Thank you for your ideas. I feel like there may be two ways to go. First, DS and I are very close, but he really doesn't like me teaching him - it is really hard for him to take much criticism from anyone he cares deeply about.

I did however find a class locally with a woman who is all about making kids love writing, and she also has a class just for boys, based on suggestions from here: http://www.nwp.org/cs/public/download/nwp_file/10976/mshaughnessy_ednews.pdf?x-r=pcfile_d

So that would be one direction.

The other direction would be to have him take a writing class over the summer via NUMATS that was created (and maybe is taught by) Michael Clay Thompson, the person La Texican references above. Making writing purely academic might not be a bad thing at all. But the classes are not inexpensive.

I'm leaning toward trying the local writing class first, and seeing what enthusiasm we can create.

I appreciated hearing that others don't think the school does it well. My DS's school has a brand new writing curriculum, and it is better than before, but it still has left him unengaged and unhappy.