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When young children first begin to write stories they often get frustrated, and need help spelling the "big words." Here is a way to help your child overcome this obstacle and let creative writing flow.

You will need:

• A standard sized notebook
• And pencil or pen

Together, talk about subjects that interest your child. For example, your child might like Planets and Space.

Here's what to do:

• At the top of a notebook page put the heading "Space."
• Brainstorm, together with your child, words that relate to space such as Earth, Saturn, rocket ship, astronaut, etc.
• Print each word, on a separate line of the page. Be sure to use one capital letter and the rest lowercase. You or your child could draw a small sketch, next to the word to help identify it, if needed.
• Add headings and words to new pages, for new subjects. Dinosaurs, Trucks, Ballerinas, Skateboarding, Reptiles, Airplanes, could be some examples.
• Keep the notebook in an easily accessible place, and together add to it often.

The word list reminds your child of what she wants to include in her story, as well as subtly introducing referencing and dictionary skills.

And, not having to worry about spelling the difficult words, frees your child to focus on the story details.