Post-Exam Idea: A Free Parent-Child Workshop  On Critical Thinking & Creativity!

A Budget Mum Review: Artistic Strategies: A creative writing course for children.

With the exams drawing to a close very soon, what better way to spend time with your child then doing something creative and meaningful together!

The good news is Artistic Strategies, is offering you all of that, and more! The creative writing academy, whose mission is to groom young writers, is celebrating the opening of its new think space at Kitchener Complex by organizing an exclusive Artistic Strategies parent-child workshop (valued at $45) on critical thinking and creativity at absolutely no cost!  This is such a seriously great offer and here’s why: 

Writing has always been a passion close to my heart. As a former teacher and now homeschooling mum, writing represents the art AND the heart of expressing oneself. 

Words can weave magic, heal, whet our imagination and take our emotions on a tailspin and back. When expressed well, the gift of words is probably one of the most treasured gifts. Thus the art of honing this gift to emerge from each one of us is a valuable exercise in and of itself. 

Recently, we had the pleasure of chatting with Ms Claudine Fernandaz, founder and principal instructor of Artistic Strategies, a creative writing program that uses the arts both as a lens to view the world and as a tool for generating ideas.

Harvard-trained Ms Claudine makes it her personal mission to groom the next generation of writers through the arts and help children navigate a major pitfall of creative writing: a lack of original idea through various modalities.

In fact, the Artistic Writing™ programme, according to Ms Claudine, is the first in Singapore that marries the arts and writing. “By engaging in the arts, our students become inspired to write about their artistic creations. Many come up with such original and inventive narratives, surprising even their parents.” she explains.   

Claudine instructs E to fold an origami heart where she pens an original haiku to her bffs.

Creating before writing is a staple feature of the course .It makes a remarkable difference when children write about what they have created!

Budding writers do NOT start with a long dreary list of good phrases to incorporate or model essays drilled by rote methods. 

Instead, every writing activity starts with a creation: origami, food craft, modelling clay, storyboard or recycled materials. Students create something from scratch and through Art, grow ideas and process their thoughts about what they want to express and why.   

This is such a difference from the staid method that the kids go through in school due to the lack of time, and a punishing volume of syllabus to cover. As a parent, I benefitted from observing Ms Claudine combine so many different modalities: song, art, craft, poetry into one lesson. It really showed me how the barriers can be broken and our thought processes free to roam creatively. Writing doesn’t have to be dry!

Creative sticks : used to pick elements of plot, character, setting. Seriously funny when put together. The kids giggled like crazy.

It was great to have experienced some of the artistic strategies in writing, employing some of the many fantastic ideas from her book “Every Child’s Guide to Write Away”, a guide to inspiring children to write.

     
Overall,the class was a breath of fresh air and we picked up some tips on how to trigger and inspire writing through artistic activities. 

Here are some writing tips from Claudine and suggestions on how to use the book.

1. What should children write? How should they write? 

“Children should write about what interests them and not worry so much about form or structure at first. The main thing is to put their ideas down on paper, whenever they feel inspired. It could be something interesting that they had experienced or noticed on a normal day or it could be a life changing event.

Additionally, they shouldn’t be too bothered about writing the “perfect” piece. Writing, like any art form, is a process, and it never is completed. One can always go back to it to rewrite or change certain parts.

Even at a young age, children should get feedback from their peers and adults about their writing. By being open and receptive to what others have to say, they can work on getting better at their craft.”

2. Tell us more about your book and how it can be used.

“The book that I wrote features a variety of artistic and writing exercises revolving around universal and accessible themes like family and friendship and includes opportunities for children to experiment with writing about imaginary worlds and characters. 

Both teachers and parents could use this book as a guide to encourage the love of writing in children aged 7-12. The exercises also include guiding questions and examples, so that children would feel reassured and comfortable while navigating through the different exercises. There is also a chapter entitled, “Making your writing better” which provides concrete strategies for students to edit and improve upon their work.”

Exclusive: MOBM readers and get a 10% discount of “Every Child’s Guide to Write Away!” at the workshop. Promo code: MOBM

Claim your Free Parent-Child Workshop (worth $45) on Creativity & Critical Thinking Now! 

When: Sunday, 6th November, 2016

Where: 809, Kitchener Complex, #04-160 S(200809), next to Lavender MRT

Time: 10-11.30am OR 12.30pm-2pm

Seats are limited so participants will be selected on a first-come-first-served basis.

Participants get to use Tickle Your Senses sensory products and Stabilo stationary for free. All materials provided.

Register now!: http://tinyurl.com/officialopening