What would a weekly “dedicated composition lesson” look like

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  • June 21, 2020 at 5:02 pm
    CrystalN
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    I have been reading up on Charlotte’s methods of teaching composition. We have been doing oral and written narrations for about 4 years, sometimes consistently, sometimes not. We have dabbled in writing curriculum, which results in tears and frustration. So I am really, really trying to trust CM and expect success, but it is difficult. I am completely   ill equipped to teach writing. So what then would I do for a “dedicated weekly composition lesson” as suggested in Your Questions Answered: High School. As far as I know there is not a preplanned curriculum that has a once a week 30 minute lesson for high school. I will have a 9th and 11th grader this year and neither have had much by way of writing lessons. Can anyone tell me what to teach and where to find the resources for teaching it? I feel so inadequate in this area. In desperation I purchased Writing with Skill, it is so thorough and solid and easy with scripted lessons, but it is booooring and leaves little room for actual written narrations.

    June 21, 2020 at 6:09 pm
    ErinD
    Participant

    One thing you could do for the dedicated lesson is pick a composition your child has written, and show them one thing they could improve for the next one – a long paragraph that should be split into two, or something they routinely have trouble with (like if they often use run-on sentences). I would stick with one thing each time.

    In order to be a better writing teacher, I have read books about writing myself and they have been so helpful. My two favourites are Know and Tell by Karen Glass, and Writing to the Point by William Kerrigan. The Lively Art of Writing was also helpful for me. The Kerrigan book lends itself really well to weekly lessons because the writing process is broken down into steps, so you could read one step, or even have your student read it, and then practice that one until the next time (could be longer than a week if necessary).

    If you want a feel for Kerrigan’s book before you buy, there are a bunch of blog posts about it here:

    https://costofcollege.wordpress.com/2011/11/13/the-kerrigan-method-of-writing-to-the-point/

    Know and Tell, in the high school chapter where it talks about turning narrations into essays, also contains steps to help you get there. That one is probably the most CM because it starts with narrations, but I found all of them very helpful in knowing what to teach when, and knowing what to look for in terms of what my kids should improve on.

    I hope something there is helpful.

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