creative writing middle school curriculum

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Grades 6-8: Educating Powerful Writers

Grades 6-8 Educating Powerful Writers is a complete writing curriculum.  There are 7-8 distinct units per grade which include outlines of daily lessons, mentor writing texts for each unit, guidance for assessment, sample handouts, and sample lesson plans.  Educating Powerful Writers is a spiraled curriculum that takes students through narrative, informative, argumentative, literary essay, and poetry writing each year.  Each grade offers a distinctly different unit in each of these genres while continuing to build on the skills developed in previous grades to continue educating powerful writers. Additional materials, including student work, will be added to this collection on a rolling basis.

Included Resources

Sample student work: educating powerful write..., sample student work: educating powerful writers.

Sample student work to be utilized with Grades 6-8 : Educating Powerful Writers Middle School writing curriculum.

Grade 6,units 1- 4: Educating Powerful Writer...

Grade 6,units 1- 4: educating ..., grade 6,units 1- 4: educating powerful writers.

Grade 6, Units 1-4 of the middle school writing curriculum, Educating Powerful Writers: The NYCDOE Middle School Writing Scope and Sequence . This curriculum provides explicit units for writing instruction, mentor texts for each unit, self-assessment checklists for students, a full introduction to support the recommended instructional practices within the curriculum, and supporting materials and handouts for students.

Grade 6, units 5-8: Educating Powerful Writer...

Grade 6, units 5-8: educating ..., grade 6, units 5-8: educating powerful writers.

Grade 6, Units 5-8 of the middle school writing curriculum, Educating Powerful Writers: The NYCDOE Middle School Writing Scope and Sequence .  This curriculum provides explicit units for writing instruction, mentor texts for each unit, self-assessment checklists for students, a full introduction to support the recommended instructional practices within the curriculum, and supporting materials and handouts for students.

Grade 7, units 1-3: Educating Powerful Writer...

Grade 7, units 1-3: educating ..., grade 7, units 1-3: educating powerful writers.

Grade 7, Units 1-3 of the middle school writing curriculum, Educating Powerful Writers: The NYCDOE Middle School Writing Scope and Sequence .  This curriculum provides explicit units for writing instruction, mentor texts for each unit, self-assessment checklists for students, a full introduction to support the recommended instructional practices within the curriculum, and supporting materials and handouts for students.

Grade 7, units 4-8: Educating Powerful Writer...

Grade 7, units 4-8: educating ..., grade 7, units 4-8: educating powerful writers.

Grade 7, Units 4-8 of the middle school writing curriculum, Educating Powerful Writers: The NYCDOE Middle School Writing Scope and Sequence . This curriculum provides explicit units for writing instruction, mentor texts for each unit, self-assessment checklists for students, a full introduction to support the recommended instructional practices within the curriculum, and supporting materials and handouts for students.

Grade 8, units 1-8: Educating Powerful Writer...

Grade 8, units 1-8: educating ..., grade 8, units 1-8: educating powerful writers.

Grade 8, Units 1-8 of the middle school writing curriculum, Educating Powerful Writers: The NYCDOE Middle School Writing Scope and Sequence . This curriculum provides explicit units for writing instruction, mentor texts for each unit, self-assessment checklists for students, a full introduction to support the recommended instructional practices within the curriculum, and supporting materials and handouts for students.

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Creative Writing in the Middle School Classroom

Once upon a time . . . and they all lived happily ever after.

Creative writing that uses phrases like these shows up often in elementary writing. Once a student enters middle school, inventive writing often gets pushed aside. According to recent research, however, creative writing still offers benefits for the student beyond sixth grade.

Researcher Marissa Despins states that creative expression allows students to be able to voice emotions and build confidence. Non-academic writing also gives the writers the opportunity for thinking imaginatively, a skill that can be used for problem solving in all sorts of life areas. Even though creative writing has fewer restrictions than academic writing, it can still allow students to build writing skills, such as using new vocabulary, forming varied sentences, and finding their voice. Additionally, the skill of creative writing can also allow older writers to entertain, clarify thinking, and simply learn to read and write (Essex).

