Ren Allen

~~~~The essence of writing occurs in your head. The medium doesn't
matter so much.

Johanna this is BEAUTIFUL!!!~~~~~

I AGREE!! I had cut that part, to post about and then read your
response Michelle.

Quality writing bubbles up from quality experiences. The more a person
experiences of LIFE, of emotions, of interesting memories, the more
fodder they have for writing. So filling our children with great
memories and experiences is the very BEST way to help them be great at
anything in life...that's it. The magic formula. Poof!

Writing isn't the act of pen on paper, unless you want it to be.
Writing is formulating your thoughts and feelings and finding a way to
communicate them to other humans. I agree with Johanna, that the
essence of writing is in your head (and heart).

Any kind of coercion has the potential to turn a person off to the
medium. That's not what unschoolers want. We want passionate children
that feel free to be supported in whatever they choose to
experience/create/learn about. Forcing writing does not lead to great
writing. Creating a life worth living CAN (and often does) lead to
great writing.......but only if the person enjoys expressing
themselves in that medium.

Ren
learninginfreedom.com

Melissa

I wanted to also talk about this subject, because we've been
experiencing some of this lately. Sam is a story teller, he is so
amazing. He can create fantastical amazing plots and subplots, and
without much forethought, an amazing end. He adds visual imagery that
is quite specific, and changes his voice to a deep lyrical chant
(almost, as deep and lyrical as a 5yo can get, i guess) I enjoyed his
stories so much that I started writing them down. He seemed okay with
it for a while, but then one day took my face in both his hands and
came very close. "Just LISTEN to me, just hear my story." Dictation
is not always what it's cracked up to be either. We're compromising,
I listen, and sometimes he says I may write them down as we go, and
sometimes I can ask him later for specifics if I'm trying to recall
certain details. My favorite so far is "The Golden Bean", in which a
cowboy turns into a dragon with the aid of aforementioned bean.

Melissa
Mom to Josh (11), Breanna (9), Emily (7), Rachel (6), Sam (5), Dan
(3), and Avari Rose

share our lives at
http://360.yahoo.com/multimomma



On Aug 25, 2006, at 9:18 PM, Ren Allen wrote:
> Writing isn't the act of pen on paper, unless you want it to be.
> Writing is formulating your thoughts and feelings and finding a way to
> communicate them to other humans. I agree with Johanna, that the
> essence of writing is in your head (and heart).
>
> Any kind of coercion has the potential to turn a person off to the
> medium. That's not what unschoolers want. We want passionate children
> that feel free to be supported in whatever they choose to
> experience/create/learn about. Forcing writing does not lead to great
> writing. Creating a life worth living CAN (and often does) lead to
> great writing.......but only if the person enjoys expressing
> themselves in that medium.
>
> .
>
>



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