talk to me about teaching writing in 2nd -- what should i be teaching?

[momma aimee]

I am really clueless about teaching writing I have a 2nd grader this fall (and a kindy, but i am talking about the 2nd grader).

 

I don't know what i should be teaching, or how.

 

We have worked on nothing but handwriting up to this point (and he struggles with that as it is).

 

I know i should be doing more, but i am not sure WHAT or HOW

[SilverMoon]

With what you've explained I'd spend most of the year on purposeful copywork. Start the year with small pieces that won't overwhelm him, and require him to do his very best. Every capital and piece of punctuation must be copied correctly. Decide where your bar for neatness is and enforce it. Sit next to him with an eraser in hand and quickly erase mistakes as you see them being made. When he can do a small, not overwhelming piece regularly without struggling start increasing the length and complexity of the sentences.

 

Pull sentences for copywork from whatever good book happens to be handy.

 

eta: You can drop the separate penmanship with this method.

[mytwomonkeys]

I would just use WWE 2 for him (or you could even start in level 1). That would be plenty. We used Rod & Staff 2 with my son at that age and it also has opportunities for writing (although we did a lot of it orally too).

[Mom2TheTeam]

I would use WWE 1. (Writing With Ease level 1) He does need to start at level 1 if he has never done copy work or narration. If he has, there is an exit test online he can take to see if he places into WWE 2. It isn't tied to grade level, but skill level. Many 2nd graders use WWE1. Mine has started it at the end of 1st grade and will be about 1/4 way through when we start 2nd. Mine has been doing copywork all year and still we are starting at WWE 1. We will probably start WWE 2 about half way through 2nd. But, again, it's based on skill, not grade level.

 

Good luck!

[momma aimee]

thanks. WWE -- via copy work, teaching composition? (ie being able to write a good sentence, or a good 3 or 4 sentence "paragraph" and so on?)

 

so is 2nd too young to teach that -- i don't want to push creative writing on him -- but i want him to have a good foundation and don't wait to wait too late.

 

And yes i assume writing will also be penmanship practice too -- i won't make him do it 2x)

[boscopup]

I agree with the others - copywork and oral narration at this point. When he's ready, you can add dictation, but it's ok if that isn't this year.

 

If you want it all put together for you, WWE1 would be a good choice. I would definitely start with level 1 in your case.

[momma aimee]

how is / is WWE different from FLL?

[SilverMoon]

WWE is writing. Composition. FLL is grammar.

[boscopup]

thanks. WWE -- via copy work, teaching composition? (ie being able to write a good sentence, or a good 3 or 4 sentence "paragraph" and so on?)

 

so is 2nd too young to teach that -- i don't want to push creative writing on him -- but i want him to have a good foundation and don't wait to wait too late.

 

I highly recommend listening to this lecture on teaching writing in the elementary years (she also gives a brief overview of logic and rhetoric stages, but the focus in this lecture is the grammar stage):

 

http://peacehillpres...grades-mp3.html

 

I wouldn't worry about what should be taught when, but where your child is now. If he hasn't done any copywork, he needs to start there. If he does not find handwriting "easy", having him write anything original ("from his brain") may very well overwhelm him. Start with copywork, which allows him to practice putting words on paper without having to come up with those words. Use oral narrations across the curriculum to teach him to come up with good thoughts based on what you have read to him (and eventually what he reads himself). It's a process. You can't just skip steps if the child isn't ready. Work with where he is now, and set reasonable goals to meet HIS needs.

 

WWE will start out having him copy one short sentence and telling you one thing he remembers from a passage (plus it involves comprehension questions which are great for developing listening skills). Through the series, you eventually have him reading a passage and writing down his 3-4 sentence narration on his own, possibly at the end of 4th grade or so. That's not too late. You're laying down a solid foundation. It will look completely different from what the public school kids are doing, so that's why I suggest listening to the above lecture, so you know where you're heading and WHY. The process WWE uses is great for writing phobic kids who don't like to write creatively. :)

[Five More Minutes]

thanks. WWE -- via copy work, teaching composition? (ie being able to write a good sentence, or a good 3 or 4 sentence "paragraph" and so on?)

 

so is 2nd too young to teach that -- i don't want to push creative writing on him -- but i want him to have a good foundation and don't wait to wait too late.

