Chloe Posted March 16, 2017 Share Posted March 16, 2017 I am looking for writing, grammar and vocabulary that can be done as independently as possible until high school, when outsourcing will begin. My first thought for next year (5th) is Writers in Residence, but it's new and it doesn't seem like many have used it so far. Also, I'm not sure if the remaining volumes will be available in time. For writing, is it enough to simply require daily narrations and free-writes, and then to go over them together every week or two discussing mechanical and grammar errors as well as content? Is Wordly Wise beneficial for vocabulary? Or could I just find a list of good middle school level vocabulary to put on flashcards and have my dd memorize a few each week, using them in her writing? Thanks so much! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ms.Ivy Posted March 16, 2017 Share Posted March 16, 2017 You could pair a couple of weekly written narrations with Climbing to Good English. Personally I think that would be enough for language arts in the middle grades, along with a lot of reading. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted March 16, 2017 Share Posted March 16, 2017 I think it's basically enough to do regular narrations and freewrites and go over them. But... if you're only going over them every couple of weeks, that's not very often. I also think of middle school as a time to start practicing basic essay forms and that requires more. Plus, it's just always good to have kids learning some other forms - letters, instructions, reviews, lab reports, etc. etc. And, again, I think of middle school as a really good time for that since so much of high school writing is focused on various essay forms. Wordly Wise can be independent. If you want to do grammar separate from writing, there are definitely workbook style options. You might do something like Editor in Chief or Daily Paragraph Editing to just focus on mechanics. I think it really depends on your goals with writing. It's definitely a subject that I think you get out of it what you put into it with most kids. You might also look at workbook style options like Wordsmith if independence is the primary goal. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted March 17, 2017 Share Posted March 17, 2017 Ouch -- Writing is completely NOT the subject I would choose to make independent for the next 4 years. Esp. at this critical stage when the student is working to develop the foundational writing skills that actually are applied to high school writing (research papers, response papers, and analysis and persuasive essays of high school). Most students in the grade 6-9 or grade 7-10 range really need a lot of scaffolding, mentoring, and feedback as they learn to go through the writing process (brainstorming/organizing, rough draft, revision, proof-editing), how to write a solid paragraph, and how to develop a longer essay that is a supported argument (thesis statement, major points, supporting examples / facts, commentary / explanation). I think that for Writing, you can use somewhat more independent programs for grades 5-6, but for grades 7 and 8, I'd either work more closely with the student, or find a tutor, or outsource. Similarly for Literature -- for grades 5-6, you can focus on independent reading of good books, but for grades 7 and 8, look into a beginning formal Literature program, to introduce literary terms, literature topics, and how to analyze literature, in order to be prepared for the formal Literature studies that an outsourced high school English course will require. That said, here are some mostly workbook-based Language Arts programs that can be done more independently: Writing - Wordsmith Apprentice (gr. 4-6) - Wordsmith (gr. 7-8) - Essentials in Writing (by grade level) -- DVD lesson-based - Winning with Writing (by grade level) Grammar - Fix It (book 1 = gr. 3-5; book 2 = gr. 4-6; book 3 = gr. 6-8; book 4 = gr. 7-9; book 5 = gr. 9-10 book 6 = gr. 10-12) - Growing With Grammar (by grade level) - Easy Grammar (by grade level) Vocabulary - Vocabulary From Classical Roots (grade 4, grade 5, grade 6, level A (gr. 7), B (gr. 8), C (gr. 9), D (gr. 10)) Spelling - Soaring With Spelling (by grade level) - Spelling Workout (by grade level) - Apples Spelling (gr. 5-8) - Megawords (gr. 4-12) - Phonetic Zoo (level A = gr. 3-5; level B = gr. 6-8; level C = gr. 9-12) -- audio CD-based Literature - Essentials in Literature (gr. 7, gr. 8, gr. 9) - Lightning Literature 7 (can be used with gr. 6-8); and, 8 (can be used with gr. 7-9) You might also consider introducing a few short Brave Writer online courses in grades 6-8 to slowly acclimate your student(s) to outsourced classes, AND get the benefit of teacher feedback on writing, plus class interaction in literature discussion. Brave Writer LIT -- Book Club Classes: Arrow (gr. 5-7) Boomerang (gr. 7-9) (1 book per month, sign up for just the books/months of interest) Brave Writer WRITING classes Kidswrite Basic (gr. 5-7) Kidswrite Intermediate (gr. 7-9) Middle School Writing Projects (gr. 6-9) BEST of luck, whatever you decide. Warmest regards, Lori D. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted March 17, 2017 Share Posted March 17, 2017 Chloe, I just realized the very difficult personal circumstances under which you are continuing to homeschool! I am so very sorry. One thing you might consider is if there is a homeschooler, or a retired homeschooler, in your area who would like to blend in your student regularly for some one-on-one mentoring when you're not feeling up for it. Another resource option is if you have a student who loves creative writing -- Cover Story is a fun one-year writing program. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chloe Posted March 17, 2017 Author Share Posted March 17, 2017 You could pair a couple of weekly written narrations with Climbing to Good English. Personally I think that would be enough for language arts in the middle grades, along with a lot of reading. I'm not familiar with Climbing to Good English. I'll take a look at it. