Online Tools For Kids To Improve Their Writing In 2018
As any teacher or parent of a child will tell you, children are absolutely fascinating when it comes to language skills, and not least when it comes to writing. Infinitely imaginative, incredibly funny, and capable of deep thought and surprising levels of philosophy, and sensitive (yes, really!), their natural ability for storytelling has enormous potential to shine through in classes and during playtime alike.
Despite that natural flair for creating whole worlds in their effusive stories, children often need an enormous amount of help when it comes to their writing skills. The will in them is strong, but often the technicalities and practicalities are lacking, and for some, it can be a real struggle to express themselves on paper or on a computer screen. This might be due to problems with grammatical clarity or spelling at a younger age, or problems with formatting, style, and correct writing patterns when in their teenage years.
Thankfully, the internet has provided countless tools and programs designed to help kids master the full gamut of writing skills. From clever apps designed to correct their grammar and spelling, to extended writing guides and online encyclopedias and games designed to improve their clarity of voice, vocabulary, punctuation, and much, much more, there is everything you could possibly wish for in your writing classes online.
We’ve trawled the internet to find you 5 tools to help you teach children the writing skills they need for life and for academic success. Check them out below!
1. Cool Tools For Schools
Tens of thousands of teachers worldwide breathed a collective sigh of relief upon discovering Cool Tools For Schools. This is an ever-growing collection of word games, writing exercises, fun activities and vocabulary retention tools, each designed to be as enjoyable as they are educational. Their success lies in their simplicity and addictiveness—kids will completely forget the fact that they are learning and acquiring new skills as they explore the activities on this site, and it’s the perfect way to motivate young learners.
2. Teen Ink
As the name suggests, this site is dedicated to older learners, and the content within has been curated accordingly. Set out as a dynamic, funky, only ‘zine, Teen Ink is packed full of fantastic samples of writing—including everything from essays to articles, poems to short stories—which have been created by teens, for teens. This site is the perfect tool for engaging adolescents in writing, helping them become passionate about the written word, and exploring the potential that comes through expressive themselves on paper.
3. Storybird
When it comes to bringing creative writing into classrooms, Storybird has proven to be a winning app, time and time again. In essence, Storybird is a complete suite of simple, straightforward and child-focused tools, each designed to help increase engagement, foster a love of reading, telling, and writing stories, and get students thinking of themselves as young authors. Kids will love the chance to ‘publish’ their own books, find pictures to illustrate their words and bring their tales to life with this incredible and fun classroom tool.
4. My Kid’s Way
When you’re teaching writing to kids, you simply can’t have too many examples to use in your classroom. Once you’ve exhausted the textbooks, you can check out My Kid’s Way—an amazing collection of pieces of writing which kids will love getting their teeth into. On this site, you’ll find essays of all lengths and difficulty levels, designed to get children thinking and learning how to construct their own. With subjects as diverse as Christmas, parents, favorite foods, holiday experiences and much more besides, you’ll be able to find materials for any writing class on this superb children’s essay portal.
5. Hemingway Editor
Designed for older children, students, and adults alike, Hemingway Editor is the ideal tool for improving grammar, spelling, vocabulary, and overall flow. When your students reach a certain age, they’ll start taking the details of their writing much more seriously—there’ll be no room for spelling mistakes, grammatical errors, or repetition—and Hemingway Editor will make them feel like professional authors and journalists as they polish their skills. Through this powerful and popular tool, your students will pick up the skills they need to perfect their writing independently, and be able to identify their weaknesses to be corrected down the line.
