Teaching the Editing Process in Your Homeschool Writing with WriteShop 1

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When I went looking for the next homeschool writing curriculum for my neurodivergent child, we settled on WriteShop 1.  Each year I choose the next right thing for each subject and for each child, and this year was no different.  Last year when we used Cover Story, the focus was on the storytelling and content of writing and less on editing and grammar. I saw incredible growth and knew I had to look carefully for the next thing so I didn’t squash my budding writer.  

WriteShop 1 is included in the Timberdoodle 10th Grade Curriculum kit.  It is also suitable for younger students who are strong writers, which my student is. Writeshop recently joined the Demme Learning family, where you can find placement tests to see which level is the best fit for your student.  We are using WriteShop 1 for 7th grade and WriteShop Jr. Level E for 4th grade.  

Students Choose their Writing Topics

One of the biggest things that attracted me to WriteShop was that, like the program we used last year, my student was in control of the topic of each writing assignment.  This choice was important to me because my neurodivergent writer will not be motivated to write about something they aren’t interested in.  

Each unit has a writing theme and goals, but the student is free to choose within that area what to write about.  This week, for instance, they are writing about a person, and they can choose to observe a person in real life or use a photograph.  My student used an old photograph of their sibling a few years ago as their topic, which gives them a personal connection to the subject.  

Learning the Editing Process

Each Unit in WriteShop follows the same pattern of daily activities which I group into three different areas: Composition, Skill Builders, and optional Copywork & Dictation.  The bulk of each unit focuses on a writing project following a 5 step process. The steps are the same for each project:

• Brainstorm
• Write a “Sloppy copy”
• First Revision
• Teacher/Parent Editing
• Final Draft

The skill builders are 2-3 daily exercises that focus on the writing skills we are building during that lesson.  And the Copywork and Dictation are done each week from a book of classic literature selections.  I appreciated that the curriculum set included a poster that we could hang on the wall to remind ourselves of the editing process.  

For my students, having their work edited is a challenge.  We struggle with perfectionism, so having to make corrections to their writing makes them think they got it wrong the first time, which isn’t true!  We had to talk about how we are working together to make their work better and even their favorite authors go through the editing process for each book they write.  

I find it helps when we write our Sloppy Copy on Friday and can do our First Revision on Monday.  That way the student can put more space between the original and the edits, so they are less attached to their original words.   

Teacher Led Writing

The WriteShop 1 Starter Bundle includes a Teacher’s Manual and a Student Workbook.  The Teacher’s Manual is spiral bound and used for both Levels 1 & 2.  The Student Workbook is hole punched for you to store in a binder.  It includes all the consumable pages for the course, including the teacher editing checklists and evaluations for each project. 

There are no online or technology components to the teaching of the class.  My student chooses to type all of their assignments and print each revision out for editing.  The rubrics also include editing guidance for handwritten papers as well.  

My students work independently on a lot of their school work, but this is not a program they can do on their own.  We carve out time each day to do the assignments together.  They are are open and go from the teacher’s manual, but it’s not something I can assign them to complete without me.  The time I spend each day with them varies depending on where we are in the unit, since each unit follows the same routine. 

Growing as a Writer with WriteShop 1

WriteShop 1 is the right fit for my middle schooler.  The two week routine for each unit is letting us practice the editing process regularly and helping them grow as a writer.  Being able to choose their topic for each project keeps them invested in the project and motivated to their best work.