We think of schooling in sequential categories—moving from first grade to second, looking forward, never back. It makes sense; preschool is vastly different from middle school. PTA members Bridget Kolb and Amy Miller of Coleridge Taylor Montessori Elementary School in Louisville, Kentucky, managed to bridge those differences, bringing the grades together through an activity involving just six words.

As co-chairs of the school’s Literacy Week, Kolb and Miller worked across grade levels (preschool – 5th grade). While brainstorming the literary celebration, Kolb recalled an NPR story about the Six-Word Memoir Project; “I was struck by how much could be conveyed in just six words.” Miller, who previously taught using Six-Word Memoirs, loved the idea.

The Six-Word form showed students the power words hold. It gave students an opportunity to express their individualism, regardless of age, and tell stories about themselves. “And it doesn’t have to be a hard, daunting writing project with rough drafts and topic sentences. It can be one index card and six words,” Kolb explained. Miller recalled “one three-year-old boy, who couldn’t even write his name yet, told me his six words with a big smile, while his classmates looked on in awe!”

Although students were skeptical at first, school librarian Tom Bruker had a great lesson with many examples. “You could almost see the wheels start to turn as they realized that there were stories in those six words,” said Kolb. Here are six favorites from the Literacy Week team:

“Reading is the foundation of learning.”

“I love reading big fat books.”

“I want to be an illustrator.”

“Happiness is my mom and family.”

“I like doctors. They work hod [hard].”

“Please don’t stick your tongue out.”

Six-Word Memoirs found a home at Coleridge Taylor Montessori. Kolb and Miller hope the project will become a permanent part of the school’s Literacy Week. They also see it as a daily activity for the students’ “Writer’s Notebooks.” However they choose to write, we hope they keep on Sixing! —Gilmarie Brioso