adminI have been reading a number of articles on the mental health benefits of writing.
It has been linked to improved mood, well-being and reduced stress, so I thought I would share two ideas that we continue to use at CCHS to encourage creative writing in young people of all ages and abilities.
Making Your Mark
Making your Mark was devised by Charlotte Thorpe (English Coordinator) and Shaun Dolan (Artist), as a method to encourage creative writing through art. It begins with a simple mark on a piece of paper and the students are encouraged to develop the mark into an image using a coloured pen. These images then become a stimulus for writing.
If you would like me to email you more information about Making Your Mark or the marks that we use, please let me know.
The Traveling Suitcase
The Traveling Suitcase was an idea we created for a past international school project in order to engage with young people and encourage creative writing and animation. The suitcase belonged to a fictional character called Mr Twig and was filled with letters, postcards, a passport, lights, and objects that could be explored to inspire storytelling, writing, and art.
The suitcase and its contents created many different stories as well as opening up discussions of travel, transport, countries, object names in different languages, currency and more.
It’s such a good idea to have these links to Writer’s Ink and the Iceland project . Some great work . Yes I totally agree with the intro about writing , reading and benefits to mental health. I certainly feel uplifted after visiting these two link sites and reading the contributions.