Write Shop Junior: A Review

Write Shop sent me a product to review this month!  It is the Write Shop Junior Book D, designed for 3rd and 4th graders (and maybe 5th graders who rebel at writing).  My Write Shop set came with a sturdy spiral-bound Teacher's Guide, the Student Activity Pack and the Time-Saver Pack.  You could complete this program without the Time-Saver Pack, but it is a nice addition for not alot of extra money and includes ready-made props for games you will use such a cards and spinners.  There are instructions for making your own items in the teacher's guide, though.




This is an example of what's in the Time Saver Pack.

 Each lesson is split into 8 sub-lessons, so you could finish each in 2-3 weeks depending on your schedule and pace. Topics for Junior Book D include:  Letters of Invitation, Humor, Adventure, Science Fiction, Mystery, Haiku, Folktales, Historical Fiction, Personal Narrative and Expository Writing. 

Lesson objectives are clearly stated and any materials needed or preparation on the teacher's part is marked write at the beginning of each lesson.  There are some parts that are scripted for you.  Take just 10-15 minutes or so and look over what you'll be teaching each day before you get started.  It will make everything run smoother!

"Brainstorming Cake"

Lesson Plan example

WriteShop Junior teaches children to:

Discern between fiction and nonfiction
Identify and write in different genres
Narrow a broad topic to a specific topic
Organize ideas before writing
Learn about characters and plot
Write details about story setting
Develop the middle of the story and make it interesting
Choose strong words instead of weak ones
Use descriptive writing
Develop voice and show emotion in their writing
Vary sentence length
Use proofreading marks
Develop and improve self-editing skills
Use reference materials
Write a 5-paragraph composition (Books E and F)

A highlight of this program is that children will make and use 10 Portable Grammar Guides throughout the year which will help them with skills such as punctuation, grammar and parts of speech, as well as self-editing.  The Fold-N-Go Grammar Packs are one one side of the student folder, while the other side holds the Student Worksheets.  They are in a gummed "rip-out" tablet format, which makes it very easy for copying for multiple students to use if you wish.

The Time Saver Pack has cards and game pieces to cut out to play various games that are included in the lesson plans to reinforce the concepts. 

You can purchase Write Shop Junior products at this site.  You will also find Write Shop Primary products for younger students at this site.  The Write Shop Teacher's Guide is available for $39.95 for the print version and $34.95 for the downloadable version.  The Student Activity Pack is available for $39.95/$29.95.  The optional Time Saver Pack is available for $13.95 (same price for print or digital download.

Junior Book D is new for Spring 2012!  Be sure to take a look at all the products they offer and see which is "write" for your child ---(ha ha....couldn't resist..)

Click here to read other reviews of Write Shop from my friends at the Homeschool Crew!

Disclaimer:  I was provided with the products listed above to review honestly.  No other compensation was provided to me.