Looking for Ways to Make Writing More Fun?

We’d like to share our choices for the 2014 Blue Ribbon Awards! …
Favorite Writing Curriculum: WriteShop
~ Schoolhouse Review Crew

Writing doesn’t have to be a tearful experience for your child—or a hair-pulling one for you! When you replace boring workbooks with lessons that are exciting and enjoyable for both of you, soon your kids will be begging for more writing time!

If the idea of teaching writing seems intimidating, WriteShop Junior holds your hand every step of the way. Lesson plans show you exactly how to guide your child through each part of the writing process.

I am really pleased with the progress my daughter has made. This was a great program—better than anything we’ve tried. It kept her engaged and interested. I think WriteShop Junior is amazing!
Mary, Pennsylvania

My kiddos are having so much fun with the lessons, that they actually look forward to writing time now which is a huge bonus! … I’ve really seen Turbo blossom in writing since we’ve started the program. His first adventure story was 5 pages long! The kid just wouldn’t stop writing, and not only that, but his story was actually really well put together and thought out! …

We’re absolutely loving this program, and definitely plan to continue with WriteShop in the future!
Erica, Confessions of a Homeschooler

Inspire Confidence in Young Writers

WriteShop Junior’s creative activities spark enthusiasm in both eager and resistant writers. And when fun replaces fear, a child’s confidence as a writer begins to blossom. Sprinkled with games, hands-on projects, and parent guidance, WriteShop Junior encourages success!

Children learn that a series of stepping stones make up the writing process:

Brainstorming. Topic suggestions, graphic organizers, and gentle parent guidance help unlock your student’s creative ideas.

Writing. Each engaging lesson uses games to introduce skills such as replacing weak words with strong ones, forming sentences of different lengths, and using emotion words in writing. Children are taught to use these new tools in their writing projects. Additionally, WriteShop Junior helps them use details and colorful description to write longer, more interesting stories and reports.

Self-Editing and Revising. WriteShop’s encouraging “job-well-done” approach sends intimidation packing! Simple checklists and a personal editor’s toolkit actually make the process fun. And students are always encouraged to publish their final draft in a creative way—with loads of ideas included.

WriteShop Junior Features

• Fiction, nonfiction, short reports, and poetry
• Writing genres such as adventure, science fiction, mystery, personal narrative, and fables
• Creativity and variety in each lesson
• Multisensory activities that appeal to different learners
• Incremental lessons that build on earlier skills
• 5-paragraph writing (introduced toward the end of Book E)
• Positive focus on self-editing
• Creative publishing ideas
• Fold-N-Go Grammar to reinforce key skills
• Flexible teaching schedule
• Parent tips to help struggling writers
• Suggested scripts to help parents model writing
• Smaller Steps and Flying Higher that adjust writing to child’s level of ability
• Effective for students with learning difficulties such as dyslexia or dysgraphia

I loved the Teacher Guide. As a busy mom schooling six children, having a well-organized teacher manual is a must! With WriteShop, preparing for the week was simple.
Linda, Training 6 Hearts 4 Him

Love this program … It is perfect for the dyslexic learner because of its explicit, systematic, multisensory instruction. What’s more … my kids like it!
Marianne Sunderland, Abundant Life

I used to feel so unprepared to teach writing and was frustrated when my son didn’t get it. With the tools offered in Book E, he’s now equipped to take on many kinds of writing. The lessons are easy to follow and enjoyable!
Krystin, Kentucky

WriteShop Junior is a creative writing program that appeals to many learning styles. As with all WriteShop products, Book E helps you guide students through the steps of the writing process. To keep the experience fun, each lesson includes games and activities that teach and review important writing and self-editing skills.

Successful writing results from purposeful instruction. WriteShop Junior has been created with parent-and-child partnership in mind, so plan to work together with your student through each step of the program.

Is Your Child “Writing-Phobic”?

Are you looking for a curriculum that puts the fun back in writing? Then you’ll love WriteShop Junior!

Every time I bring out a writing program, it ends in tears. Thank you for a writing lesson without tears!
Pam, New Zealand

WriteShop Junior is a creative writing program that appeals to many learning styles. As with all WriteShop products, Book E helps you guide children through the steps of the writing process. To keep the experience fun, each lesson includes engaging games and activities that teach and review important writing skills. And whether you have a more advanced child or one who is fairly new to writing, this program is flexible so children can work at their own level.

While each lesson follows a consistent format, the varied and interesting activities mean your child will look forward to each day’s work. Lessons break the writing process into manageable chunks that are easy to understand and master. The Teacher’s Guide includes several schedules with daily lesson plans. Schedules are flexible and easy to follow.

This is not an independent course: lessons are designed for parent and child to work together. Successful writing results from purposeful instruction. That’s why WriteShop Junior has been created with parent-and-child partnership in mind.

Book E builds on foundational skills your child has learned in the past. Students will grow in their brainstorming and planning skills, gain confidence in writing creatively, and learn new ways to edit and revise their stories and reports. In addition, Book E introduces 5-paragraph writing in a way that’s practically painless!

