Every year there are story tellers in Kindergarten.  They tell their stories by acting them out in imaginary play or telling them orally to the group.  Some children dictate their stories for an adult to write or do some writing themselves.  Recently, some Kindergartners have been creating their own books to share with the group, and last week the first Kindergarten poem of the year was written down by a Kindergartner to be shared at story time.

     Just as hearing published authors' works read aloud boosts children's motivation to learn to read and write, hearing their own work or that of their peers makes it all the more inviting.  And motivation needs to be high, because learning to read and write is hard work for most children.  We fluent adult readers consistently underestimate just how hard it is.  Writing and reading are relatively new cultural inventions that we must rewire parts of our brains to accomplish. 

     Nothing is more motivating than fun, and hearing a good story, poem, or joke read aloud is just plain fun.  Kindergartners have been enjoying hearing their own work and that of others shared during our read aloud time.  They have laughed uproariously together.  One author literally fell to the floor laughing and was obviously delighted that the other Kindergartners felt the same about her work.  Another Kindergartner has created a series of stories, so far three, with the same set of characters.  

     Here is a sample of their work:

Kindergarten poem (translated from sound spelling)

I I love

You are love

I I love

You are

Kindergarten story (numbers indicate pages)

1-The mommy butterfly and the baby butterfly

2-100 days later

3-The butterfly and the ladybug

4-The butterfly and the ladybug were in a big flood.

5-1000 days later

6-100 million days later

7-The End