Composition Age 9-13
Somewhere in this age group, you can start to expect better quality writing as the child begins to apply what he has learnt in handwriting skills, basic grammar rules, spelling accuracy and so on and pull it all together as he begins to form his own written compositions. If you've been very clear and methodical about the basic rules, and your child has been exposed to (and has been modelling) good literature, he should at this point start to see good results. You're not expecting full-blown essays, but by about 12 you can expect properly punctuated sentences, correctly spelled words, effective use of vocabulary and short paragraphs which stick to the point and say what the writer wants to say - all in an attractive, legible hand. If you achieve that, your child already has an advantage over many adults!
As Ruth Beechick points out in The Three Rs, this is the time to branch out into a wider variety of writing - not just standard prose passages but dialogues, letters, news reports, for example. At this point, you can continue with the modelling, but you can encourage the child to do this for himself, rather than have you dictate. To do this, he would find a piece of writing in a style he would like to imitate, study the piece for grammar, spelling, vocabulary etc, making simple notes to help him remember. After a gap of a few days he might then try to re-write the passage (using his notes to help). Finally, he would compare his version to the original. In this way he becomes used to really looking closely at what he is reading and having an eye for what makes good writing work. As ever, discussion with you about why the writing works well is very important.
At this point, you will find that your child naturally begins to write more of his own compositions modelled on those he likes. Help him to edit and improve/correct where necessary. This provides a bridge between modelling and independent, original work, but your child has a distinct advantage over one who has simply been asked from day one to 'write creatively', with little guidance.
Towards the upper end of this age group, say 12, you can start to focus more formally on how to construct the sort of paragraphs which will be needed later for essay writing. Click here for some ideas on paragraphing. However, if you are happy with how your child is progressing, you can leave the more formal study until 13+ and treat it as a pre-amble to essay writing.
Somewhere in this age group, you can start to expect better quality writing as the child begins to apply what he has learnt in handwriting skills, basic grammar rules, spelling accuracy and so on and pull it all together as he begins to form his own written compositions. If you've been very clear and methodical about the basic rules, and your child has been exposed to (and has been modelling) good literature, he should at this point start to see good results. You're not expecting full-blown essays, but by about 12 you can expect properly punctuated sentences, correctly spelled words, effective use of vocabulary and short paragraphs which stick to the point and say what the writer wants to say - all in an attractive, legible hand. If you achieve that, your child already has an advantage over many adults!
As Ruth Beechick points out in The Three Rs, this is the time to branch out into a wider variety of writing - not just standard prose passages but dialogues, letters, news reports, for example. At this point, you can continue with the modelling, but you can encourage the child to do this for himself, rather than have you dictate. To do this, he would find a piece of writing in a style he would like to imitate, study the piece for grammar, spelling, vocabulary etc, making simple notes to help him remember. After a gap of a few days he might then try to re-write the passage (using his notes to help). Finally, he would compare his version to the original. In this way he becomes used to really looking closely at what he is reading and having an eye for what makes good writing work. As ever, discussion with you about why the writing works well is very important.
At this point, you will find that your child naturally begins to write more of his own compositions modelled on those he likes. Help him to edit and improve/correct where necessary. This provides a bridge between modelling and independent, original work, but your child has a distinct advantage over one who has simply been asked from day one to 'write creatively', with little guidance.
Towards the upper end of this age group, say 12, you can start to focus more formally on how to construct the sort of paragraphs which will be needed later for essay writing. Click here for some ideas on paragraphing. However, if you are happy with how your child is progressing, you can leave the more formal study until 13+ and treat it as a pre-amble to essay writing.