Description
WriteShop (Full Year) Course Description
The full-year WriteShop course is designed to help middle and early high school students build strong, confident writing skills through a structured, skill-based approach. Using the WriteShop curriculum, students learn to write concretely, clearly, and effectively while developing a deep understanding of the writing process.
Throughout the year, students practice a wide range of writing styles—including descriptive, narrative, expository, informative, and persuasive writing—while learning how to brainstorm, plan, draft, edit, revise, and polish their work. Each lesson focuses on specific writing skills that are immediately applied to a composition, helping students grow steadily as writers.
This course emphasizes that good writing is a process. Students receive guided instruction, editing practice, and grammar skill reinforcement that directly supports their writing. By the end of the year, students will have greater confidence in their ability to organize ideas, communicate clearly, and produce well-developed written work.
Grade Levels
- 6th – 9th grade
Prerequisites
- None
Curriculum
- WriteShop I Student Workbook (Fall)
- WriteShop II Student Workbook (Spring)
Course Outline
Fall Semester – Foundational Writing Skills
- Concrete writing and descriptive detail
- Strong paragraph development
- Conciseness, word choice, and sentence variety
- Sensory details, similes, and other figurative language
- Editing and revising techniques
- Expository and informative writing
- Biographical and journalistic writing
- Narrative writing and point of view
Spring Semester – Advanced Writing & Essay Development
- Advanced descriptive and narrative writing
- Outlining and organizing ideas
- Report writing and research skills
- Persuasive writing and opinion development
- Compare-and-contrast and explanatory essays
- Timed writing and writing under constraints
- Creative and independent writing projects
Estimated Workload
- Approximately 30 minutes per day, 4–5 days per week
