A Creative Writing Lesson | Video

Alex Hagan | 6/11/2012

Even though school ended last month, teachers are already gearing up for the fall. Pre-school teachers in Billings County are looking for creative ways to get their students to have fun while learning to write. In Medora, those teachers came up with some unusual activities that pre-school students will take part in the coming school year.

Teachers waving wooden sticks, singing and drawing were just a few of the non-traditional activities the teachers were learning.

"I made them be the kids, I made them get a feel what it feels like to hold the crayons, to have to shake hands, to be able to make different shapes to make letters," said Occupational Therapist Cathy Van Haute.

Get Set For School is a program for pre-school teachers to learn about a new creative way to get their students to perform better in handwriting lessons.

"The program is designed to give children hands-on materials, teaching them developmentally appropriate activities so they`re really with the skills they need to be successful in Kindergarten," said Van Haute.

Van Haute says the curriculum benefits both students and teachers.

"Research in general shows us that we learn with our senses. We learn through movement, we learn through seeing, we learn through touch and so this program is very rich in manipulation and allows children to have all there senses involved."

School officials say this new curriculum will benefit their students better than previous lessons performed in the classroom.

"It`s very active and hands on instead of the same sitting down and writing and with just paper pencil activities," said Billings County School District Principal Denise Soehren.

After getting some experience from a child`s perspective, teachers are looking forward to the new school year.

"It`s always better to have something that`s fresh in your mind that`s fun to use that you know that the kids are going to like," said Special Ed Consultant Corinne Chruszch.

Once students engage in these activities, school officials expect better handwriting skills and better performance in the classroom.

The workshop continues tomorrow in Medora where teachers will take part in more hands-on handwriting activities.

COMMENT ON THIS STORY

BACK TO NEWS | BACK TO DICKINSON STORIES