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chloe Posted March 17, 2017 Author Share Posted March 17, 2017 I think it's basically enough to do regular narrations and freewrites and go over them. But... if you're only going over them every couple of weeks, that's not very often. I also think of middle school as a time to start practicing basic essay forms and that requires more. Plus, it's just always good to have kids learning some other forms - letters, instructions, reviews, lab reports, etc. etc. And, again, I think of middle school as a really good time for that since so much of high school writing is focused on various essay forms. Wordly Wise can be independent. If you want to do grammar separate from writing, there are definitely workbook style options. You might do something like Editor in Chief or Daily Paragraph Editing to just focus on mechanics. I think it really depends on your goals with writing. It's definitely a subject that I think you get out of it what you put into it with most kids. You might also look at workbook style options like Wordsmith if independence is the primary goal. Thanks. Dd enjoys writing and wants to be an author when she grows up. She writes all the time, but it is mostly creative (stories, songs, poetry, journaling). Yes, the tough part is how to address all the other forms of writing. I'll take a look at Wordsmith. I also just remembered Essentials in Writing is supposed to be pretty independent. I'll have to take a look and see what kind of writing it covers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chloe Posted March 17, 2017 Author Share Posted March 17, 2017 Ouch -- Writing is completely NOT the subject I would choose to make independent for the next 4 years. Esp. at this critical stage when the student is working to develop the foundational writing skills that actually are applied to high school writing (research papers, response papers, and analysis and persuasive essays of high school). Most students in the grade 6-9 or grade 7-10 range really need a lot of scaffolding, mentoring, and feedback as they learn to go through the writing process (brainstorming/organizing, rough draft, revision, proof-editing), how to write a solid paragraph, and how to develop a longer essay that is a supported argument (thesis statement, major points, supporting examples / facts, commentary / explanation). I think that for Writing, you can use somewhat more independent programs for grades 5-6, but for grades 7 and 8, I'd either work more closely with the student, or find a tutor, or outsource. Similarly for Literature -- for grades 5-6, you can focus on independent reading of good books, but for grades 7 and 8, look into a beginning formal Literature program, to introduce literary terms, literature topics, and how to analyze literature, in order to be prepared for the formal Literature studies that an outsourced high school English course will require. That said, here are some mostly workbook-based Language Arts programs that can be done more independently: Writing - Wordsmith Apprentice (gr. 4-6) - Wordsmith (gr. 7-8) - Essentials in Writing (by grade level) -- DVD lesson-based - Winning with Writing (by grade level) Grammar - Fix It (book 1 = gr. 3-5; book 2 = gr. 4-6; book 3 = gr. 6-8; book 4 = gr. 7-9; book 5 = gr. 9-10 book 6 = gr. 10-12) - Growing With Grammar (by grade level) - Easy Grammar (by grade level) Vocabulary - Vocabulary From Classical Roots (grade 4, grade 5, grade 6, level A (gr. 7), B (gr. 8), C (gr. 9), D (gr. 10)) Spelling - Soaring With Spelling (by grade level) - Spelling Workout (by grade level) - Apples Spelling (gr. 5-8) - Megawords (gr. 4-12) - Phonetic Zoo (level A = gr. 3-5; level B = gr. 6-8; level C = gr. 9-12) -- audio CD-based Literature - Essentials in Literature (gr. 7, gr. 8, gr. 9) - Lightning Literature 7 (can be used with gr. 6-8); and, 8 (can be used with gr. 7-9) You might also consider introducing a few short Brave Writer online courses in grades 6-8 to slowly acclimate your student(s) to outsourced classes, AND get the benefit of teacher feedback on writing, plus class interaction in literature discussion. Brave Writer LIT -- Book Club Classes: Arrow (gr. 5-7) Boomerang (gr. 7-9) (1 book per month, sign up for just the books/months of interest) Brave Writer WRITING classes Kidswrite Basic (gr. 5-7) Kidswrite Intermediate (gr. 7-9) Middle School Writing Projects (gr. 6-9) BEST of luck, whatever you decide. Warmest regards, Lori D. Thank you for this list, Lori. I was hoping to be able to hold off on outsourcing writing until high school, but it probably is best to have more formal instruction before then. The Brave Writer classes look great! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chloe Posted March 17, 2017 Author Share Posted March 17, 2017 Chloe, I just realized the very difficult personal circumstances under which you are continuing to homeschool! I am so very sorry. One thing you might consider is if there is a homeschooler, or a retired homeschooler, in your area who would like to blend in your student regularly for some one-on-one mentoring when you're not feeling up for it. Another resource option is if you have a student who loves creative writing -- Cover Story is a fun one-year writing program. No worries! I just checked out Cover Story and it looks like something my dd would LOVE! And your suggestion of a mentor made me remember a friend who does freelance writing and blogging on the side. She doesn't homeschool, but she has dc the same age as my dd, so she should know what level of work to expect. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mona Posted March 17, 2017 Share Posted March 17, 2017 Have you heard of The Good and the Beautiful language arts. It's mostly independent from 4th grade on up aside from sitting in on lessons as much as you want and assisting with sentence dictations. There are samples on her website and you can download the PDF version for free if you want to try it. http://www.jennyphillips.com/good-beautiful/ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted March 17, 2017 Share Posted March 17, 2017 The Brave Writer classes are as much about teaching you to teach language arts. Most of them are pretty parent involved. I'm wondering if outsourcing to somewhere else, like Outschool or Athena's might be a better middle school option for a parent who needs to step back and a kid who really likes to write. Time4Learning also has a writing component you can do separately, but I have heard it's pretty dry. I think, for a kid who likes writing, that getting things like 642 Big Things to Write About or Rip the Page or Unjournaling might be a good way to supplement a dry program like Wordsmith or Essentials in Writing. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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