Finding Courage
When kids write, one of two things tends to happen: either they jump into it without thinking, finding immediate joy in expression–or they poke and...
This Year, Tell Better Stories
Whether it's a lunch break between shifts, a ride home on the bus with a stranger, or a lengthy conversation before bed with our family, let's do our...
Don’t Be Precious
It’s only natural to be precious with our writing because we’ve worked for it. We’ve put the mental strain in, believed in our ideas, and...
Page Don’t Lie
Everyone, adults and children alike, cannot stop themselves from thinking all day long. We’re basically professional thinkers—if we were to put our...
Not Disney
In one of the older groups I teach, the students have created a phrase that seems totally antithetical to the foundation of Written Out Loud. And I...
Breaking the Mold
I’m not sure where this comes from, but in every story I write there’s always a pull to write a scene that already exists. The “cat stuck in a tree”...
Perspective
We’re all lenses into the world; more than that, we construct models of everything around us, creating perspective. Perspective is a unique reality,...