The word ‘motive’ derives from the Latin movere meaning ‘to move’. As teachers, we must help students see the value and purpose in the class writing projects we plan for them. They need to be moved to write.
There are various reasons why students are moved to write and we can build our writing curriculum around these reasons. They include:
- Teach others by sharing experience and knowledge, or teach themselves by writing to learn.
- Persuade or influence others by sharing thoughts and opinions.
- Entertain themselves or others by sharing stories – both real and imagined.
- Paint with words to show artistry- the ability to see things differently, or to simply play and have fun
- Reflect to better understand themselves, their place in the world, or their response to a new subject
- Make a record of something to look back on in the future
To learn more – [Why Children Are Moved To Write]
By planning class writing projects around these situations for writing, we are in a position to invite students to choose what they would like to write about with those parameters. There is a strong cognitive and motivational benefit in doing this.
- To learn more – [The Components Of An Effective Writing Unit]
- [The Cognitive And Motivational Case For Inviting Children To Generate Their Own Writing Ideas]
By planning class writing projects around the reasons we are moved to write, before inviting students to choose what they would like to write about within those reasons, we not only spark their situational interest but we also benefit from the fact we have sparked their personal interests too. Both of these have a good track record of improving children’s writing motivation. Writing motivation has clear links to improved writing achievement.
Situational Interest + Personal Interest = Strong Writing Motivation
Let’s inspire our students to find their voice and unleash their creativity through purposeful writing projects!