What's next?

[Night Elf]

My ds17 used Write Shop I and II during his 9th grade year as part of his English class. Since then, he's been doing writing assignments with his online school. He's had some practice doing assignments such as persuasive and narrative writing, but I'm thinking he needs more. What types of writing would prepare him for college?

 

Another question: How would you prepare a student to learn to write an essay in under an hour when he's used to taking 2 days? My son can write fairly well, but he doesn't feel like he can write more than 2 paragraphs in one subject per day. He has Aspergers and while that shouldn't be used as an excuse, he does work more slowly than the average high schooler. He's gotten better but the essays still take time. He needs time to cogitate before he commits to paper, even for a rough draft.

[ThisIsTheDay]

What's your purpose for having him learn to write essays in under an hour?  That might make a difference in the answer.  (Is it to prepare for a 20 minute SAT essay? For impromptu essay writing in a class period? Or?)

 

I don't have extensive knowledge, but can only base my answer on dd's experience.  She took a dual enrollment Eng 111 course as a 12th grader. It was a writing instruction class and included several different kinds of writing in preparation for what would be necessary in college.  It culminated in a (3-5 paged?) research paper. She will be at a four year univ. in the fall, and her required coursework includes a research-specific writing course which must be taken by all students in her program.  I'm not saying that your ds should take a CC class; just that many colleges will spend class time specifically devoted to teaching the students what will be expected in writing.

 

To prepare my dd for SATs, I encouraged her to brainstorm topics, using a timer.  She was used to, and preferred, thinking quite a bit about her writing before just spitting out an almost-final copy.  She had to break past that, get her topic and just write.  We did that regularly until she felt more at ease.

[Night Elf]

What's your purpose for having him learn to write essays in under an hour?  That might make a difference in the answer.  (Is it to prepare for a 20 minute SAT essay? For impromptu essay writing in a class period? Or?)

 

Mostly I'm thinking of him having to write essays or take tests during college classes. I don't know if he can finish a test within a class period. He took a practice SAT exam and finished his essay within 25 minutes, but I think it could have been much better. He felt pressured for time and didn't do as well as he would have if he had had more time to actually plan it out.

 

I don't have extensive knowledge, but can only base my answer on dd's experience.  She took a dual enrollment Eng 111 course as a 12th grader. It was a writing instruction class and included several different kinds of writing in preparation for what would be necessary in college.  It culminated in a (3-5 paged?) research paper. She will be at a four year univ. in the fall, and her required coursework includes a research-specific writing course which must be taken by all students in her program.  I'm not saying that your ds should take a CC class; just that many colleges will spend class time specifically devoted to teaching the students what will be expected in writing.

 

I don't find dual enrollment with colleges to be an easy thing here in GA. I just don't understand the requirements or how it works. I've tried to research it but I don't know how it would work given my son's online school isn't based in GA, but in PA.

 

To prepare my dd for SATs, I encouraged her to brainstorm topics, using a timer.  She was used to, and preferred, thinking quite a bit about her writing before just spitting out an almost-final copy.  She had to break past that, get her topic and just write.  We did that regularly until she felt more at ease.

 

Yeah, my son has that problem. I know he just needs to write to practice but we don't know what he should write. Nor do I feel qualified to really grade an essay he writes. I decide if it sounds nice or not and that's my criteria for grading. I did find some free writing prompts online so I can go that route rather than paying for a program, but there is no instruction with them. There is nothing to guide me in deciding how he is managing or progressing.