Writing Exercises

Exercises

Here are some of the exercises carried out by the Wise Words Facilitators with their groups and that they have generously shared. You will see some of the results in the work at the front of the Wise Words Anthology.

Exercise 1: Magnetic Poetry

You will need:

•   A list of words printed out and cut into individual words (approximately 50 or 60
•    Postcards 
•     Glue

 What to do:

•  Arrange the words into poems      
•   Stick to the postcards

This exercise is a great way of working with people who may find writing difficult. It’s also a great way to create interesting juxtapositions of words. Limiting yourself to the words available forces you to think about different ways of saying things.

A few blanks can be included (not too many) in case there are specific words you really need to make the poem flow.

Exercise 2: Word Clouds

• Choose a theme.
•  Brainstorm as many words connected to that theme as you can.
• Write them onto a big sheet of paper using different colours, sizes and styles of writing, to mirror each word’s meaning. For example, given the theme of water, the word wave could be written along the shape of waves.

This exercise helps to develop vocabulary and encourages participants to think about the shape and meaning of words and how they connect. It works well individually, in small groups, or as a whole group exercise.

Exercise 3: Group Poems

Writing group poems is a great way to involve all members of a group, they often generate unusual and interesting combinations of language. They can be written around any theme you choose to think of. A good example is ‘I know’.

·         Ask the group to think of a few things they know, especially things that no-one else would know.

·         Ask each person to share their favourite ‘I know’ statement.

·         Combine all these together to create a poem.

·         Read the poem aloud.

·         Choose a title as a group.

This exercise can be done as one big group, or by working in smaller groups and then combining the results. Other interesting themes to try are ‘I want’ or ‘I believe’.

Exercise 4: Song Lyrics

Choose a song with lyrics that either move or inspire you. Think about why it resonates with you. Maybe it reminds you of a particular event in your life, or a specific person. Maybe it reminds you of something you learnt about yourself.

·         Write about which particular extract you like and why.

Exercise 5: The Letters

·         Ask the adults in the group to write a letter to 16 year old selves, thinking of advice they would give themselves if they could. It’s important they think of their younger selves, not of teenagers in general.

·         Young people in the group can write a letter to their older selves, imagining the advice they would like to give from a younger perspective.

Examples of letters written by famous people can be found at www.dearme.org

Exercise 6: Objects

Bring in a mixture of different objects from nature, eg shells, feathers, leaves, flowers, pebbles etc, and ask each group member to choose one. Ask them to really look at it, feel how heavy it is, what it feels like to touch. Talk about anything they notice about their object that they might not otherwise have done.

·         Write something from the point of view of this object. Is there a message the object may have to tell us? Really think

This may feel strange to many participants so remember to ask them to really think themselves into the object as part of the exercise.