Sometimes instructors find teaching creative writing difficult. What topics do you assign? What steps of the writing process do you require? How do you grade creative pieces? Typically, creative writing works best when the writer goes through the basic writing process of planning, drafting, editing, and publishing. But the parameters might be more lenient than those for an academic writing project. For example, planning might consist of drawing a picture of the setting of a story. Or publishing might mean handwriting a poem in script to hang on the wall. Grading is easiest with a set rubric given at the beginning of the assignment. This might include categories such as “time spent on project,” “details given about characters/setting,” and “use of images.” Typically, word count is not an important factor in grading creative assignments.

Topics for creative writing can extend well beyond the typical writing assignment. Students can be allowed to choose their topics, but often they request some suggestions. Here are a few suggested topics for different genres of creative writing.

• Poetry: Write an abecedarian poem. This is a poem where each line begins with the next sequential letter of the alphabet. The poem does not need to rhyme (although it can), and sentences can continue through several lines. Brian Bilston wrote “An Attempt To Write an Abecedarian Poem In Praise of the Dictionary”; the first lines read,

“An unfaltering ability Bring clarity to the English language Constitutes your Defining quality.”

(You can read the entire poem here .) This type of poem is one that works well to display for other students to read; the poet may also want to illustrate the poem.

• Devotional: While this might be a more informative writing, devotionals provide a strong creative opportunity. Typical guidelines might include to choose a topic and find a Scripture passage that corresponds. Then write two to three paragraphs that tell a story that illustrates the passage. End with a paragraph that explains the point being made. This writing works well to be published in a booklet including the class’s responses–students can use this booklet for an actual devotional time.
• Bible story script: The student can choose a narrative Bible passage and write it in the form of dialogue. Include stage directions and small props. Make sure that the character amount and extras do not exceed what the class can produce, and publish by acting the script as a class project. For this one, the teacher might want to approve topic choices before the student proceeds to make sure that they are class appropriate (e.g. avoid violence and romance).
• Characters: a chef, an artist, a mechanic, a farmer, an archaeologist, a mother, a deep-sea diver, a mountain climber
• Setting: Antarctica, a desert, an inner city, a field, a bookstore, a warehouse, a train, a rocket
• Object: paintbrush, road sign, globe, flower pot, pickup truck, icebreaker ship, shovel, vine
• Conflict: thunderstorm, being chased by a dog, the electricity goes out, lack of water to drink, a broken arm, a displeased customer, a falling brick, a screaming child

Works Cited

Despins, Marissa. “Benefits of Creative Writing in Middle School.” ELA Matters . 30 Nov. 2022. https://elamatters.com/2022/11/08/benefits-of-creative-writing-in-middle-school/. Accessed 20 Dec. 2023.

Essex, Christopher. “Teaching Creative Writing in the Elementary School.” ERIC Digest. ERIC Clearinghouse on Reading, English, and Communication. https://www.readingrockets.org/topics/writing/articles/teaching-creative-writing. Accessed 20 Dec. 2023.

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Lesson Plans

Our complete curricula will guide your class through its entire noveling journey, with Common Core-aligned lesson plans from prewriting to publishing.

Choose your grade level below:

• High School (9-12) Curriculum
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Student Workbooks

Our workbooks help students create characters, build settings, and hatch plots. 

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Classroom Kits

We offer a free motivational classroom kit to educators facilitating NaNoWriMo. It includes a progress chart, creative writing poster, and stickers. Sign up for an educator account to claim your free kit this fall!

Pep talks are inspirational letters written by well-known authors during NaNoWriMo. Look for them in Breaking News throughout the month of November, and find past favorites on the  Pep Talks page.

Brave the Page

The official NaNoWriMo handbook that inspires young people to tackle audacious goals and complete their creative projects.

Partly a how-to guide on the nitty-gritty of writing, partly a collection of inspiration to set (and meet) ambitious goals, Brave the Page is the go-to resource for middle-grade writers. Narrated in a fun, refreshingly kid-friendly voice, it champions NaNoWriMo’s central mission that everyone ‘s stories deserve to be told. The volume includes chapters on character, plot, setting, and the like; motivating essays from popular authors; advice on how to commit to your goals; a detailed plan for writing a novel or story in a month; and more. 

From our Kirkus Reviews starred review : "Though specifically targeting young writers, this upbeat handbook is a wonderful instruction guide for writers of any age as well as a perfect text for any creative-writing classroom."

Order your copy (and support our non-profit)! 

Write all year round with NaNoWriMo. Check out what's happening now!

