Perogi Posted August 7, 2015 Share Posted August 7, 2015 I'm stumped as I try to plan writing curriculum for my 7th grade dd. She has worked through all 4 levels of WWE, an elementary and middle school Killgallon book, EIW level 5, some of Scholastic's Paragraph Writing Made Easy, The Creative Writer level 1 and 2, and 2/3 of WWS Level 1. For 7th grade I was thinking of starting out with an online Bravewriter class, completing the last 1/3 of WWS Level 1, and going through The Lively Art of Writing. Dd would also like to do The Creative Writer Level 3. Then, in 8th grade, I would like her to do WWS Level 2 through The Well Trained Mind Academy. As I actual complete my planning though and consider paying for the various materials, I'm second guessing. I'm not sure Bravewriter is worth the money. I keep hearing glowing reviews of EIW. I'm not sure LAoW is a good fit for grade 7. Revising the plan is getting confusing, mostly because I don't really know what I want to use and what I'm comfortable skipping. Added to that is the uncertainty of whether or not dd will be going to high school for grade 9 (she has started to express an interest so it is a possibility, but not a certainty). I have started wondering if I should do EIW 7 this year (also finishing up WWS 1). Then 8th grade would be LAoW? If she's home for 9th we could do WWS 2. But - I don't love the idea that she might miss out on WWS 2 if she goes to school and I would really love for her to get some solid instruction with outside accountability and feedback before starting high school, whether at home or at school. Feedback? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 7, 2015 Share Posted August 7, 2015 :lurk5: I am in a similar situation with my 7th grader. I was planning WWS 1, but then I thought about EIW 7 since my daughter loved EIW last year. Then I found ELTL 5, and was trying to decide if I wanted to combine WWS and ELTL 5 this year. Now I am thinking of just doing WWS 1 like I originally planned. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrysalis Academy Posted August 7, 2015 Share Posted August 7, 2015 Yep, so many great things to do, so little time! It's a good problem, in a way. We did Lively Art of Writing and started on Writing With a Thesis in 7th. I just signed her up for Kidswrite Intermediate for the first 6 weeks of 8th grade, and if she likes it she will probably do the Expository Essay class in the spring. Meanwhile, I want to finish going through WWaT, and review and practice the WWS 1-3 topoi . . . and I'm just closing my ears to anything else right now! This is plenty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverMoon Posted August 7, 2015 Share Posted August 7, 2015 I'm in the same seat! Nothing seems like "the one" for my 7th grader. He's a technical, engineer kind of guy, but needs decent inspiration or he'd rather pluck his eye with a spork. He likes the idea of creative writing, but last year's Cover Story got that out of his system for awhile. LOL (For a kid that enjoys creative writing CS is awesome!) We've done some Killgallon over the summer. I think WWS would drown him. LAoW or Jump In level is probably about where he needs to be. Thinking in Threes maybe? I dunno. :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perogi Posted August 7, 2015 Author Share Posted August 7, 2015 Haha - we're all stuck! September is creeping up on me..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perogi Posted August 7, 2015 Author Share Posted August 7, 2015 :lurk5: I am in a similar situation with my 7th grader. I was planning WWS 1, but then I thought about EIW 7 since my daughter loved EIW last year. Then I found ELTL 5, and was trying to decide if I wanted to combine WWS and ELTL 5 this year. Now I am thinking of just doing WWS 1 like I originally planned. I asked dd last night if she wanted to do another level of EIW and she was kind of negative about it. I know she'd do it if I asked her to but she wasn't excited about it.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perogi Posted August 7, 2015 Author Share Posted August 7, 2015 Yep, so many great things to do, so little time! It's a good problem, in a way. We did Lively Art of Writing and started on Writing With a Thesis in 7th. I just signed her up for Kidswrite Intermediate for the first 6 weeks of 8th grade, and if she likes it she will probably do the Expository Essay class in the spring. Meanwhile, I want to finish going through WWaT, and review and practice the WWS 1-3 topoi . . . and I'm just closing my ears to anything else right now! This is plenty. So you found LAoW appropriate for 7th grade? I've heard you mention WWaT before but I haven't really looked into it. I'd love for you to post what you think of Kidswrite after your dd has done it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perogi Posted August 7, 2015 Author Share Posted August 7, 2015 I'm in the same seat! Nothing seems like "the one" for my 7th grader. He's a technical, engineer kind of guy, but needs decent inspiration or he'd rather pluck his eye with a spork. He likes the idea of creative writing, but last year's Cover Story got that out of his system for awhile. LOL (For a kid that enjoys creative writing CS is awesome!) We've done some Killgallon over the summer. I think WWS would drown him. LAoW or Jump In level is probably about where he needs to be. Thinking in Threes maybe? I dunno. :tongue_smilie: That's exactly it; nothing feels like "the one". We've loved Killgallon and while WWS 1 almost caused a family breakdown last year, I do think it improved her skills a lot. But I don't want to attempt it with her on my own for level 2! I had forgotten about Cover Story and OYAN.