, I think the first is, the first thing is to give yourself some grace, right?

267

00:20:04,561 --> 00:20:14,421

Especially if you are a millennial parent you know, you've had to navigate many different changes throughout your life from going from learning how to write cursive, right?

268

00:20:14,471 --> 00:20:19,686

Which a lot of school districts have eliminated at this point and to learning how to use.

269

00:20:20,106 --> 00:20:21,546

Netscape, right.

270

00:20:21,596 --> 00:20:32,876

And then the digital.com boom with a OL and then back when Facebook was only for people in college and then we had MySpace, and then we have Instagram and like the world has changed so much.

271

00:20:33,521 --> 00:20:36,191

So much and you've had to adapt, right?

272

00:20:36,251 --> 00:20:37,451

Give yourself some grace.

273

00:20:37,791 --> 00:20:47,811

There are some opportunities where you have written and then there's opportunities where you've had to learn how to do this with your fingers via text, and even talk to a text, right?

274

00:20:48,171 --> 00:20:49,671

That's the most important part.

275

00:20:50,121 --> 00:20:57,181

The second is to decide that you want to become a writer and that you already are one, right?

276

00:20:57,181 --> 00:20:58,831

I mean, we do it all the time.

277

00:20:58,931 --> 00:21:03,921

Like whether it's through text message, through emails through job resumes, right?

278

00:21:03,971 --> 00:21:07,751

Through, through writing a cover letter you write all the time.

279

00:21:08,091 --> 00:21:14,691

And I think being very authentic about that with yourself and saying to your child, you know, I write.

280

00:21:14,951 --> 00:21:15,851

All the time.

281

00:21:16,061 --> 00:21:20,561

Very often this is the first opportunity that people have to engage with you.

282

00:21:20,561 --> 00:21:24,371

It's not even actually talking to you, but engaging with your work.

283

00:21:24,731 --> 00:21:36,571

So as you're trying to influence them to become more frequent writer more frequent writers, I think seeing yourself first as a person who writes.

284

00:21:36,956 --> 00:21:45,336

Often, albeit it may be digitally it could be practicing writing out a to-do list that you have for work.

285

00:21:45,726 --> 00:21:47,616

It can be writing out a grocery list.

286

00:21:47,916 --> 00:21:53,466

It can be sort of like previewing an email that like you want to send on paper, right?

287

00:21:53,556 --> 00:21:55,716

Writing alongside your child.

288

00:21:56,076 --> 00:22:02,376

And as they, and let's say they have some homework to do where they have to write sit down and do some writing with them.

289

00:22:03,076 --> 00:22:13,976

Take those opportunities where, you know, I know, you know, we live in a world where time seems so scarce and it just gets away from us and we don't have a lot of time for those very authentic bonding moments.

290

00:22:14,276 --> 00:22:17,756

I think that the, that families like I, five minutes, right?

291

00:22:17,756 --> 00:22:21,036

Like five minutes of like write a letter to your child.

292

00:22:21,066 --> 00:22:27,686

I've met a family in Philly where the mom, she she works maybe four.

293

00:22:28,511 --> 00:22:31,871

Four part-time jobs and she does like some deliveries from Amazon.

294

00:22:32,211 --> 00:22:35,891

She writes a letter and she leaves it by her daughter's her nightstand.

295

00:22:35,931 --> 00:22:41,481

And then her daughter responds and she writes a letter back to her mom and leaves it on her nightstand.

296

00:22:41,481 --> 00:22:45,771

And so they've been exchanging letters for I think 17 months now.

297

00:22:45,991 --> 00:22:52,651

And it's a really fun practice where the child can see themself as a writer, and the mom can see herself as a writer too.

298

00:22:52,651 --> 00:22:54,381

So I would just urge you to get.

299

00:22:54,691 --> 00:22:57,121

Creative with those different types of moments.

300

00:22:57,341 --> 00:22:59,501

And again, give yourself some grace.

301

00:22:59,561 --> 00:23:00,011

Okay.

302

00:23:00,141 --> 00:23:02,091

Even if you miss a day or two, that's okay.