Some annual events: NaNo Prep in October, National Novel Writing Month in November, "Now What?" in January and February, Camp NaNoWriMo in April and July, and our Summer Writing Program . Learn more about year-round writing . 

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Top 10 Homeschooling Middle School Writing Curriculum Choices For 2021

Writing curriculum programs for middle school homeschooling are not a one size fits all; and, as a home educator, it is ultimately up to you to make the best decision.

We have asked some Teach Them Diligently families what their favorite Middle School Writing curriculums are. Those are listed below with a link to our complete Homeschool Family Favorite Guide.

The Top 3…

Institute for Excellence in Writing – From their website: At the Institute for Excellence in Writing, we train teachers to model an oral and written pathway of communication which develops the language skills of all students through imitation to innovation. Because every teacher can use the method in his or her classroom, every parent can be confident that every student can learn to listen, speak, read, write, and think effectively and eloquently.

Memoria Press Classical Composition – From their website: Memoria Press’ composition program, Classical Composition, is based on the original classical method of teaching writing called the “progymnasmata.” It was the program that produced John Milton and William Shakespeare. This method involved learning fourteen skills, organized from the simplest and most basic to the most complex and sophisticated. In addition, our English Grammar Recitation program will solidify the grammar your child has learned in Latin through memorizing and reciting the essential grammatical and usage rules in English.

Essentials in Writing –  Essentials in Writing is an engaging video-based homeschool writing curriculum designed for Grade Levels 1-12. Students watch video lessons that are presented in a systematic, step-by-step approach, and then proceed to writing assignments. Writing lessons and assignments are presented in small “chunks” to help students understand, apply, and retain concepts. Writing and literature lessons are modeled by the teacher. After a new or reviewed concept has been taught, the teacher “shows” students HOW to apply the new concept in writing.

Top Middle School Writing Curriculums 4-5

4. Writing Strands – From their website: This convenient all-in-one worktext features 180 days of instruction and a variety of student activities and exercises. Each week alternates between writing lessons and reading lessons; for their reading, students will read biblical passages as well as books chosen and assigned by the parent. A weekly lesson schedule is also included.

5. Brave Writer – From their website: Through our user-friendly materials and award-winning online classes, you’ll grow into a competent writing coach, calm your anxious writers, and nourish your aspiring authors.

Top Middle School Writing  Curriculums 6-10

6. Gather Round Homeschool  

7. BJU Press Grammar and Writing

9. Writing with Ease From Well-Trained Mind

10. The Good and the Beautiful

Sign up to download your free curriculum guide today!

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Writing Curriculum

Teach Writing With The New York Times: Our 2023-24 Curriculum

Our eight writing units, each with its own practical step-by-step guide, are based on real-world features like reviews, photo essays, narratives, podcasts and more.

By The Learning Network

Please note: Fully updated versions of each unit, as well as all supporting materials, will be published as each related contest goes live.

What can the news, features, essays, interviews, photos, videos, podcasts and graphics in The New York Times teach your students about composing for a real audience? So much, we hope, that the units we detail below are just a beginning.

Our writing curriculum is both a road map for teachers and an invitation to students. For teachers, it organizes our offerings — writing prompts, mentor texts and student contests — into eight distinct units, each of which focuses on a different genre of writing that your students can find not just in The Times but in all kinds of real-world sources.

For students, it offers confirmation that they have something valuable to say, a wide range of choices about how to say it and a global audience eager to listen. Promoting student voices has always been a pillar of our site, and through the opportunities for publication woven into each unit, we want to encourage students to go beyond simply consuming media to becoming creators themselves.

Though our offerings are aimed at middle school and high school students, we know that they are used up and down levels and across subjects — from elementary school to college. So have a look, and see if you can find a way to include any of these opportunities in your curriculum this year, whether to help students document their lives, tell stories, express opinions, investigate ideas, interview fascinating people or analyze culture. We can’t wait to hear what they have to say!

Each unit includes:

Writing prompts to help students try out related skills in a “low stakes” way.

We publish new writing prompts every school day and have since 2009. You can find categorized collections of these prompts , or just scroll through to see the latest. Your students can respond on our site, using our public forums as a kind of “rehearsal space” for practicing voice and technique.

Daily opportunities to practice writing for an authentic audience.

