Each week, I walk to the second-grade classrooms, with a pep in my step, eager to sit in my designated chair ready to welcome any young author wanting to talk with me about their writing.
On my first visits, I came with folded sheets of construction paper, each prewritten with a student’s name. Inside each folder was a twice-folded piece of notebook paper with pencil- traced folds that created four boxes. I had numbered each box: one, two, three, and four. Box 1 included WHO, and WHERE. Box 4, a heart. There was also a folder for me.
I asked about the people and the animals they love and then I asked what they love to do together. I asked about the places they love and I asked what they love to do there. I asked about the things they love; I asked why they love these things.
Writing in the air, speaking their stories aloud, is a perfect place to start — no pencils needed.
Then, it was my turn.
“I love Charlie. I went to visit Charlie in Seattle. When I was there, I went to the Seattle Aquarium. At the aquarium, I saw a giant octopus, who used to live with sharks. I learned that in the middle of the night, the sharks started disappearing.” I paused. “I found my story. I think people would want to read this. I think people would wonder what happened next.” I let them know that I had another story.
“I love going to Gainesville. Hannah goes to college in Gainesville. A few weekends ago, I went to a football game at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium and someone spilled soda all over me.” I paused. “I found my story. I think people would wonder if I stayed at the game or if I just sat there covered in soda.” I told them that I had one more story to tell.
“I love these glasses that I keep on my dresser. They were my grandma’s glasses. My grandma was the best. I remember when my dog Bosco had to go live with my grandma.” I paused. “I found my story. I think people would wonder why Bosco had to go and live with my grandma.”
It was time for the writing folders. I grabbed mine from the top of the pile and took out the premade planning sheet from inside. I chose the Seattle Aquarium story and would save the others for another time. I let them know that in Box 1, I would draw the Who, me, David, Charlie, and Olivia, and the Where, the inside of the museum. I tell them that making a planning sheet is our way of traveling back in time. A little bit like magic.
I move to Box 2, where I start my story, drawing when we first see the octopus in the tank. Box 3 will be what happened next, and Box 4 will touch the heart. I will draw me at a counter buying two yearly passes to the aquarium, so Olivia and Charlie can visit the octopus, anytime, any day.
Once the pictures are drawn, they are ready to bring their stories to life using crayons and colored pencils.
The part that these young authors love is when they sit down beside me and I cut up their planning sheet into four rectangles. I pile the rectangles on top of each other in chronological order, stapling the spine three times to turn their planning sheets into wordless picture books that will guide them as they write their stories on another sheet of paper.
After introducing narrative writing, I introduced informational, opinion, and fiction. Those boxes look a little different. For informational, I want to know how they know the information, for opinion I want to know why, and for fiction, I want to see a problem. Now they get to choose what type of writing they are working on, and just as we love having choices, young children love having choices too.
Wordless picture books are a wonderful way to inspire storytelling. By students creating their own wordless picture books, they are learning that their own stories are also worth telling.