Please keep me on track DD 7 is working through Seton's English and we are on a lesson about beginning sentences in paragraphs (1st lesson in paragraphs or any writing in the book). They give several examples of beginning sentences: "Dad took us to the zoo last weekend;" "The Wright Brothers were the inventors of the airplane;" "Uncle Bill taught me how to ride my bike." The exercise that follows gives topics ("My pet," "My friend," "My favorite game," etc.) for the student to write a beginning sentence for. I am feeling unsure if my expectations may be too high, and am unsure how to teach DD how to craft better sentences (I have explained the difference between plain and exciting sentences, have given examples, etc.). DD's sentences go like this: "I love my pet!;" "I like my friends;" "My Grandpa is funny;" "My favorite game is Uno." Any input is most welcome - thank you!!
It really depends on the child. Personnally, my kids just weren't very verbal when they were young. We waited to get into writing until they were in middle school. Some people let their children dictate their writing. They find that the child can tell them things in much more detail, than they can write it.
I agree. I think there is a big difference between what a child can express in speech and in writing. And it varies by child. I don't require my kids do any creative writing, but in their speech they both use very big words, lots of details and elaborate descriptions. But ask my almost 9 year old to put it on paper...the shortest (easiest) most boring (easiest) thing you'd ever read...my just turned 6 year old however writes at least 2 books a week, all on his own (asking me how to spell words) I've even caught him writing on kleenex when I took his paper away so he'd go to bed! LOL If you made my almost 9 year old write I assure you you'd think I taught him all sentences can contain no more than 4 words. Ever. And all paragraphs could contain no more than 2 sentences. Ever. And I'm quite certain he think it's illegal to actually write adjective on paper. LOL I don't think your DD's sentences are anything to worry about. To be honest-I can write all day. But give me a topic to write on...I draw a blank...and I'm 35! Maybe have her draw you a picture on a topic then encourage her to tell you about her drawing then to write about her picture, it might help.
Thanks so much for the advice! I have just started giving her a book for journaling (with a space for drawing on the top - she loves creating art!) and have been impressed with some of her sentence structure, but you bring up a good point that being given something specific to write about can be a bit harrowing, even for me I will continue to monitor her other writing endeavors and not worry so much about the "on-demand" prompts here and there in our book. Thank you so much for the peace of mind
I did journaling with my youngest from Kinder and first - I got her one of those books where you draw on the top and write on the bottom and I'd write the sentence in pencil. This year, 2nd Grade, we have started with the Starfall Writing Journal Level II, which gently went over parts of speech (calling them naming words - nouns, action words - verbs, and describing words - adjectives). She did pretty well with it. We're moving on to something else now. I think it's hard for kids to get an idea out of their head fast enough! Sometimes it helps for me to let my daughter tell me her sentence and then I write it down for her to copy from. Or I remember the sentence for her and dictate it back to her. HTH.
Thanks, Krista! We have that exact same composition journal, I think - she is doing remarkably well with creative writing in it (typically 2-3 sentences, complete with conjunctions and plenty of adjectives, yay!). I love the idea of having her label parts of speech in her journal like the Starfall journal does - that would so nicely tie together her grammar with her journaling. Thank you for your ideas and sharing your experience!
My son is 6, he's doing "2nd grade" and he's good with writing, BUT I agree with everyone else, it depends on the child!! I wouldn't fret! However, I do have to rave about "Write about Me" and "Write about my World" which are the first books, then followed by "Just Write book 1." This program takes a different approach to writing, in a very fun way. I have noticed this has expanded my son's way of thinking when it comes to writing. The child draws pictures for a story, beginning, middle and end, then writes a sentence to go with each. Among MANY other sort of writing activities! It's very descriptive, and easy to understand, but of course help him with it when he needs it. How about Draw Write Now books? Those are great too, and copy work can be of help in writing!!
Thanks so much, acsnmama! Funny you mention Draw Write Now - I just ordered one yesterday to try it out. I had not heard about the "Write about Me" series, but will also check it out - they sound like they would provide a fun springboard for writing Thank you again for your help!