If a student submits a comment on our site, it will be read by Times editors, who approve each one before it is published. Submitting a comment also gives students an audience of fellow teenagers from around the world who may read and respond to their work. Each week, we call out our favorite comments and honor dozens of students by name in our Thursday “ Current Events Conversation ” feature.

Guided practice with mentor texts .

Each step-by-step guide features activities, written directly to students, that help them observe, understand and practice the kinds of “craft moves” that make different genres of writing sing. Mentor texts like those informing how to “show not tell” in narratives , how to express critical opinions , how to quote or paraphrase experts and how to craft scripts for podcasts use the work of both Times journalists and the teenage winners of our contests to show students techniques they can emulate.

A contest that acts as a culminating project .

Over the years, we’ve heard from many teachers that our contests serve as final projects in their classes, and this curriculum came about in large part because we wanted to help teachers “plan backward” to support those projects.

All contest entries are considered by experts, whether Times journalists, outside educators from partner organizations or professional practitioners in a related field. Winning means being published on our site and, perhaps, in the print edition of The New York Times.

Below are the eight units we will offer in the 2023-24 school year.

August-October

Documenting and Reflecting on Teenage Lives

This unit was first developed in 2020 to acknowledge the profound effects that tumultuous year had on a generation of teenagers. Our open-ended invitation to “show us — in words or images, video or audio — how the events of this year have affected you” resulted in a deluge of extraordinary submissions, some of which were featured online , in a special print section and in a book . We continued the contest for two more years, and the work of the 2021 and 2022 winners was equally excellent.

This year, we’re inviting you to do the same kind of documentation and reflection , but this time focusing on your school experience. We’re asking, What can you show or tell us that might help explain what it’s like to be an educator or a student in high school right now? Anyone who works or is a student in a secondary school can contribute to this collective portrait by sending almost anything you can upload digitally that addresses that question. All submissions must be accompanied by a written artist’s statement giving additional context.

If you’re reading this and worrying that you don’t have anything to say, trust us: You do. Everyone experiences school differently, and there are stories only you can tell. The exercises in our new step-by-step guide show you how.

Note: Unlike our other contests, this first challenge is only open to high school students (and educators too).

October-November

The Personal Narrative

While The Times is known for its award-winning journalism, the paper also has a robust tradition of publishing personal essays on topics like love , family , life on campus and navigating anxiety . And on our site, our daily writing prompts have long invited students to tell us their stories, too. Our collection of 525 Prompts for Narrative and Personal Writing is a good place to start, though we add more every week during the school year.

For several years, we ran a personal narrative contest for students, inspired by the essays from The Times Magazine’s long-running Lives column . In 2022, we switched it up, challenging students to write a “tiny memoir” personal narrative in 100 words or less. We loved the results , so we’re bringing that contest back again this October.

Our unit, Teach Narrative Writing With The New York Times , contains links to all the prompts, mentor texts and lesson plans you’ll need to start, while our related guide offers students step-by-step directions for telling meaningful, interesting and short true stories from their lives in 100 words.

November-December

The Critical Review

Book reports and literary essays have long been staples of language arts classrooms, but this unit encourages students to learn how to critique art in other genres as well. As we point out, a cultural review is a form of argumentative essay. Your class may be writing about pop music or sneaker trends, but your students still have to make claims and support them with evidence. And, just as they must in a literature essay, they have to read (or watch, or listen to) a work closely, analyze it, understand its context and explain what is meaningful and interesting about it.

In our step-by-step guide , we walk you through the review-writing process with advice from New York Times critics and student writers. And, as a culminating project , we invite students to send us their own reviews of a book, movie, restaurant, album, theatrical production, video game, dance performance, TV show, art exhibition or any other kind of work The Times critiques. (Please note that this year, unlike in previous years, students are limited to choose only works that are new since Jan. 1, 2023.)

January-February

Informational ‘How-To’ Writing

Informational writing is the style of writing that dominates The New York Times as well as any other traditional newspaper you might read, and in this unit we hope to show students that it can be every bit as engaging and compelling to read and to write as other genres.

Via thousands of articles a month — including front-page reporting on politics, deep data dives in The Upshot, recipes in Cooking, advice columns in Style and long-form investigative pieces in the magazine — Times journalists find ways to experiment with the genre to intrigue and inform their audiences.