 

And yes i assume writing will also be penmanship practice too -- i won't make him do it 2x)

 

I'm afraid I don't fully understand what you are asking here, but I'll try to clarify WWE from my experience.

 

If you look into the Writing With Ease approach, the goal of Gr. 2 writing is increasing facility in writing down complete thoughts in increasingly complex sentences. (Paragraphs come later.) This is achieved through regular copywork, dictation, and narration.

 

Composition -- as in creating original pieces of writing -- is held off until Gr. 5.

 

You can find your own sentences to have your child copy, and select passages from good books to have them summarize. If you want ideas for how to do this, I'd recommend the Writing With Ease Instructor's Guide, which outlines the philosophy of teaching writing and gives samples for doing this in Gr. 1 - 4. However, if you'd like it even easier to implement, then simply get the WWE Student Workbooks. (This is what I've done.) They have all of the copywork and narration passages selected for you, so all you have to do is open and go.

 

If your student has not been doing any copywork, then I would recommend starting with WWE1.

 

I have done penmanship separately from WWE, but others have good success combining the two.

 

Hope this helps!

[momma aimee]

thanks everyone, this is really helpful. :)

[ammv15]

I am using Essentials In Writing this year. I have two dc in grade 2. This curriculum is on DVD and has worksheets and writing assignments. I really need somehting like this as I was struggling in this area. It will be my first year using it. I am hopeful this will help.

[Hunter]

I really like the individual yearly suggestions in the How is My _ Grader Doing in School? series. This is NOT the What Your _ Grader Needs to Know series I talk about so often!

 

HGD focuses on the 3Rs, where NtK focuses on content. HGD is very realistic and based on normal child development. It's like having a really really really good retired PS school teacher, that taught during the back to basics years, as your own personal mentor. The tone kind of reminds me of the TV show The Nanny.

[Jay3fer]

I highly recommend listening to this lecture on teaching writing in the elementary years (she also gives a brief overview of logic and rhetoric stages, but the focus in this lecture is the grammar stage):

http://peacehillpres...grades-mp3.html

 

I was just about to say the same thing. It's a $4 investment that will pay for itself as you listen to it over and over.

My only beef with the Peace Hill Press store is that it's not an instant download. So don't put off buying it until you're ready to listen - buy it first, then you can listen whenever you have a chance.

[momma aimee]

thanks everyone. I am still so unsure about what i should be "pushing" as far as 2nd grade writing (not penmanship). I am working on it

[PentecostalMom]

WWE is a very scripted program. You don't need to "push" anything. It is simple and light and I don't think you will have a problem with it. Here is a sample of the pages.

[alisoncooks]

I really like the individual yearly suggestions in the How is My _ Grader Doing in School? series.

I just have to say:

I followed a link you posted for this series sometime in the last month....

The sample that I viewed was from the 1st grade book and it shows how children can tell the difference b/t "b" and "d."

 

It has been the ONLY thing I've found that my oldest DD has remembered and USED on her own! So, if nothing else, thanks for that link! DD now independently does the "finger thing" they show and figures it out on her own. :thumbup: :party:

[Bree]

If he is struggling with writing he may have, ok forgot the proper word, but weak muscles in the hand :) My brain has left me...anyway, my ds has had very weak writing because he gets really fatigued and just it physically hurts him. He has really improved in this area towards the end of his 2nd grade year, but you may work on things that will develop his little hand muscles too. You could try doing some copy work. We also did a lot of creative writing last year where he would dictate to me on a topic and then he would illustrate it. I would probably put off paragraph writing until next year to see if his writing has improved.

[kiwik]

If you go to the peace hill website you can download a lenthy sample of the WWE1 workbook. If you have only been doing handwriting that wwe1 would be a good place to start.

[Marie131]

My grade 2 son loves to write. We used WWE1 this year (we started it t/w the end of 1st) and I saw a tremendous improvement in his free writing.

[momma aimee]

thanks everyone, i am glad to have the support

[alisoncooks]

Have you decided on what you're using?

 

This sounds a lot like my soon-to-be 2nd grader:

We have worked on nothing but handwriting up to this point (and he struggles with that as it is).

 

 

My DD has also struggled with reading... another reason I've put off writing. (I hate the idea of having DD write things -- copywork -- that she can't read!) I'm still wondering if we'll do a formal writing program this year. Maybe a Spectrum workbook... it looks do-able.

[momma aimee]

we will use

FLL2 and WWE 1