Digital Native Celebrates the Long Lost Art of Writing…with a Pencil and a Piece of Paper

Digital Native Celebrates the Long Lost Art of Writing…

with a Pencil and a Piece of Paper

Depending on the generation in which you were raised, you might be a “digital native” or a “digital immigrant”. According to Marc Prensky in his article entitled, “Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants”[1] those of us who were born into the technology age, “who are ‘native speakers’ of the digital language of computers, video games and the Internet are ‘digital natives’. Those of us who were not born into the digital world but have, at some later point in our lives, become fascinated by and adopted many or most aspects of the new technology are, and always will be compared to them as ‘digital immigrants’”.  I consider myself a digital native. I had my first home computer in the 8^th grade. I have had at least one personal home computer and/or laptop ever since. I use PowerPoint presentations, multimedia presentations, computer projection devices, Smart boards, Activboards, and Elmo. I have three email addresses. I draft papers and documents using the computer (not a scratch sheet of paper and pencil). I IM (instant message), use Facebook, Twitter, Pandora, Shazam, Skype, Ebay and Craigslist. I blog, email, shop online, reserve library books online, renew subscriptions, refill prescriptions, pay bills, use speech to text and text to speech software, use my GPS, purchase travel online, and surf the web. In fact, it might impress my “20 something” juniors at the university that I can text on my G Phone without looking at the keyboard. I am particularly fond of the application on my phone that allows me to scan a barcode on any given item and find that product’s review and the closest stores to my current location at which to buy it for the best price.

And yet….I think handwriting is still important. I am not as concerned with the perfection of a person’s manuscript but the actual application of a pencil to a piece of paper.   We have become so reliant on technology for all our communication needs, that I worry “What will happen if the server is ever down for an extended period of time?” Will all communication as we know it cease? Do you have a backup plan? I do.

How much actual handwriting do you use in your daily life? In fact, when is the last time your child witnessed you handwriting a letter or a note? In a recent talk with parents of preschoolers, I discussed this very topic. The overarching theme of the talk was Kindergarten preparedness in the area of literacy. The discussion moved from best practices at home for promoting reading readiness to purposeful writing. Midstream of the discussion, the face of one mother became stricken with shock. She admitted, much to her chagrin, “I am not sure if he (her preschool son) has ever witnessed me writing for a purpose. Our world is so technologically based and we communicate so quickly through email, instant message, text message, webcam, and telephone, that the act of handwriting a card to a friend or even the grocery list, may not be evident to my son.”

Do you think the act of handwriting a message on a card or note is important? Do you respond differently when you receive a typed message in email as compared to a handwritten note in the mail?

Compare these two common experiences:

1) A message shows up in your email box from a long lost friend…the friend, over the years, that you have thought about frequently and often regretting losing touch.

There is a good chance you think, “Oh, how nice.” Or “That’s great!” Or “I was wondering about him”. Or “I am so glad she reached out to connect with me.”

2) A handwritten card appears in your mailbox (the one attached to the physical address of your home, sometimes “junk mail” arrives here) from that same long lost friend you haven’t seen since in ages…the friend over the years that you have thought about frequently and often regretted losing touch. Is there a difference to you between the email and the handwritten card? I would bet the one act that still makes the most impact is the handwritten letter.

Why is that so?

Purposeful writing is a critically important life skill. True purposeful writing can be done digitally or in “real time” with pencil and paper. Purposeful writing is a good work habit, good study habit, good coping skill, good organizational skill, good therapeutic skill, and of course, a good communication skill. Teachers hear students complain about writing in school. “I hate to write.” “I don’t have anything to write about.” The truth is the student’s just might not have become believers in purposeful writing. We can help the teachers lead students to acquiring a good attitude toward and appreciation for purposeful writing. Parents can be models. Just as we, the parents, strive to be models for our children in other areas of our lives, we can do the same with purposeful writing.

Starting small is perfectly fine. Make sure pencil and paper are easily accessible and in plain sight. Make a point of writing down your grocery list and posting it in a place your child can see. But wait, you don’t need to always be the writer. Here’s a nonchalant way to naturally incorporate purposeful writing into your everyday life. While preparing dinner you realize that you are out of eggs. Eggs are an item you might add to your grocery list if your hands weren’t sticky with panko breadcrumbs. Ask your child to grab that grocery list and add “eggs” to it. Even if your child cannot write the letters, can they draw it? Can they sound it out? Writing has a purpose. Writing is important. If you forget about those eggs, your child doesn’t get his favorite homemade chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast on Saturday.

There are plenty of other ways that purposeful writing can be incorporated into your daily life. Remember those wonderfully sweet and innocent letters you wrote to Santa? Continue the tradition with your children. Extend it by having Santa write back. His letter could come in the mail or it could be simply delivered to the front door because Santa always makes a test run with the reindeer a few weeks before Christmas. In fact, Santa could write more than our child’s name on the gift tag. He could attach a little note about why each gift was selected. This practice would also encourage parents to be more purposeful about making gift purchases and purchases could be even more meaningful. Why couldn’t Santa extend the 11 minutes it takes to open the Christmas gifts by leaving the presents at the end of a Christmas treasure hunt? It doesn’t hurt to write a Santa a thank you note after the holidays as well. There might be other childhood fantasy characters that would enjoy getting in on the purposeful writing action. Write to the tooth fairy. Write to the Easter bunny. Write to those naughty little leprechauns who wreak havoc on St. Patrick’s Day. Then there are those real characters in your child’s life like grandpa, Aunt Ann, and Cousin Hunter. When your child mentions an important family member, friend or recalls a special event, encourage them to write or draw a letter to that person and make sure you mail it. There is a strong likelihood that your child will receive some sort of reply.  Keep stamped envelopes handy for your child. Encouraging purposeful writing should be easy and fun for you too.

The ‘lost art’ of writing with a pencil on paper does not need to be ‘lost on’ our children and students. Parents and teachers can provide simple, meaningful opportunities for the engagement and inspiration of purposeful writing. Encouraging purposeful writing will have a long lasting impact on your child as a reader, writer, and thinker.

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