For years, we ran a STEM Writing Contest , in which we invited students to explain an issue or question in science, technology, engineering, math or health, and both the related unit and the work of the winning students can still inspire. However, for this school year we’re trying something new by inviting students to follow the example of the long-running Tip column from The New York Times Magazine and write a short description of how to do (almost) any task. We’ll be publishing helpful new materials, including a step-by-step guide, before the contest begins.

Until then, check out both the Tip column and our lesson plan that breaks its formula down. For advice on finding topics and experts, read this piece from Times Insider about how the column is constructed.

February-March

The Photo Essay

How can focusing on one form of journalistic composition teach students cross-curricular skills like researching, storytelling, asking effective questions, observing closely, listening, note-taking, fact-checking, connecting with others and, of course, composing using both words and images with clarity, voice and style?

We hope to show students how to do all of this in our coming unit that will support participation in our new photo essay contest. Inspired by the immersive New York Times series “ Where We Are ,” which focuses on young people and the spaces where they create community, we invite students to work alone or with others to make photo essays about the communities that interest them.

Students can document any kind of offline community they like and feature people of any age. Stay tuned for many more materials, but until then, you can find many relevant tips and exercises in our 2022 guides to photographing and interviewing people.

March-April

Argumentative Writing

The demand for evidence-based argumentative writing is now woven into school assignments across curriculums and grade levels, and you couldn’t ask for better real-world examples than what you can find in the Times Opinion section.

This unit, like our others, is supported with writing prompts, mentor text lesson plans, webinars and more. It’s also supported by a decade of lesson plans and videos that focus on winning teenage work from our long-running Editorial Contest, on topics as varied as policing , anti-Asian hate , artificial intelligence , toxicity in gaming , transgender rights , parental incarceration and the “life-changing magic” of being messy .

Instead of focusing on the editorial as a culminating project this year, however, we’re inviting students to pen an open letter. An open letter is a published letter of protest or appeal usually addressed to an individual but intended for the general public. Martin Luther King Jr.’s Letter From Birmingham Jail , the recent letter signed by over 1,000 tech leaders about the dangers of artificial intelligence and this funny 2020 letter addressed to Prince Harry and Meghan are all examples of this rich tradition.

Just as we did for the Editorial Contest, we invite students to make an argument in 450 words about something that matters to them, and persuade us that we should care, too. But this time, they must address themselves to a specific target audience or recipient, institution or group — one that has the power to make meaningful change.

Whether they choose their parents, teachers, school board members or mayor; a member of Congress; the head of a corporation; or a metonym like “Silicon Valley” or “the Kremlin,” they should ask themselves, What do I care about? Who can make changes — big or small, local or global — to address my issue or problem? What specifically do I want them to understand and do? And how can I write this as an “open letter,” meaningful not just to me and the recipient, but to a general audience?

We’ll publish a new step-by-step guide later this school year, but until then, you can find ideas and inspiration in our related writing unit and via the work of past Editorial winners .

Whether you’re a high school student or a professional journalist, you’re probably being increasingly expected to communicate ideas, investigate questions and tell stories not just in writing, but across a range of multimedia.

This unit and its related contest help students experiment with one such format — the podcast — by giving them the freedom to talk about anything they want in any form they like. In the past, we’ve had winners who’ve done personal narratives, local travelogues, opinion pieces, interviews with community members, investigative journalism and descriptions of scientific discoveries.

To walk classes through the process of creating an original podcast, we provide a step-by-step guide full of examples from winning student-made work. And, to make sure the format is accessible to anyone with a smartphone or recording device, we also have a related lesson plan that explains some of the technical aspects of podcasting. You can find both of these resources and more in our related Writing for Podcasts unit .

December-January and June-August

Independent Reading & Writing

At a time when teachers are looking for ways to offer students more “voice and choice,” this unit, which spotlights our fall one-pager challenge and our summer reading contest, offers both.

We invite students to choose any article, opinion essay, video, graph, photo collection or podcast from The New York Times that was published this year, and respond to it by showing us how they engaged with the ideas and information in the piece.

For the one-pager, we ask that they respond with a combination of writing and images. This step-by-step guide can help students find a meaningful piece, review it carefully and react to it authentically — then figure out how to create an illustrated one-page response that expresses what they’d most like to say. Take a look at our stunning collection of winning student work to see how it can be done.