WriteShop Junior Book E includes the following lessons:

Lesson 1: Fables
Lesson 2: Humor
Lesson 3: Adventure
Lesson 4: Science Fiction
Lesson 5: Mystery
Lesson 6: Poetry | Shape Poems
Lesson 7: Personal Narrative
Lesson 8: Descriptive Narrative
Lesson 9: Book Report | Responding to Literature
Lesson 10: Expository Writing | Nonfiction Report

Working three days a week, you will typically finish one lesson in three weeks. Each lesson includes pre-writing games, brainstorming with graphic organizers, story writing (with help as needed), self-editing, and publishing the story in a creative way.

Skills Taught in Book E:

• Writing in different fiction genres
• Writing nonfiction and book reports
• Answering journal prompts
• Planning and organizing each writing project
• Choosing strong words and synonyms
• Developing voice and emotion
• Writing sentences of different lengths
• Learning to write using 5 paragraphs
• Publishing final drafts in a creative way
• Using references
• Using a variety of self-editing tools

I was especially pleased to see some 5-paragraph writing assignments. I’d been wanting them to learn that for years, but didn’t quite know how to go about!
Pam, New Zealand

My kids have learned buckets! Above all else, they have gained a confidence in writing that they didn’t have before. Thanks … I can’t say it enough.
Marisa, South Dakota

My son is very challenging to homeschool so I am very surprised by his response to this curriculum. He LOVES it! The creativity WriteShop adds to each lesson is a plus for our family. Thank you!
Michelle, Florida

We’re nearing the end of our year and I give WriteShop Junior D two thumbs up. I’m delighted with what my daughter has accomplished during the year and I’m also delighted that I can hold onto this program to use with her little brother later.

Even though he has different learning styles, strengths and interests, I am confident this program can meet him at his level and help him be a better writer, too!
Heidi, Product Reviewer, The Curriculum Choice

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Is Book E the Right Level for My Child?

Book E is ideal for students in 4th and 5th grade.

• This level may also be used with reluctant 6th and 7th graders who have had little or no formal writing instruction
• Parents also appreciate being able to use the program with struggling learners.
• If your 4th-6th grader has had little to no past writing experience—or is not quite ready for 5-paragraph writing—we suggest beginning with Book D, especially if they have weak punctuation or grammar skills and still need a lot of help planning, organizing, and adding details to a story.

For more information, see:
Book E sample lesson

WriteShop is the most complete, fun and effective writing program we have found, and it makes teaching writing ‘do-able’ for me! Thank you again … and again!
Shyla, British Columbia

I used to feel so unprepared to teach writing and was frustrated when my son didn’t get it. With the tools offered in Book E, he’s now equipped to take on many kinds of writing. The lessons are easy to follow and enjoyable!
Krystin, Kentucky

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WriteShop Junior FAQ

Should my 3rd grader use WriteShop Junior Book D or WriteShop Primary Book C?

Either one is fine, though a reluctant 8-year-old might gain more confidence using WriteShop Primary Book C. When teaching two children together, choose Book C if they’re 8 and younger, and choose Book D if they’re 8 and older. Either way, activities called “Smaller Steps” and “Flying Higher” let you quickly and easily tailor lessons to children who are functioning at different levels.

My child loves to write stories on her own. Do we even need a writing program?

Not necessarily. However, many children who love to write often lack the organizational skills that keep their writing focused. WriteShop Junior teaches skills such as planning a beginning, middle, and end; adding details; using writers’ tools; and self-editing. It also introduces them to genres, including adventure, humor, science fiction, historical fiction, and mystery. Your child’s skills will steadily improve as she learns new techniques for better writing.

My child has some learning challenges. Would WriteShop Junior be a good fit?

WriteShop Junior lessons appeal to multiple modalities (visual, auditory, and kinesthetic), so hands-on learners and children with mild to moderate learning difficulties—including ADHD, dyslexia, and dysgraphia—can gain confidence and experience success. These students benefit from clear boundaries; short, specific assignments; tasks broken into bite-size chunks; frequent repetition and practice; and skill-building games that require no writing. Plus, each lesson may easily be tailored to meet your child’s needs.

Is there a lot of parent/teacher prep involved?

You will need to gather basic materials or do some simple preparation for each lesson. Advance Prep text boxes are clearly marked, making it easy to do this days or even weeks ahead. To save time, you may purchase a Time-Saver Pack of sturdy, ready-made props instead of creating and assembling your own game cards, spinners, and other tools for many of the activities.

How long does it take to complete one WriteShop Junior level?

Each book has 10 lessons. Following the Three-Week Plan, most families finish one book in a school year. Activities vary from day to day, but you can expect to spend 30-45 minutes per day working 3 days per week.

I love the tactile learning experiences. The multi-sensory approach is great for children with dyslexia.
Lisa, California

After several years of struggling to find a writing curriculum I liked, I am very happy with how WriteShop is working out for both my kids.
Brenda, California

This was my first time using Write Shop. I am truly impressed with this program … easy to follow and had great activities along the way.
Michelle S., California

I really loved the writing prompts because they made me think of things that I wouldn’t have on my own. They inspired me to write a little bit everyday and I think my writing has gotten better.

The Writer’s Notebook is my favorite part. I learned some things about editing my stories, too, even though that isn’t as much fun as writing. It makes my stories better and that’s important.
Homeschool student (age 12), Embracing Destiny