Sixth grade Language Arts - Writing process

Sixth grade--writing process

Writing may not be something your child enjoys, but it is something she can’t avoid any longer. I face this issue with my own daughter right now. She is not a confident speller, and her penmanship is not great. In her words, writing on paper is slow, and old-fashioned. Which brings me to my point today. Just because she thinks it is slow and old-fashioned doesn’t mean she doesn’t have to do it. The things that we consider important about the writing process is the mechanics of getting the thoughts in the right place and the right order. For example, it is important that she know how to decide on a topic, and jot down the ideas in the pre-writing step. It is important that she can come up with a basic outline to cover the topic chosen. She should be able to write well written sentences and be able to proofread and edit what she has written. She should understand what the final product should look like as far as indention of paragraphs, punctuation, and the format and number of sentences. Those things are required. What homeschooling gives me the flexibility to do at this point is let her use word processors to write, and spell checkers to confirm correct spelling. We use other technology as well. Sometimes she dictates her paragraphs into a digital voice recorder, or to me. Her issues with penmanship and slowness of hand written paragraphs won’t stand in the way of learning and creating. Consider adapting and using technologies if your child seems reluctant to write. Sometimes it is not the lack of ability to create, sometimes it is the difficulty in actually putting pen to paper.

Sixth grade Homeschool Curriculum

Sixth grade homeschool curriculum

Have you ever wondered how other families choose their homeschool curriculum? I’ve talked to a number of other homeschooling families and they each seem to have some formula for why they choose one curriculum over another. Sometimes before you can even consider curriculum, you have to look at why you are homeschooling. If you are homeschooling for religious reasons, then that will obviously have bearing on what type of curriculum you choose. There are many religious based homeschool programs, and even some that are specific to a particular religion. If you have other reasons for homeschooling, then obviously those reasons will weigh heavily when making homeschool curriculum choices. If you child has a particular learning issue, then you will choose a curriculum that leans that direction. When I chose my homeschool curriculum, I was coming at homeschooling from the point of view that it was not something I had never wanted to do. I therefore had not given any thought to what a curriculum needed to look like. As I researched, I discovered that what I needed was a curriculum that made the lesson plans for me, and helped me keep records, because I am not a very organized person. My child needed it to move fast, not repeat too much, be colorful, minimize the writing. She is a sponge, and needed information to flow at her at her pace…that is almost always fast. That is why when I chose, I choose an interactive, online homeschool curriculum. Text books may be more your child’s style, or your style, but the most important thing when choosing your homeschool curriculum is that it fits not only your child’s learning style, but your teaching style as well.