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 7, 2015 Share Posted August 7, 2015 ...and while WWS 1 almost caused a family breakdown last year...... This is what I am afraid of with WWS. I don't want to use something that is going to cause my daughter to dread writing. I think I might do ELTL 5....and then might do WWS two days a week. If it goes bad I can easily drop it, and still have ELTL. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perogi Posted August 7, 2015 Author Share Posted August 7, 2015 I'm in the same seat! Nothing seems like "the one" for my 7th grader. He's a technical, engineer kind of guy, but needs decent inspiration or he'd rather pluck his eye with a spork. He likes the idea of creative writing, but last year's Cover Story got that out of his system for awhile. LOL (For a kid that enjoys creative writing CS is awesome!) We've done some Killgallon over the summer. I think WWS would drown him. LAoW or Jump In level is probably about where he needs to be. Thinking in Threes maybe? I dunno. :tongue_smilie: Now you've got me thinking about Cover Story..... Maybe that instead of The Creative Writer Level 3. Is it so much work that I couldn't do it alongside something more formal? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perogi Posted August 7, 2015 Author Share Posted August 7, 2015 This is what I am afraid of with WWS. I don't want to use something that is going to cause my daughter to dread writing. I think I might do ELTL 5....and then might do WWS two days a week. If it goes bad I can easily drop it, and still have ELTL. I don't think dd dreaded it....we just fought sometimes when she needed help but didn't want to actually take my help or I didn't know how to guide her to where Susan was trying to get her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverMoon Posted August 7, 2015 Share Posted August 7, 2015 Now you've got me thinking about Cover Story..... Maybe that instead of The Creative Writer Level 3. Is it so much work that I couldn't do it alongside something more formal? Cover Story is definitely enough by itself, and it does include some nonfiction writing as well. I planned on doing essay practice in the lighter areas but gave up the notion completely when we got rolling. If you use the recommended pace and skip the ten optional grammar lessons it will last you 24 weeks, so you'd still have a third of the year to work on the formal stuff. My creative writers loved it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrysalis Academy Posted August 7, 2015 Share Posted August 7, 2015 So you found LAoW appropriate for 7th grade? I've heard you mention WWaT before but I haven't really looked into it. I'd love for you to post what you think of Kidswrite after your dd has done it. Yes, it was great for a kid who is ready to start essay writing - meaning, basic narrative writing skills, paragraphing, and organization are solid. Definitely use the workbook that goes with it! It can be a little nebulous without the workbook keeping you honest. WWaT is fabulous, our plan this year is to go through it, along with a very consolidated WWS 1-3 (just reviewing the topoi) which correlated nicely. WWaT focuses on the rhetorical purpose - the forest, the why - and WWS is good for the nuts and bolts, but way too repetitive for what we need. Kidswrite is going to be very easy for Shannon, but fun for her. The reason I decided to have her do it is because of being inspired by Julie Bogart's talks about helping kids at this age - who can learn the form of the essay in a snap - learn to articulate their thoughts, to find something interesting to put into the essay. I like this idea, but when I look at Help for High School, I know I wouldn't do justice to all those Module 1 activities, they are just too touchy feely and not really my style. But I think my kid will enjoy it, and this way I can focus on teaching other things and getting our routine running smoothly for the first 6 weeks of the year, without neglecting writing. I'll definitely post my review when she's done. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverMoon Posted August 7, 2015 Share Posted August 7, 2015 Maybe I should dig Lively Art back out and look at it again. It's been a few years since my teens used it. I remember it only being a semester, and we had to change the essay topics to be relevant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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