I have a student who reads well and comprehends well, but just is not motivated to write. He will write sentences only after pulling teeth. How can I encourage him to write more?
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What grade level is your student?
What do they like to read?
Do they have favorite subjects/interests ?
Jim — Michigan
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Why do you assume it’s a lack of motivation? Has this student been tested? How’s his spelling? Attention span? quality of handwriting? Many students who appear to reluctant to write are but most often because of some underlying learning difference.
If you can’t go for testing, allow the student to dictate short stories to you. It can help students to see how much writing they’re actually generating if someone is writing down their stories as they dictate them.
And is this a verbal child? That’s also very important to consider.
Explore the possibility that this child has fine motor issues or an LD that is interfering with the writing process. He is not motivated to write because something about it is hard. Until he is evaluated and the source of that difficulty is learned, it is impossible to say what will help. Consider reading Mel Levine’s book “The Myth of Laziness” for more information on why children who look like they have “motivation” problems really have learning problems.