Thematic Reading List: NaNoWriMo – Getting Kids Writing

November has become the time when writers endeavor to craft a complete book in one month. While this is fun for adults, it can also be fun for kids! No matter their interest or skill level, children can write poetry, stories, and more if they have the desire to do so. This book list includes both fiction and non-fiction titles for elementary school students. Some explain how to write while others introduce characters who are learning how to write themselves.
Contributed by: Mary Lanni
 
 
 
 
 
 

	642 Things to Write About: Young Writer’s Edition By: 826 Valencia Get your creative juices flowing with this collection of smart, funny, and thought-provoking writing prompts. Open to any page to be inspired, to express yourself, and to jump-start your literary genius.
	Born to Write: the Remarkable Lives of Six Famous Authors By: Charis Cotter Presents the lives and careers of six famous children’s authors, including C.S. Lewis and E.B. White, and reflects on how their childhoods influenced their writings as adults.
	Creative Writing: the plot thickens By: Mary Budzik Illustrated by: Simon Basher Presents an approach to creative writing that personifies key steps and elements of good writing to explain such areas as creating characters, establishing settings, and enabling events to move in a logical order.
	Guy-Write: What Every Guy Writer Needs to Know By: Ralph J. Fletcher A writing guide for boys draws on advice by such authors as Jon Scieszka and Robert Lipsyte regarding how to make writing assignments fun while sharing tips for exploring a variety of subjects and capturing key story moments.
	Guys Write for Guys Read By: No Author Short stories, anecdotes, cartoons, and columns are compiled by such authors as Stephen King and Gordon Korman, who share the comical, sad, and strange memories of their life as boys and the impact those moments had in their later lives.
	Write On!: the Miss O & friends collection of rockin’ fiction By: No Author Presents the results of the online writing contest announced on the “Miss O & Friends” website, which is comprised of fifteen poems and short stories written by girls between ten and fifteen years of age from around the world.
	The Write Stuff By: Lisa Mullarkey Illustrated by: Phyllis Harris Katharine turns Mrs. Bingsley’s lessons in creative writing into a competition between herself and her schoolmate Vanessa.
	Write This Book: A Do-It-Yourself Mystery By: Pseydonymous Bosch Illustrated by: Gilbert Ford In this mystery story that features interactive puzzles, activities, games, and choose-your-own-adventure scenarios, the reader is led through the steps of writing a book.
	Write this Down By: Claudia Mills Twelve-year-old Autumn wants more than anything to be a real author, but when she wins a contest by writing something too personal about her brother, she has to decide if her dreams are more important than their relationship.
	How to Write an Essay (Explorer Junior Library: Language Arts Explorer Junior) By: Cecilia Minden and Kate Roth Writing is an important skill that kids use almost every day. The goal of the Write it Right series is to make kids writing experts. Writing an Essay is full of tips and tricks to help kids turn in an exceptional essay, from forming an opinion to crafting a strong conclusion. This book includes a table of contents, glossary, index, author biography, activities, and instructions.
	Writing Magic: Creating Stories that Fly By: Gail Carson Levine Explains the process of writing, from coming up with ideas through creating characters and writing dialogue and offers practical advice and exercises.
	Writing Poems By: Benjamin Proudfit Provides advice for young poets on how to write a poem, including information on getting to know the work of other poets, rhyme, rhythm, poetic forms, themes, choosing the right words, and revising a finished poem.