Writing tricks

[Guest guest]

Dear , and anyone else whose child has trouble writing,

Here are some of the tricks we tried, most of which worked at one time or

another:

1. Do a recorded interview with your child about the subject he has to

write about. Let him walk around while he talks to you about the subject.

Afterwards, you or he can transcribe the recorded interview (using a word

processor or computer) and fill in the gaps, or correct the order in which

the facts or opinions are presented.

2. Another version of the trick above would be for you to write out some

questions, give your child a tape recorder, and let him (or her) record the

answers. You don't have to be present at the time. Afterwards, he or she

can transcribe the answers and use them as a starting point for the written

assignment.

3. Still a thid version of this tactic would be to help your child write

out some questions on a topic he has to write about, and then do a recorded

interview with another person who knows a lot about that subject. Then have

him or her transcribe the interview, etc. My son did this when he had to

make a poster about voting machines.

4. Ask your son or daughter to write down 5 or 10 " factoids " about the

subject. They can be in any order, and be long or short. Afterwards, help

your child group the " factoids " into subject categories, ask if there's

anything he or she needs to add, and help him or her turn them into

paragraphs. Most kids with Asperger's don't understand the need for an

introductory and a closing paragraph, but you can help by suggesting ways of

writing them.

5. If necessary, read the composition aloud to your child, or have him or

her read it aloud to you before turning it in. If there are any gaps that

need to be filled in, you can ask questions to help him or her add details

or explain things that aren't clear. Most Aspies tend to write in a very

economical style, because they don't understand that most of their readers

won't know what they know, and need explanation of some points that are

obvious to the writer. You can " play dumb " like a typical reader and ask

questions that will encourage your child to amplify.

6. If the assignment is to write an imaginary story, or to write about

something your child has never experienced, ask the teacher if the

assignment can be modified. We did this many times during my son's public

school years. For example, in 7th grade he was asked to " Imagine that you

are an 18th-century slave. Describe a typical day in your life. " Well, he

has a lot of trouble imagining himself in anyone else's shoes. So I asked

the teacher if he could write about the life of an actual slave. We looked

up information about the life of , General Washington's personal

valet, on the Mount Vernon website. My son wrote down all the duties that

might have in a typical day, such as " He laid out the General's

clothes and helped him get dressed. He made sure his wig was neat and that

everything was clean. He rode on horseback to andria to pick up the

mail, " etc. Then I had him change everything from the third person to the

first person, as in, " I laid out the General's clothes and helped him get

dressed... I rode to andria to pick up the mail, " etc.

I'm sure there are many other ways to help your child with the mechanics of

writing. There's a section on teaching in Borders bookstores that has many

suggestions for writing teachers. It might be worth your time to browse in

that section and see if you can find any techniques you can use.

Good luck!

Jill