Wordsmith Craftsman or Jensen's Format Writing???

[Robin in DFW]

I have both of these books. They both look great. I am trying to get a feel for their strengths/weaknesses to help me decide. My dd15 likes to work independently and has no problems with writing. We want to bone up on the process/mechanics over the next couple of years.

 

Is one program friendlier than the other? More thorough? Confusing?

 

I'd like to hear the pros/cons.

 

Thanks!

Robin :auto:

[Maura in NY]

and I prefer the Wordsmith Craftsman. We dropped the Jensen's after a month or so. Neither of us liked the formulaic writing style. It seemed very stilted.

 

Maura in NY

[sweetbaby]

We have the Craftsman also. It's great for a reluctant writer such as my son but if you have a child who loves writing, you may want to do a program that allows you to go more in depth. Cathy Duffy has some info on both on her review site also.

[Chris in VA]

We tried both, but ended up using The Lively Art of Writing, thru Write@Home.

[Guest Katia]

We have both and use both. My dds liked Wordsmith Craftsman the best for over-all writing instruction, but they used Jensen's FM for help in formatting their writing, plus Jensen's covers research reports which WC does not.

 

So, WC was our main program and I worked in FM where it fit in the WC lessons, and then we always left the last 6-8 weeks of school for research report writing.

 

We used this method in 9th and 10th grades to great advantage. It doesn't have to be either/or. It's ok to mix and match, especially when you already own both.:001_smile:

[ereks mom]

It is much simpler -- "just the facts", no frills -- and he liked it because of that.