303

00:23:02,331 --> 00:23:08,791

I think just being intentional about wanting to start that process not just for yourself but also for your child.

304

00:23:08,791 --> 00:23:19,486

It really is a, a. Skill that I think is going away that kids can benefit from again, from their fine motor skills for really their cognitive development and also for their confidence.

305

00:23:19,516 --> 00:23:21,586

It's it's a really great skill to build that way.

306

00:23:22,586 --> 00:23:23,126

I love that.

307

00:23:23,126 --> 00:23:29,666

I love the the start small and acknowledge the writing that you're already doing.

308

00:23:29,996 --> 00:23:31,376

You know, emails.

309

00:23:31,566 --> 00:23:33,516

Lists, things like that.

310

00:23:33,576 --> 00:23:36,906

You're already a writer even if you don't recognize it.

311

00:23:37,006 --> 00:23:45,256

And if you do wanna become a writer, somebody who writes more than that to set aside time for it, which you said, which you say scares.

312

00:23:45,256 --> 00:23:48,941

I. Have a book to recommend if anyone's interested in becoming a writer.

313

00:23:48,971 --> 00:23:51,671

I read this book while I was writing my dissertation.

314

00:23:51,671 --> 00:23:53,561

It's called How to Write A Lot.

315

00:23:53,841 --> 00:23:55,461

We can link that in the show notes.

316

00:23:55,821 --> 00:24:00,111

And the biggest takeaway I had from that book was to become a writer.

317

00:24:00,111 --> 00:24:01,581

You need to set time.

318

00:24:02,181 --> 00:24:05,481

For writing, and that can be, you know, 30 minutes or an hour.

319

00:24:05,661 --> 00:24:13,741

But you schedule that time for yourself and do not let something else, don't let somebody book that appointment.

320

00:24:13,771 --> 00:24:18,261

If you've made that appointment with yourself to write, don't let somebody else book that time.

321

00:24:18,501 --> 00:24:25,231

And the example given in the book was if you are, were teaching a class from six to nine at night.

322

00:24:25,461 --> 00:24:28,911

You wouldn't let somebody book that time with you because you were teaching a class.

323

00:24:29,061 --> 00:24:31,731

You should treat your writing the same way as that.

324

00:24:31,731 --> 00:24:36,311

So once you book your writing time don't let somebody overbook that appointment.

325

00:24:36,411 --> 00:24:43,801

So yes, just a tip that helped me immensely on my own writing journey that I wanted to share with you all.

326

00:24:44,041 --> 00:24:45,961

So we are reaching the end.

327

00:24:45,961 --> 00:24:46,051

It's.

328

00:24:46,371 --> 00:24:48,081

Is been wonderful Darius.

329

00:24:48,121 --> 00:24:53,491

The last question that I ask to everyone is, this podcast is called Reading Inspires.

330

00:24:53,491 --> 00:24:55,651

So what does reading inspire for you?

331

00:24:56,307 --> 00:25:00,057

Reading inspires me to ask questions.

332

00:25:00,587 --> 00:25:10,997

I think that if you look at different inventions different progression like from going from walking barefoot to now flying in the sky, right?

333

00:25:10,997 --> 00:25:17,297

Like human beings have been able to do some really cool things, and it always starts with a. A question.

334

00:25:17,607 --> 00:25:31,287

For me, books really give me a glimpse into different worlds, different lives, really tapping into my own imagination and re-imagining things in different ways that make me question what's in front of me and what could be.

335

00:25:31,647 --> 00:25:34,607

So, I am always reading as much as I can.

336

00:25:34,947 --> 00:25:50,387

Just read James by Perceval Everett fantastic book and, i'm always inspired to question the world around me always for the better and always always to, for me to think about how I can be better.

337

00:25:50,697 --> 00:25:52,097

And reading helps me do that.

338

00:25:53,097 --> 00:25:53,782

Thank you.

339

00:25:53,782 --> 00:25:54,447

Thank you so much.

340

00:25:54,832 --> 00:25:58,342

Dr. McKen until our paths cross again.

341

00:25:59,342 --> 00:25:59,747

Thank you, Erin.