Slow Schooling Chapter 14: Teaching Writing
Two really great programs that work
Thursday, May 22, 2008 11:20AM
Learning the three R’s (and then some) continues. One thing I’ve changed is how I’ve approached teaching writing. After attending a workshop at the last homeschooling conference and grilling a 12 yo girl who participated in this program, I finally just bit the bullet (or wallet) and bought the IEW program (Institute for Excellence in Writing). We’ve been at it a couple of weeks now and......we LOVE it. Here is my 8yo “would rather play Lego than write” boy very intensely working on a three page paper.....and loving the process. Miracles do occur.
As a public school teacher, I was very much enamored with and enthusiastic about what was then known as the “Whole Language” movement. What was there not to be enthusiastic about? Surrounding--no, soaking--children in language at every turn, reading real (unabridged) books, and engaging them in the world of “writing workshops” where the written word was encouraged, nurtured, and celebrated. I loved putting words all over the walls and introducing journal writing.
So it was with much gusto I embraced the same for my own children. And it was in following my own children through the years that the good and the bad made themselves to be really good, and really bad. The good: real literature and the love for writing. The bad: a real lack of modeling and poor mechanics. I understood the principle of using literature as a model, but other than an appreciation, my children did not know how to apply the same structure to write their own great works. Many times, it was something that ended up sounding forced, and furthermore, actually took away the joy of the reading when they knew they’d be encouraged (ie. “assigned”) to write something halfway similar afterwards. Also, even though some of my children were very early readers (the youngest at four), spelling suffered despite multiple and very different attempts at correcting it. I began to wonder how my Whole Language students from my teaching years were faring as they progressed through the system. I never accepted the idea “some people are just bad spellers”.
It was at a homeschool conference that I decided to listen in on a highly acclaimed writing curriculum. I was skeptical to say the least, but I had been humbled and was ready to try something new. WELL. The lesson format made total sense and, for beginning writers, completely removed the strain of coming up with topics. The focus was on how to have solid structured writing, and with that incorporated timely lessons on mechanics. So we bit and took the program home. I watched the DVD’s, attempted the lessons myself, and put the Institute for Excellence in Writing (IEW) into practice. For our family, it was a hit for writing paragraphs and compositions. But it still didn’t address the other problem: spelling.
Spelling seems to be one of those subjects that folks feel free to toss aside. The reason I usually hear is,“That’s why we have spell check.” Perhaps. Except that spell check is not only unreliable and potentially embarrassing, it misses the whole point of why we ought to have at least a base understanding of and respect for our English language.
For one, having a standardized means of spelling allows communication to be clear, not only today, but for future generations. Some people purposely misspell their words (or ignore grammar rules, for that matter), but this is not reflective of God’s own modeling and standard, to write “very plainly” (Deut 27:8). Writing “ur” for “you’re” is not only lazy, but truly is disparaging the reader because that reader is going to have to work harder to try to understand the message you are attempting to communicate. And if you’re (not “ur”) not at least trying to be clear--or caring--then do not be surprised when your work is not treated with the respect you feel it deserves.
Secondly, spelling is not difficult. There are simply 70 basic phonograms in the English language, and 28 rules. Once those are mastered, the code is “cracked” and the exceptions are rare. For example, it becomes far easier to explain why c says /c/ in “cat” but says /s/ in ceiling. What makes spelling difficult, I believe, is in assuming children will learn how to spell simply by reading a whole lot. Perhaps some do, but I’ve met more than one “bad speller” who was an early reader. This, too, became a subject that I learned more about after I became a homeschooler than when I was a public school teacher getting paid to travel to other schools to teach other teachers how to teach Language Arts during their inservice days. But “phonics” was a curse word in the Whole Language world and flash cards for learning phonograms probably would not have been received well. Spell to Write and Read is the award-winning program we have used to train up our children in spelling, and it has been a blessing.
Teaching writing is very important--God sees the written word as important! Not only did He, Himself, write, but He commanded others to write, and keeps records. (1) And because He is communicates very clearly, we, too, ought to endeavor to communicate clearly. Communicating clearly not only means studying and applying standard English rules and spelling, but in careful and legible handwriting. There is much research regarding the importance of teaching cursive in brain development (see 2, for one example).
It goes without saying that children ought also to spend time in other writing endeavors: letter to relatives and pen pals, notes to everyone and for everything, journaling, thank you notes, assignments in other subjects. Like any other skill, it takes time, intent, and practice.
Teaching writing need not be difficult. This is one subject that I was supposedly an “expert” on but still saw a great need for improvement and am thankful that I found excellent training to become a better teacher. However, I was also very, very motivated because I happen to *love* writing and the English language. Math and Science? Not so much, even though I recognize the great importance in studying God’s orderly world. In the next chapters I will share with you other means of equipping your child in whatever subject you need help with.
Encyclopedia of Bible Truths: Language Arts/English by Ruth C. Haycock
https://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/03/science/whats-lost-as-handwriting-fades.html?smid=tw-nytimes&_r=1 assessed 20Jan1017
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