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When you started having your grades 5 to 8 kids type reports and narrations and whatnot (as opposed to handwriting), did you have them single space or double space? What size font? Why?

 

Also, when you tell them to, say, "write a half page report on skin" do you mean a half page of handwriting or a half page of ss or ds typing?

 

How do you approach this for high school writing?

 

Thanks!

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When you started having your grades 5 to 8 kids type reports and narrations and whatnot (as opposed to handwriting), did you have them single space or double space? What size font? Why?

 

Also, when you tell them to, say, "write a half page report on skin" do you mean a half page of handwriting or a half page of ss or ds typing?

 

How do you approach this for high school writing?

 

Thanks!

 

Times Roman 12

 

It seems to me that is what was always required when we had to hand in papers in college.

 

Everything (even handwritten) is always required to be double spaced. This allows room for corrections, is easier to read, and gets the child use to doing it for future assignments.

 

Handwritten assignments need to be twice the length of typewritten.

 

FWIW,

Jean

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I have them use the default size font which is 10 I believe and always double spaced.

 

For me, it is easier to read and leaves room for corrections if a draft. I don't like to read anything too close together.

 

Thank you! Everyone seems to say double spaced, and it makes sense as to why.

 

Times Roman 12

 

It seems to me that is what was always required when we had to hand in papers in college.

 

Everything (even handwritten) is always required to be double spaced. This allows room for corrections, is easier to read, and gets the child use to doing it for future assignments.

 

Handwritten assignments need to be twice the length of typewritten.

 

FWIW,

Jean

 

Thank you, too! I also meant to ask about what type of font, so thanks for mentioning that, too. I was fiddling around with fonts this morning, and this was one of them that I liked the look of. I didn't go to college, but I have typed a lot of office papers in my past work life, and I always used Times New Roman 12, never knew why, though. I guess it's standard for college and offices?

 

Since you mentioned the part about handwritten needing to be twice the length of typewritten, another question comes to mind. As I'm helping ds along in his narration/report assignments, I'm going with what I've heard SWB mention for length in certain grades. She mentioned (on the writing CD, I think) 5th grade working up to half a page, 6th = 1 page, 7th = 1.5 pages, and 8th = 2 pages. But she doesn't say handwritten or typewritten. What sounds reasonable for these lengths at these ages, handwritten or typed?

 

EDIT: I realize these lengths are approximate - I just need some kind of guideline.

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MLA or APA format (depending on the topic)--usually MLA.

 

Great reference guide here: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/557/01/

 

I usually set *maximum* word length for my children, not a minimum. But if I'd had a child who tended to short sentences, short paragraphs and short answers--I would give requirements per assignment. There is no "standard" length appropriate based on age of the child. Length is based on the assignment. A science paper? Could be 3 pages. A history report? Could be five pages. (250 word pages is the standard conversion I use.) So, 1000 word paper is less than 4 pages.

 

HTH,

 

Lori

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There is no "standard" length appropriate based on age of the child. Length is based on the assignment. A science paper? Could be 3 pages. A history report? Could be five pages. (250 word pages is the standard conversion I use.) So, 1000 word paper is less than 4 pages.

 

HTH,

 

Lori

 

I think I should clarify further. I'm not looking for a standard length of paper based on age. I already have some length guidelines I'm working my son towards - but I don't know which is more reasonable for a 5th grade reluctant handwriter-but-good-at-picking-main-ideas-and-summarizing-reading-now - approximately a half page of handwritten or approximately a half page of typewritten? I rely on SWB's methods of teaching writing, so this is the approx. paper length rec I am going by. Except I don't know if she meant handwritten length or typed length.

 

Your mention of 250 wpp comment is helpful, thank you! I've always wondered, when looking at essay word count requirements, how people broke that down.

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Well, because she emphasizes hand-written work (and years of hand-writing practice) across the middle school years...I think it's a VERY recent development for all our children to be typing before they are writing (grin), and WTM came out about a decade ago.

 

But I think it's absolutely reasonable for you to use the technology available to you, and to allow your students to present their work in typewritten form. MLA is the format my dds had to master in their very first CC English class at 16yo, and it's the format required for our science fair papers...so even my 6th graders had to present their work to the Regional Science Fair in MLA format.

 

(By the way, one of my 6th grade students got an honorable mention at the NC State Science Fair, so I was quite pleased. Not bad for a tiny little Christian school!)

 

Lori

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I usually set *maximum* word length for my children, not a minimum. But if I'd had a child who tended to short sentences, short paragraphs and short answers--I would give requirements per assignment. There is no "standard" length appropriate based on age of the child. Length is based on the assignment. A science paper? Could be 3 pages. A history report? Could be five pages. (250 word pages is the standard conversion I use.) So, 1000 word paper is less than 4 pages.

 

I just realized that, here, you were probably answering my question about how you approach this in high school, thus the longer pages and word count. Thanks for answering that! It'll be good for me to keep the "variation according to assignment" concept in mind for high school.

 

Well, because she emphasizes hand-written work (and years of hand-writing practice) across the middle school years

 

Ah, yes, this makes sense. Thanks for helping me think that through!:D

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I didn't go to college, but I have typed a lot of office papers in my past work life, and I always used Times New Roman 12, never knew why, though. I guess it's standard for college and offices?

 

Since you mentioned the part about handwritten needing to be twice the length of typewritten, another question comes to mind. As I'm helping ds along in his narration/report assignments, I'm going with what I've heard SWB mention for length in certain grades. She mentioned (on the writing CD, I think) 5th grade working up to half a page, 6th = 1 page, 7th = 1.5 pages, and 8th = 2 pages. But she doesn't say handwritten or typewritten. What sounds reasonable for these lengths at these ages, handwritten or typed?

 

EDIT: I realize these lengths are approximate - I just need some kind of guideline.

 

I think there is a "norm" for papers at most schools. Otherwise kids change the font to something big just to get around the amount of work they have to do.:D

 

I have the preference of grading a type-written page, but my oldest did not use the keyboard as early as my youngest. Some children struggle with handwriting (physical/dyslexic/other probs), and letting them type if it helps them is so worth the while! I suppose I let them decide on their own if they want to type or write, but some papers I specifically require they type them, depending upon their skill and age. I need them to be able to be very comfortable at the computer before they leave home. I want them to be able to think and type--this comes easier to some kids than others. By the time they are in high school, probably everything is typed if it is a paper that is being handed in.

 

As far as number of pages for ages--I'm not the best one to ask. I have a goal of getting my kids to be able to write a 15 to 20 page paper by the time they leave for college. I move them up through the process of paper writing as they are able to do it. If they take an hour to write a page, I'm certainly not going to make them do 2 pages if it is something that needs to be done today. If they have a week to do a paper, then, yes, we move the number of pages up.

 

So....I move them up according to their skill not grade. So far they all have made it to where they have to be in time to leave home.:001_smile:

 

Jean

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If they take an hour to write a page, I'm certainly not going to make them do 2 pages if it is something that needs to be done today. If they have a week to do a paper, then, yes, we move the number of pages up.

 

Now that I think about it, I think what SWB was talking about, with those lengths, are the "rewrites from outlines" that she recommends doing in logic stage, not writing narrations/reports from scratch. And like LoriM mentioned, probably lengths in handwriting, not typing.

 

And I can see what you mean (now that I think I've got that length and handwriting vs. typing straight in my mind) about the part I quoted above. This will be helpful to keep in my mind as my son writes narrations/reports from scratch through the years.

 

Thank you again. I always feel like I'm under water with this writing thing, looking up at the surface, trying to make sense of the images I'm seeing through the water.

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