Reading for Connection
Reading aloud to children—especially young children—is one of the top two things I recommend to parents who want to support their young children’s literacy development. I wrote another blog post about…
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Dr Seuss on Nonsense
Summer is a time rife for nonsense, and who better to remind us of its value and beauty than the master of nonsense himself—Dr Seuss. As we share some green…
Writing Prompt: Wi-Fi Problems
Wifi is a precious commodity in today’s society—both elusive and everywhere—and its loss is something that will invariably stress out everyone it happens to. This prompt plays on that idea…
All Dressed Up with Nowhere to Go: Why Reading and Imaginative Play Matter
It’s World Book Day and children in many schools in the UK and around the world are dressing up as their favourite book characters, sharing their favourite books with friends,…
Beatrix Potter on Delicious Words
The first bite of a crisp, juicy apple; the first sip of some steaming chicken soup; a big scoop of ice cream on a hot summer day: all these things…
Writing Prompt: Zoom Surprise
In the age of virtual learning and teaching from home, the line between a teacher’s classroom life and homelife might be more blurred than ever. However, we still often only…
Joseph Chilton Pearce on Being Wrong
When our child trips and skins their knees on the playground, we comfort them and kiss them and put on a bandaid. When they are old enough, we might teach…
Reading Corner: The Pout-Pout Fish
“Blub. Bluuub. Bluuuuuub.” These three words and everything about how they’re presented in The Pout-Pout Fish—from the spelling, the all caps, the growing font size, and of course the accompanying pictures…
Jodi Picoult on Writer’s Block
A blank page can be scary. Here at ECP, we know that better than anyone. As writers ourselves, many of us have been confronted by the dreaded blank page. This…
Writing Prompt: Hidden Past…
This plays on the common fascination that many of us have with our heritage and background, as well as our love for clever rule breakers and dashing anti-heroes in our…
Supporting the Anxious Writer
Many people tell me they or their children struggle with writing — and this struggle comes in many forms. It can mean identifying as “bad at writing”. It can mean…
Writing Prompt: Invisible Prankster
This is a fun prompt that allows the writers to go wild with their imagination, and encourages them to really stretch possibilities behind a very cool power. What’s more, while…
Kadir Nelson on Resonance
For thousands of years, storytelling has not only been a way to expand our imagination and knowledge, but also a way to represent and reflect our culture, experiences, and individualities…
Reading Corner: Dear Zoo
One of the current favourites of my almost-two-year-old, Dear Zoo by Rod Campbell, continues to captivate readers 38 years after it was first published! The Flaps! The story is simple, yet offers so…
Writing Prompt: Work It Out!
Like several of our other prompts, this one asks the writer to think about creative conflict resolution. With a strict location and time limit, the prompt really challenges the writer…
Kurt Vonnegut on Creating
You know what they say about singing like no one’s listening… One of the key ways to develop creative confidence and live a creative life is to get in the…
Writing Prompt: Camp Switcheroo
This prompt speaks to a very realistic scenario that we have all probably faced at one point or another: being forced to spend time with someone that we dislike. It…
Reading Corner: We’re Going on a Bear Hunt
We’re Going on a Bear Hunt by Michael Rosen How (or wherefore) do we love this book? Let me count the ways! We love this book for the rhythm of…
Writing Prompt: Mysterious Text
This prompt, like many of our others prompts, is one that the writer can take in many different directions. Your protagonist can choose to engage with whoever is sending messages…
Maxwell Perkins on Editing
Creative writing is at its core, well, writing. There is no denying that. Putting pen to paper (or fingers to a key board) is the most significant, fundamental part of…
“Be brave, Mama.”
“Be brave, Mama.” The little voice of my 4-year-old as he hugged me goodbye echoed in my heart as I made my way nervously down the slopes, a beginner skier…
Writing Prompt: Crazy Day
This should be a fun prompt for everyone, because the up-and-down roller coaster of a topsy-turvy day is something that everyone can relate to. Maybe it’s a day full of…
Writing Prompt: Poem about a Misunderstood Crocodile
Write a goofy, rhyming bedtime story poem about a misunderstood crocodile. Not sure where to start? Here’s what we came up with when we gave it a try: Poor Smile…
Writing Prompt: Funny Story Time!
