Learn All Year Long

Kids and teens should read and write even when they are out of school. Why is this so important?

ReadWriteThink has a variety of resources for out-of-school use. Visit our Parent & Afterschool Resources section to learn more.

Celebrate Heroes

1.	Ask the child what makes a person heroic. After talking about this for a few minutes, visit the Heroism in Action website and watch the short video clip. Use information from the website and video to spark a discussion about heroes.
2.	Use the Heroism Is . . . sheet to list the different things that make a person heroic. Have the child write one characteristic or trait in each circle. Traits may include honest, patient, brave, and caring, among many others.
3.	Ask the child to think of a hero—a real person or someone from a book, television show, or movie. The hero can even be a personal friend or relative. If the child is having trouble thinking of a hero, visit the My Hero Project or Time 100: Heroes and Icons websites and do some reading together until you find someone.
4.	Have the child use the About My Hero sheet to take some notes about his or her hero. When finished, talk about the ways this person has some of the characteristics or traits written on the Heroism Is . . . sheet.
5.	Have the child use the interactive Letter Generator and the notes on the About My Hero sheet to write a letter to his or her hero. This letter can explain why the child thinks the person is a hero and how he or she hopes to be like that person. If the person is real and living and you can locate an address, have the child mail the letter.

Visit the Letter Generator page for more information about this tool.