Our Summer Reading Contest asks students to tell us what got their attention in The Times and why. For over a decade, they have done that by simply posting a comment on our site, but for 2024, we’ll be asking for a richer range of multimedia responses. More details will be published in the spring, but for now, our related unit and step-by-step guide for writing rich reader responses offer evergreen advice.

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Nourishing My Scholar

Exceptional Middle School Writing Curriculum

August 16, 2020 by Erin Vincent Leave a Comment

Are you looking for a middle school writing curriculum ? Do you need something flexible, and gentle, yet thorough? Perhaps you have a reluctant writer or a young writer that has trouble putting their thoughts on paper. WriteShop takes the overwhelm out of the writing process. It’s a comprehensive writing curriculum that walks the homeschool parent and their student through the skills needed to find their kiddos writing voice.

*Disclosure: I was compensated for my time in exchange for an honest review of WriteShop I and II Bundle plus the Online Video Course . I was not required to write a positive review. As always, all thoughts and opinions are my own. I only choose to share resources that I would use with my own family and those that I believe other families will enjoy and benefit from. 

We’ve used other writing curriculums in the past. And while I love their philosophy and lifestyle, my son was needing something more. He needed a writing curriculum with more structure that would help him with the building blocks of writing while developing his writer’s voice.

I, the parent, needed more direction on HOW to TEACH my son to write papers and essays. He needed more than copy work and dictation.

My son is a multi-sensory learner. But most middle school writing curriculum are boring and only focus on pencil and paper. I spent all spring searching for a better alternative. I kept coming back to WriteShop I for its ability to help students to build strong writing foundations while also allowing the student to go at their own pace. Then there are the videos that WriteShop offers. Not the boring and dry videos I’d seen across the internet, but visually stimulating and creative videos that would hold my son’s attention.

I was so happy to get my hands on WriteShop I and II Bundle plus the Online Video Course !

Middle School Writing Curriculum

What is WriteShop? WriteShop I is a writing curriculum that offers detailed step-by-step lessons to help introduce descriptive, expository, narrative, and persuasive compositions and essays. It provides pre-teens and teens with a solid foundation in brainstorming all the way through the final draft stages and builds self-editing skills. It’s also perfect for your older reluctant writers because of its gentle writing approach.

WriteShop was created by a couple of moms whose sons struggled with writing! So, they understand what it’s like to be in the trenches of homeschooling reluctant writers.

These moms found that most writing programs were great about encouraging kids to “get their ideas onto paper,” but they often failed to help parents teach, guide, and evaluate in a simple way.

With WriteShop , you’ll discover lessons that provide:

• Prewriting games to stimulate creativity.
• A way to introduce and help students develop new skills.
• Creative, varied writing exercises with clearly defined expectations.
• Incremental lessons that built upon previously learned material.
• Writing checklists to help students edit their own work.
• A simple evaluation tool to help us grade final drafts objectively

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Why I Love WriteShop I Homeschool Writing Curriculum

WriteShop I is perfect for most children ages 12-16 in middle and early high school. The student workbook contains the meat of each lesson written directly to the student.

WriteShop I focuses on stylistic techniques, vocabulary development, active voice, and sentence variation in a fully faith neutral way. Writing skills are taught in shorter writing assignments. I love that students are working on the building blocks of more mature sentences and middle school paragraph writing while teaching me how to be my child’s writing coach. WriteShop literally teaches students how to describe an object, write a sentence, a paragraph, and connect it all together! This lays the foundation for all future compositions, essays, and reports.

Benefits of Using WriteShop I for Middle School Writing Curriculum

The beauty of the program is its adaptability! Whether your child is advanced, reluctant, or struggling with learning difficulties WriteShop can meet your kiddo’s needs. Lessons are parsed out in bite-size chunks. My son loves that each day’s assignments aren’t overwhelming. In addition, most compositions are rarely longer than one paragraph. My son also does well with the multisensory aspects of the lessons, whether it’s a game or a fun prewriting activity. This means that WriteShop is especially good for reluctant writers, special needs writers, and parents who need extra support with teaching writing .

Adapting Writing Lessons to Fit Your Middle Schooler’s Needs

With WriteShop I you can use a 1-week schedule, 2-week schedule, or break it up even further for teens with learning disabilities and create a schedule that fits their needs. That means you can plan for it to take 1 semester to 2 years depending on the way you do it. It’s all about doing what works best for your individual kid.