This is a straightforward one; the key is creativity and trying to figure out what your fellow schoolmates may find funny. Think of the funniest possible story you can tell…
Lovely Litany by Matthew, Age 7
In honour of National Poetry Month in April, here’s a lovely litany that we published back in 2011 by then 7-year-old Matthew. Litanies, also known as list poems, typically catalogue…
Writing Prompt: Forbidden Corridor
This prompt plays on our natural instinct to explore that which is unknown to us. In fact, from the third-floor corridor in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone to the…
How to Write: Haiku
Small but packs a punch Not spicy, might make you cry From the Japanese. That’s not me talking like a caveman, that’s a Haiku about Haikus! Haiku’s are traditional Japanese…
Writing Prompt: Last Minute Career
How many times have you been caught in a situation where you have to come up with something on the spot? Improvisation—an exciting companion of imagination—is the key here; the…
Writing Prompt: Fiction’s Visit
This should be a fun prompt for everyone, because it allows the writer to pull in their own interests and write about what their favorite fictional character might get up…
Young Readers Festival Writing Competition for Secondary Students
There’s a long weekend coming up — perfect time to dive into some writing! If you’re looking for inspiration, check out this creative writing competition from the 2019 Young Readers…
Writing Prompt: Doctor’s Discovery
A doctor’s appointment is something that everyone has to do, no matter if they are young or old, big or small. Sometimes they can be scary, but visiting the doctor…
How to Write: Concrete Poem
One of the more underrated forms of poetry, concrete poems, are also known as shape poems. Here’s an example of a concrete poem (you’ll see for yourself why it’s called…
Writing Prompt: Monkey Parade!
If the abrupt, curveball style of this prompt threw you for a loop… Great! Take that spirit of anarchy with you and use it to make the events in question/your…
Writing Prompt: Technology Challenge
This is a fun prompt that explores generational conflict in a light-hearted way, as it asks the writer to imagine how the process of going off technology—an “essential resource” today—would…
Improve Your Writing: Blast into the Past
How to Round out Flat Characters with Backstories To add some curves to stock or flat characters, try to give them some memories. Having a backstory can help shape the…
Writing Prompt: Missing Homework
Of course, we are not condoning missing your homework or lying to your teacher. But once in a blue moon, things can happen that prevent you from doing your homework.…
How to Write: Fan Fiction
Are there characters from a book series that you can’t wait to read more about? Do you love the characters from your favourite TV show so much that you wish…
Battle Writer’s Block: Keeping an Inspiration Notebook
You never know when inspiration will strike! Part of being a writer of any kind is… writing! Obvious, right? But seriously, nothing exercises that writing muscle like having a place…
Parent-Child Activity: Story Inspiration Board
Yes, Pinterest is all the rage, but sometimes you want to get your hands dirty (and have something fun to hang up in your child’s room). This is where (physical)…
How to Write: Book Review
Are your friends always asking you for a book recommendation? Do you find yourself bumping into walls all of the time because you simply cannot take your nose out of…
Improve Your Writing: Alliteration
“Busy bees buzz brightly.” “Sally sells seashells by the seashore.” “Cats can create catastrophes constantly.” These sentences use alliteration. Alliteration is a literary device in which the writer repeatedly uses…
Writer’s Block: Go to the Movies!
Let’s say you have an idea for a story, but you still can’t seem to put pen to paper. Try going to the movies! No, not actually leaving your house…
Improve Your Writing: Metaphor
Like simile, metaphor is a literary device that references another thing in order to tell you something about an object or idea. As we mentioned, simile compares two things using…
How to Write: Song Lyrics
I’ve never thought about song writing as a weapon. I’ve only thought about it as a way to help me get through love and loss and sadness and loneliness and…
Improve Your Work: Personification
Have you ever heard someone say, “Shhh, the walls have ears!” Huh? That sounds like one creepy house, right? Just kidding! This doesn’t mean the walls literally have ears; rather,…
How to Write: Literary Journalism
Literary journalism. The term itself sounds a bit paradoxical, doesn’t it? Journalism is concerned with factual details. Literariness deals with the beauty of prose. But, literary journalism combines the two:…