HubPages to Improve Childrens' Written Expression

In this hub I would like to explain how I have found a way to offset the damage being done to the writing skills of our children as a result of their over dependence on text messaging. In this present age of social networking via mobile phone and computer the quality of our childrens' written expression is suffering and I needed to do something about it. HubPages has become a very valuable tool in my desire to restore the balance and in this hub I explain how I have used HubPages to motivate my children to improve their writing skills and raise the quality of their written expression.

My wife and I are both in our 50's and we have four children. The youngest is twelve and the eldest is sixteen. All four are very bright talented children who excel in all areas; academically, in sport, music, art and drama. My wife has been instrumental in encouraging them to pursue their interests in music and drama and I have been the one who brought them to the track to train with them during the cross-country and track seasons.

I moved to the Isle of Man with my family from Ireland in 2002 and it has turned out to be the best decision we have ever made. The Isle of Man is the ideal place to bring up small children. It is a safe environment in that we don't need to lock our doors at night and the children are safe to walk the dog by themselves on the headlands overlooking the sea or on the beach. We don't fear for our children's safety the way many people do all over the world.

The Isle of Man also offers opportunities that are simply not available anywhere else for young children growing up without having to travel great distances and spend a lot of money. In our community we have an elementary school and high school that are within walking distance. There is an all weather hockey and astro turf pitch. We have football pitches, rugby fields and a running track. The school gyms are available for clubs to use after school for table tennis, basketball and netball. There is a swimming pool within walking distance and during the summer the children spend the day playing on the beach and jumping off the storm wall in the harbour.

The only extras we pay for are the very small club subs and their singing and piano lessons. The school provides their violin lessons . The school also provides all of their text books, exercise books pencils, pens and any other materials for free. The philosophy here is that every child is entitled to an education for free whether they want it or not and this thinking serves people like us very well indeed.

I work for two hours every morning at the local high school teaching Mathematics to children with learning difficulties, emotional and behavioural problems and in the afternoon and evening my wife and I share the private hypno-psychotherapy clinic we run from home. This means that there is always one of us available for our children and that is the way it has been for us here.

Although our children are very bright I noticed that their written expression left much to be desired. I put this down to the social networking phenomenon that now consumes this generation of children. Their communication is mostly by e-mail and text messages and they have gotten into very habits. I don't judge the way young people communicate nowadays but I also want my children to be able to express themselves eloquently when necessary.

I came up with the idea that each child would submit to my wife and I a story of their choice every Sunday by 7pm. We would meet in the sitting room and each would read. My wife and I would grade the stories and give them feedback. We would then help them edit their work and each child would then publish their work in their own HubPage account on HubPages. By doing this we created yet another way for our children to do something with us that we feel passionate about and at the same time improve their own writing skills.

The children love it and we all look forward to our HubPages writing club every Sunday. The hubs are all up on HubPages before they go to bed and we have now also discovered a great way for us to communicate with each other through our stories.

HubPages have provided yet another opportunity for our  family to do something together and I want to say thank you the HubPages for this and to encourage you all to see past  all the limitations you place on yourselves and realise the wonderful opportunities that exist all around you.

Life is a game. Play it! And enjoy the game with your family and friends while you can because all games come to an end when Mommy calls you home for bedtime.

I hope my children continue this tradition long after we have finished our game of life but whether or not they do, I feel confident that I have done everything in my power to ensure that they play the game of their lives with confidence and gusto!

An endeavour without purpose lacks meaning. An endeavour that adds to our collective desire for meaning enhances life. ~ Xavier Nathan