Need help with writing

[Qwimble]

My 11 yr old ds is working @ a 7th grade level in almost everything. He is fairly independent and doing well with one exception. He has no skill, motivation or background in composition.

 

We are in our 2nd year homeschooling but this our first "classical" year. He started in public and then switched to private before coming home. He has nearly mastered grammar and is working in level "h" spelling. He reads extremely well and has a large vocabulary. But he struggles to even come up with one written summary sentence, let alone a paragraph or page.

 

He can do copywork and dictation perfectly and consistently. He can talk about what he reads fluently (and incessantly...he's very verbal). But he freezes up as soon as he is asked to "tell what you've read" in any way, shape or form.

I tried starting him with "Writing with Skill" but it's not going well. I'm considering backing up to maybe "Writing with Ease" but I'm unsure of which level. We did the placement tests for WWE and he read easily and could answer questions. But when he tried to write anything at all, he couldn't get the words from his head/mouth onto the paper without serious help.

Should I back off from WWS and try WWE? If so which level? Or should I do something else?

FWIW, we are on a very tight budget. I need to find something economical to help (online classes etc. like IEW are not possible right now)

Advice please?

 

(Edited for grammar)

Edited November 6, 2016 by Qwimble

[Ellie]

My vote would be "something else," specifically Writing Strands. He would start with Level 4 (they are experience levels, not grade levels).

[Qwimble]

My vote would be "something else," specifically Writing Strands. He would start with Level 4 (they are experience levels, not grade levels).

Thank you

🙂

I will look that up right now

[RootAnn]

Do you have a voice recorder? I wonder if you had him talking with a recorder nearby and then the next day had him take dictation from his own recording, how would it go?

 

I think you will still need to work on summarizing and narration skills.

[SilverMoon]

I would try a different approach, starting with Wordsmith Apprentice. It was written for grades 4-6 but it's not babyish. I'd aim to go through it as quickly as he can complete the exercises well, and move straight into the Wordsmith level.

 

That said, at 7th grade, I'd seriously consider a special needs evaluation. That sounds like a processing problem. My 11th grader struggled mightily for years. We chipped at it continually. At first I just read an Aesop's fable daily and asked her to tell it back to me. If that was too much we went a paragraph at a time, or even a sentence at a time on bad days. Every day she had to listen to or read something and tell us about it. We considered it one of her subjects. Fwiw, as an 11th grader she now *loves* writing and fills notebooks upon notebooks.

[jgrabuskie]

My DS8 struggles to get stuff down on paper. He has Dysgraphia. It is a processing problem where the child has trouble getting ideas down on paper, it can also affect spelling and writing quality. DS can take dictation, copy work, spell really well, and is very verbal but a no go on writing.

I am in my second year homeschooling and we have been simply chipping away (to quote another homeschool mom) at writing. By age 12 I would like to see him writing independently but I am skeptical. As another said, if you pick another program (we have been through 6) and it doesn't get any better, then check for Dysgraphia.

Other things to consider, is he able to write neatly? Are his letters perfectly formed, consistent size, and with good spacing? Does he often become overwhelmed by any written exercises and prefer hands-on projects, verbal replies, and multiple guess questions?