We have had many opportunities for Kyle to write in his blog, but getting him to spend the time to write takes some subtle motivation. The geology post didn't make it to the blog. He enjoys writing about things that he does, like Sports Day, or topics related to what he is doing in school, like this pollution project. He recognizes the audience for these types of posts. He wants his teacher to see his projects, while he wants his friends to see what he has been doing.We went to Bahrain this past weekend with the Al Ain Rugby Club, which gave us plenty of material for posts. I started by having him do a trip report. This report asks him to answer basic questions about his trip. I want him to answer in complete sentences, but he prefers answering in phrases. My requiring him to write complete answers means it takes him longer to finish a blog and makes it that much more of a task. I am trying to balance fun and production. The goal is for him to enjoy writing and to see life as a learning experience.
I hope to use the Bahrain trip to get him to do research on Bahrain, but based on his answers to the trip questions it seems like his interest in Bahrain revolves around rugby. We did see an amazing fort, Bahrain Fort, that is on land that has been inhabited since 2300 B.C. I hope that I can get him to write about our visit there, a country profile for geography would be a nice start. At least I would like him to narrate the video we recorded, although this requires more time on my part. We can easily find time for exploring, but struggle to make time for the reporting. In January we did numerous things worth reporting on: we went to the Philippines; he played in a rugby tournament; and we went to the Al Ain Air Show.
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