By Sandy Larsen
Merritt Park Press
www.homeschoolwriting.com
910 N. Elm St.
Greenville, IL 62246
888-372-8847
Teaching writing is the scariest proposition for me as a homeschooling parent. I was not a great writer when I was in school and failed the writing entrance exam upon beginning my freshman year of college and so was required to take Writing 101 that year. However, I am lucky that there are interesting and purposeful writing curricula available to me as I work to help my children become better writers than I am. Igniting Your Writing! and its sequel, Igniting Your Writing II, would be a great choice for most families.
Let's start with the first book in the series. Igniting Your Writing! includes "24 lessons to enliven and inspire young writers." "Young writers" just means anyone in grades K-12, as there are three levels of instruction in the book (Start-Up, Intermediate, and Advanced). Maybe you have a young child who is very proficient in writing as well as an older child who needs a bit more help. You can choose the level that suits them best, and they can proceed at their own speed. There are no grade level or age markings in the book, so the student won't feel behind, or ahead of, his siblings. Children several grades apart can work on the same lesson, depending upon their writing ability. The teacher can also choose how involved she wishes to be in teaching the material. The lessons are written directly to the student. Younger children may need some help understanding what is being asked of them, but older students can probably take the book and run with it!
The book is not meant to be written in, and the parent is given permission to use the book with as many children as she wishes and through as many levels as needed. What this means is that your $16.99 investment will be stretched in the long run, and who doesn't like that? A Teacher's Guide is included. It tells the parent the goals for each lesson, gives tips for teaching the student by level, and instructs the parent on how to grade each assignment. Two reproducible charts in the back of the book keep track of the student's weaknesses and strengths as he moves through the book.
The Intermediate and Advanced levels build on the previous level's instruction. My children are old enough to complete at least through the Intermediate lessons and sometimes up through the Advanced lessons. Therefore, we aim to complete a lesson each week, often on a 3-day schedule--Day 1: Start-Up, Day 2: Intermediate, and Day 3 (if needed): Advanced. We take breaks between lessons when we need them. I really like the fact that there are only 24 lessons in Igniting Your Writing! because it allows the freedom of a leisurely pace during the year. The lessons are fun, interesting, and appealing to my kids. They are even encouraged to "get a little silly" sometimes and create fun sentences and stories. The 24 lessons in Igniting Your Writing! cover Word Play, Parts of Speech, Mind Quest, Lively Language, Special Features, and Revision.
Igniting Your Writing II is a bit different. It contains the same number of lessons but begins at the Intermediate Level and covers the Advanced Level as well. The lessons are not tied to any specific age or grade, and having only 24 lessons in a typical 36-week school year allows for great scheduling flexibility. These lessons are a bit more focused than those in Igniting Your Writing! as they aim to help a "student develop three skills a writer needs (focus, progression and clarity) and investigate three purposes for writing (to entertain, to inform and to persuade)." The book is written to the student, and a Teacher's Guide is again included with specific instructions for grading the skill being taught in each lesson. Igniting Your Writing II retails for $19.99.
Neither book needs any advanced preparation . . . just open and go! My children are not very excited when it is time for their writing lessons (I think they inherited that from me!), but the lessons in Igniting Your Writing! are fun and short. The upper levels may take a bit longer to complete, of course, but can still be finished within a reasonable amount of time while retaining the child's interest. This product is perfect for my ADHD/high-functioning autistic child who needs lessons broken down into smaller chunks of instruction, while my other child can complete all three levels in one day if she chooses to! If writing is not your strong suit, don't worry. Igniting Your Writing! will help you teach your children, and you may just become a better writer yourself!
Product review by Kris Price, Assistant to the Publishers, The Old Schoolhouse Magazine, LLC, March 2007
|
|
|
|
