Writing Tales VS Writing With Ease?? Help!

[Murrayshire]

I thought I had it figured out?!....I am planning on using FLL3 with my upcoming 3rd grader.....And I was going to go ahead and start now with WWE2 before starting WWE3 for next year. But now I've looked at Writing Tales 1 and I'm thinking this may do well with FLL3, too!?

 

Any advice....pro's, con's for both writing programs would be very helpful from those of you who have used both!

Which one should I use.....? She is not a strong, strong writer and sometimes huffs and puffs about having to write a full paragraph...I would like for her to excel a little more in her writing for 3rd grade so she will love it more.

Thanks,

jana

[Aludlam]

:bigear:

[Dawn E]

We started off the year in WT1. It is a great program, well-laid out, user-friendly for both the parent and child. The amount of work for each day is very manageable, though one day a week (the retelling of the story the first week and final draft the second) can be quite long. My dd loved WT, and I could see improvements in her writing. It was a lot of writing, but she didn't complain. I sometimes broke the main writing day into two days. It may have been that my dd was more verbose in the retellings than other children, but hers would sometimes be more than two pages long. (This, of course, was around the teen weeks of the program.)

 

This semester we switched to WWE. I did so because I began to think I was playing to her skills with WT1. This child could retell any story or movie almost word for word. She didn't care about writing all those details over...but I began to notice that she was clueless regarding how to summarize a story or passage. After hearing SWB talk on writing at the conference, I decided I needed to switch gears and focus on teaching a skill that didn't come easily to prepare for future years. That's why we switched to WWE.

 

I think they are both great programs. If we had time to do them both, we would. :) So, my view is you can't go wrong either way. It really depends on which fits best for your family at this time. WT will afford more opportunity to actually write and there is an option for some creative changes in the final draft which appeals to children who enjoy creative writing. The skills being taught through WWE are also very beneficial for use in the logic stages: developing outlines, condensing paragraphs to their most important point. I hope I've offered something besides more confusion. :)

[Ali in OR]

My youngest has used WWE 1 and 2 and my older dd used WT 1 & 2. For 3rd grade next year, I gave my youngest the choice of either WWE 3 or WT 1 (she remembers what that is like from watching her sister). The programs are very different, but I think they are both good and I am absolutely fine with either one for next year. WWE has less physical writing. WT has some grammar work and a lot longer writing assignments. My dd chose WT 1 and I think it is a good choice for her. She loves to write her own books and should be fine with the amount of writing. I think she'll like the creative additions on the final drafts. The big dread for WWE is the amount of dictation. I have a personal bias against it because I think you can become an excellent writer without dictation. Remembering the exact wording and figuring out the punctuation of someone else's written work does not seem essential to me, and it can be pretty frustrating for dd. As the teacher, I have to do WWE with her most days. I can remember that with WT, I was able to turn my older dd loose on grammar days, or just pre-load her with instructions and let her have at it. Since my dds work on assignments while I work with the other on the piano, I like having some subjects that they can do on their own or with a minimal amount of upfront instruction.

 

Again, both are good programs--you can't go too far wrong with either.

[RootAnn]

... I sometimes broke the main writing day into two days. ...

 

I think they are both great programs.

:iagree:

 

Based on what you have posted, I'd use WWE2/3 with your child this year & if it fits into your long-term plan, move onto WT1 the following year. Your child should be comfortable with the skills taught in WWE (at least through level 2), IMO, before embarking on WT1.

 

This thread is an old one about "when to work in WT in with FLL/WWE."

 

This thread has a post by OhElizabeth where she says your kid should be able to comfortably write their own narration.

 

This one asks the same question you asked & includes information on WWE & WT.

 

And one more that contains a post by LisaTheresa about switching to WT1 in the middle of WWE3.

Edited May 28, 2011 by RootAnn

[texasmama]

And one more that contains a post by LisaTheresa about switching to WT1 in the middle of WWE3.

 

I am the OP in the above linked post. My plan is to do WT1 and combine it with WWE3, done at half pace. We are halfway through WWE3 so we will pick back up in the fall with the last half of WWE3 and WT1. I think it will be a good balance for my son, though I cannot speak to its success yet since I haven't actually done this. If this is too much work for him, I will slow the WT part of it down.