Review In A Nutshell:
Title: Writing Strands
Author: The National Writing Institute / Dave Marks
Price: varies but generally around $19 each
Overall Rating (1-10): 8
Value (1-10): 8
Flexibility (1-10): 8
Ages/Grades: All Ages

Review: I evaluated Writing Strands Volumes 1, 2 and 3 along with the Evaluating Writing book.

Writing Strands 1 is aimed at preschool-level children. The program comes complete with an audio tape and spiral-bound workbook. Level 1 is different than any of the other Writing Strands levels. At this level, the program is geared as much toward the parent educator as it is toward the child. The program gives supporting lessons on preparing children from the writing process.

Writing Strands 2 is for children around age 7 although if your child is reluctant to write or lacks confidence, I found this is a good place to start for any age. It is not written as if it is geared toward a young child which means any age child will not feel self-conscious using something written for younger children.

Writing Strands 3 is written for children age 8-12 or those who have completed Writing Strands 2. I have heard that many students who are enthusiastic writers can easily start at Writing Strands 4 although I have not yet reviewed it, myself.

Evaluating Writing is the parents’ manual that is used in conjunction with all of the Writing Strands books. It helps guide the parents and instruct them on how to properly – well – evaluate their child’s writing!

I was originally interested in reviewing this writing curriculum because I had heard such mixed reviews from the parents in my Homeschooling community. It seems you either love this program or you hate it! My son is an avid reader but a very reluctant writer. I was curious to see how this program might be received by such a child.

We started with Writing Strands 2 since my son is such a reluctant writer and seriously needed some small easily manageable and self-esteem building writing projects to begin with. Right away, he took to the program enthusiastically. I also found the book pretty easy to work with. I have heard that some children find the program to be very mundane but for my reluctant writer, it was this repetition and building up from a small sentence or fragment into a paragraph, etc that encouraged him and built his confidence in proportion to his writing length! Some children may be ready to jump into the writing process with two feet but that isn’t my son so the slow baby steps pace worked wonders for his confidence. I will say, however, that the lessons are broken into weeks but only a few actual days lessons are given and the rest of the week is supposed to be spent discussing what you’ve learned. I was at a loss for what in the world we might still need to “talk about” so we often skipped this suggestion and just continued on to the next lesson. For this reason, we flew through the book much faster than intended by the authors, even for my slow-paced kid. My son found the lessons and writing projects interesting and inspiring although part of that was his positive attitude. It is entirely possible that a child who was not interested in the program would likely complain that they are uninspiring and dull.

Writing Strands 3 differs from Writing Strands 2 in that it is designed to be self-taught. As a busy mother of six, I really appreciate this. My son understood and enjoyed the instructions because of the humor element. I can see how this would appeal to a child in the upper elementary grades however the humor might put off an older or more mature child.

One of the aspects of Writing Strands my children and I both appreciate is that it does not use redundant and rote worksheets, drills or sentence diagramming. However one of the frequent complaints is that Writing Strands does not teach grammar skills. If that appeals to you, you may want to supplement. I have found that my son is more encouraged to write when it is about something his own brain conjures up and his own imagination is in charge. The quickest way to get a weary writer is by requiring rote repetitive writing exercises.

If you are considering buying the Writing Strands curriculum but are unsure if you should get the teacher’s manual, my recommendation is that you purchase the manual when you approach Level 3. It is at this point that the parent’s role becomes secondary to the child’s and the child is really put in control of his lessons. The parent is merely an evaluator. As nice as this sounds, I have personally seen a lot of damage done to children who are sensitive to parents who are overly critical or punitive in their evaluation. Evaluating Writing will really help parents find a happy balance.

Originally I just reviewed Writing Strands 2 and 3 but also decided to review Writing Strands 1 when I was unable to get any information from those in my community. It seems most people don’t use Writing Strands 1. I am sure this is because, in part, parents don’t really think about teaching writing until the child is able to do simple things such as write his name. The interesting thing that Writing Strands 1 taught me is that there is so much a parent can do to create the kind of thinking that promotes good, creative writing from even as young as 3 years old. A child does not have to be a writer to start developing these skills. I started working the program with my 4 year old and he absolutely loved it. My six year old naturally joins in even though he is probably ready to start Writing Strands 2. While working the program, I realized that if my oldest son (the reluctant writer) had started using this program many years ago, he may have avoided much of the stress and anxiety about writing that he is trying to overcome now. He was in public school at that time and the schools (and most parents) look at writing as a very clinical process. None of the excellent writer-promoting skills are taught to most kids. I have high hopes that my little ones will ease into writing without a second thought.

highly suggest this program for those hesitant to delve into the written world. This program is often used (and endorsed by) those following the Well Trained Mind method of Homeschooling however this curriculum can easily be integrated into any method of Homeschooling. If you are unschooling and your child wishes to expand his or her writing skills, you will want to start at Level 3 for child-led learning unless your child wants you to work closely by his or her side. This curriculum could also be modified and used easily in a religious Homeschooling environment.

Bottom Line: Some children will love this program, some will hate it. I believe the kids who really dislike this program are those who spent time in traditional school settings or doing a very traditional writing curriculum and have come to rely on grammar lessons and were never taught to think like writers – something that can happen as early as preschool. This program has the potential to turn an anxiety-filled child into a passionate writer with little time and parental input. Whether it will “work” for your child is entirely personal but I think that it has everything needed for a complete writing curriculum and offers curriculum through college level. The books are a little more expensive than I’d like to see but are non-consumable so can be used with multiple children and passed along.

Buy it now: Writing Strands