DS is going to be in 2nd grade next year. He is currently reading at 6th grade level. He has good writing (composition) skills compare to peers, but I believe he can do better. I am going to homeschool him next year. I am wondering if anybody can suggest some good homeschooler writing program or textbooks that I can go with. I am looking for materials for about 2nd/3rd grade level.

Thanks!

Composition or handwriting? They are two very different subjects and should not be confused...

I mean composition. Something like Excellence in Writing, Writing Strands etc. I don't know much in this area.

Have you looked at Barron's Painless Junior Writing? They are for third/fourth grade. I plan to use it with my daughter over the summer to help with her writing. I'm told they are fun to do. I'm not sure that it is a complete program. We used Voyages in English earlier this year and they have a writing component as well and grammar.

I've heard Writing Strands are great and kind of fun too. I think we might that next year for my now 2nd grader who is homeschooling. I'd love to hear if other people have used the Writing Strands series. This year we are just doing directed journaling.

DS is currently in school and he doesn't like journal writing at all. I figure writing does not need to be boring and by following a book, he may actually learn something useful than just writing journal.

Cindi, DS8 just started the CDIS 3rd grade language arts course and he claims he loves it (a shocker, if you knew my son). He says it's fun, and he can write about fun things - "not three paragraph essays with 'more describing words'" per Kriston's post on the other thread. It's listed on the list of HS resources I posted earlier - it's at University of Missouri. It's a totally independent course - no teacher, but little multiple choice quizzes that get submitted. Books are "Write on Track," the overall resource book, Dear Mr. Henshaw (for writing letters and notes), Animalia by Graeme Base (for writing alphabet books), and another simple book or two. You can see a preview online. I like it in that it's easy and no pressure - a perfect recipe for us in an effort to get DS's writing skills caught up to his grammar, reading and vocabulary skills. DS hasn't finished yesterday's assignment though - they wanted him to write little notes to everyone in the family and stick them under the pillows. I'm still waiting...

What age does BraveWriter start for? Older than your child?

That's at least a good place to look, a good program. And I know they're signing up for classes again...

We like and use the Michael Clay Thompson language arts materials from Royal Fireworks Press (there are writing, as well as grammar, poetry, and vocabulary books for each level--you needn't do all the books at each level if you're not looking for, say, a poetry course). The first level, the "Island" books, are supposedly for a grade 3 gifted classroom, and adapt well to a homeschool context.

Something else I've tried with Groucho, also from RFWP, is the set of four Aesop workbooks by Kathryn Hegeman ("My books about reading, writing, and thinking"--they're for students anywhere from kindergarten to grade 3.) They're not as unusual, nor as challenging, as the MCT books, but they are nice little books, inexpensive, with a lot of variety of work to do.

A homeschooler I like and trust uses "Write With the Best," which also looks interesting. If I recall correctly, the first one of these says it can be used anywhere from grades 3-12!

Hope that gives you a couple of things to examine, anyway...

peace
minnie

And just for the record, at that age, you really don't *need* to use a curriculum. Just ask him to write about something that interests him, or to tell you why he likes something, or to describe something. You can press him a bit to go further, but it doesn't have to be a big deal.

Just a thought...

This is what we will be using: http://www.olsenbooks.com/index.html

And here is another good one: http://www.peacehillpress.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWCATS&Category=28

Thank you everybody for your suggestions! I will check them out.

I highly recommend Institute for Excellence in Writing. It is very good. The recommendation is that you get the teacher training programs, Teaching Writing with Structure and Style and watch it so that you understand the program. You can then teach it to your child OR you can purchase the program Student Writing Intensive Level A (Level A is for 3-5 grades) and have the instructor, Andrew Pudewa, teach your child via DVD. We homeschool and have used this program with delightful results for my son. Check out their website:
www.excellenceinwriting.com