I want to say this right from the start: you’re not alone. So many mums tell me their child hates writing. It’s the part of the 11 Plus they dread the most. And it’s understandable – writing is one of the hardest skills to develop, and when a child doesn’t feel confident, they naturally avoid it.

I remember a year 5 boy I worked with who told me, flat out, “I hate writing. I’d rather do three maths papers than one story.” But after a few weeks of short, fun exercises and confidence-boosting feedback, that same boy came to our session and said, “Can I show you the story I wrote at home – just for fun?”

That’s when I knew: it’s never about hating writing. It’s about hating the feeling of not being good at it.

So if your child avoids writing, here’s what to do.

Start With What They Can Do

Focus on their strengths first. Can they:

• Tell great stories out loud?
• Use creative ideas?
• Make funny or dramatic characters?

Start there. Let them say the story before writing it. Help them see that they already have the ideas – they just need help getting them down.

Make Writing Feel Achievable

Short tasks build confidence. Try:

• Describing an object in three sentences
• Writing a silly six-line poem
• Creating a character profile
• Finishing a sentence with imagination (e.g. “As I opened the door, I couldn’t believe…”)

Each success builds belief. Each small win moves them forward.

The Creative Writing Crash Course is designed with reluctant writers in mind. The tasks are short, guided, and include examples to model from – so children aren’t staring at a blank page.

Don’t Worry About SPaG Straight Away

A lot of children shut down because they’re told off for not using capital letters or commas. Yes, those things matter – but they’re not step one.

Focus on getting the ideas flowing first. Then, build in editing later. Once your child starts enjoying writing (or at least tolerating it!), it’ll be much easier to improve grammar.

Celebrate the Progress

When your child writes something – anything – tell them what they did well. Even if it’s short, even if it’s not their best.

• “That’s a great simile!”
• “I love that your character had a twist at the end.”
• “You used speech marks perfectly – brilliant.”

Praise opens the door to progress.

Your Next Step

If your child hates writing, the solution isn’t to push harder. It’s to meet them where they are – and build them up from there.

The Creative Writing Crash Course makes writing feel achievable. It removes the pressure and replaces it with progress.

Start the course today and help your child go from “I hate writing” to “Look what I wrote!”

You’ll be amazed at what a bit of structure, support and encouragement can do.