The Ducks in the Woods

One of my own first personal experiences with writing occurred in my second grade year. At this point in life, I had little previous experience with writing. My experience beforehand had been limited to small journal entries, the classics of elementary writing; Explain what you did this weekend, Who is you best friend and why?, etc. This assignment, however, differed from anything we had done previously. This specific activity involved writing a short story surrounding our topic of choice. There were very few limits to the activity, we simply had to come up with an idea and write about it. We were encouraged to be creative with our stories, coming up with our own characters, settings, and conflicts. As this was only a grade 2 class, I believe the required length was approximately one page hand-written, and you know how big a child’s writing can be at the ripe young age of seven. Although this was many years ago, I can remember with great detail the story I had written. This memory now stands out as one of the moments in which I discovered my own passions for reading and writing. My story began with a tale of three ducks. I remember describing each of their characteristics and the nature of the relationships between the three. What stood out most about this experience however, was the fact that I could not stop writing. What was supposed to be a one page story ended up much longer. I began dividing it into chapters after the ideas continued to spring forth in my head. My finished product ended up being approximately five chapters and about ten pages. Not long ago, I found this story, hidden away in an old basement cupboard. I laughed when reading it, shaking my head at how eager I was as a young child. Reading this story reminded me of the pleasure that comes from writing. Our students, even at a young age, are incredibly capable of creativity and worth. If we expose them to writing early on, we can instill a passion for writing, literature, and create life-long learners.