Poetry Challenge #80-Scribbles
Really, would the tike in this pic do a naughty thing like that?
My love of writing can be traced back to when I was two-ish. As the story goes, I used my mom’s black mascara and lipstick to write on the neighbor's car! (And maybe blamed it on my brother… although he says I blamed it on him.) Nevertheless, a scribble is a scribble.
Early Childhood Educator, Anna Reyner, in “The Fine Art of Scribbling” wrote:
“Scribbling is the foundation of artistic development and is intimately linked with language acquisition.”
Rhoda Kellogg, an early champion of scribbling, analyzed over 1 million children’s drawing during a 20 year study. Kellogg concluded that
“Children need plenty of time for free drawing and scribbling to develop the symbols that will later become the basis for all writing and drawing.”
What say we roll back the clock to our pre-school days and scribble. Who knows what it might lead to…
A Nothing Scribble--or not…
Poetry Challenge #80
Scribble Something
Scratch around for something colorful to write with: crayons, markers, colored pencils . . . lipstick—whatever you can find—and a piece of paper. Hold the writing implement in your non-dominant hand, close your eyes, take a deep breath and focus on whatever comes to mind. Then open your eyes and scribble—preferably on the paper.
Try scribbling whatever came to mind. if it was nothing, then scribble nothing. Scribble with 2-year-old abandon for as long as you can—at least 30 seconds.
Now, hold your scribble arm’s length away. While squinting like an artist (a beret might come in handy here), look beyond your scribble to what you drew.
Write a poem about your scribble.
Set the timer for 7 minutes.
Start writing!
Don’t think about it too much; just do it.
If you want to explore scribbles more, check out Diane Alber’s books/website.
*Cindy Faughnan and I began this 7-Minute Poetry Challenge more than 3250 days ago. We now take turns creating our own prompts to share with you. If you join us in the 7-Minute Poetry Challenge let us know by posting the title, a note, or if you want, the whole poem in the comments.