You can go as slowly as you need to, and the assignments are not long, lengthy papers, but focused on building strong paragraphs. New skills are introduced slowly, so I don’t have to worry about my son having to master everything at once.

WriteShop Online Video Course

WriteShop also offers an online video course for their WriteShop I & II curriculum.

Play With Education provides this additional support for writers and their parents with the platform for these videos.

WriteShop Online Videos Take One Thing Off Moms Plate

Each 10- to 15-minute video introduces students to the key points of WriteShop’s lesson in a clear and easy-to-understand way.

The WriteShop online video segments cover all the teaching points of each lesson. The videos cover it so fully that I was able to hand the bulk of the teaching over to the videos. I didn’t have to add anything. Though I still watched the videos with my son initially. I also helped my son with his paper, but the beauty of the videos was that I didn’t have to teach the lesson. The videos do this for me!

The video course works beautifully alongside the Teachers Manual. I highly recommend adding the video course as part of your WriteShop I writing curriculum.

WriteShop Middle School Writing Curriculum Resources

WriteShop I does have some grammar mingled into it but it is not enough to be considered a full credit. Because my son does so well with a multi-sensory approach, we paired Winston Grammar program with WriteShop 1.

WriteShop offers homeschool writing curriculum for all grades from K to 12. The Placement Quiz will help you find the best fit.

You can learn more about WriteShop’s Scope and Sequence as well as see Sample Lessons here . Subscribe to WriteShop and get instant access to your FREE gift ! WriteShop offers so many wonderful resources to help you help your child succeed in writing.

WriteShop Homeschool Writing Curriculum

If you’re looking for a most cost-effective alternative to the hard copy curriculum, don’t want to deal with hefty postage costs, or long shipping delays then be sure to check out the E-book Digital version to all of WriteShop’s curriculum.

You can browse the Digital Bundles here .

WriteShop includes everything you need for a successful year of writing for your homeschool. We’ve been using it for several months and I already see a HUGE difference in my son’s approach to writing. He’s becoming more independent and self-motivated while getting his brilliant words and phrases out onto paper! I’m so pleased with the growth we’ve both experienced on this writing journey.

You may also enjoy:

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About Erin Vincent

Erin is a writer, blogger, and homeschooler to two intense kids. She loves nature, farm life, good books, knitting, new pens, and hot coffee. Erin is a contributing writer for Weird Unsocialized Homeschoolers. Her work has also been featured on Simple Homeschool and Book Shark.

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Our Favorite Creative Writing Curriculum

You guys. Next year my daughter will be in 9th grade. Do you know what that means? Yep. High School.

As a relaxed homeschooler who teeters on the verge of unschooling, the idea of earning credits and completing an entire curriculum has me shaking in my boots. Long gone are my days of “winging it” and letting the weeks slip by without touching our curriculum. Now, I must keep track of credits and plan ahead to ensure my daughter completes everything needed in order to attend college.

When I sat my daughter down and started discussing which classes she’d take, she had only one request: a creative writing curriculum. As a blogger, I’ve always loved writing, so I was giddy at her request. But even after all of the creative writing classes I’ve taken, I still don’t really know how to teach creative writing. So I set out to find a curriculum that would take the guesswork out of it.

This post is sponsored by WriteShop. I received the products for free & was compensated for my time. All opinions are 100% my own.

Going from relaxed homeschoolers to “semi-strict, gotta-get-this-done homeschoolers” is a huge change. My daughter isn’t the only one who is struggling with the thought of it. I knew there were several creative writing curriculum options on the market and I hoped and prayed that one of them would help us with the transition.

I had a few things that I really wanted included in our creative writing curriculum and I wasn’t willing to budge on them.

• We didn’t want a dry and boring curriculum that would make my daughter despise writing.
• I wanted something that brought her out of her shell and helped her feel more confident in her writing.
•  There were dreams of a curriculum that didn’t require me to spend hours prepping and teaching. It needed to take out all the guesswork and clearly lay out all expectations for her.
• I still needed flexibility, as my other kids are still relaxed, almost-unschoolers . A rigorous schedule would interfere in life’s natural learning process.

 Lucky for me, I found all of these things wrapped up in WriteShop I.

A Creative Writing Curriculum That Sparks Imagination

With WriteShop I, we opted to take the 2 year path so we could enjoy some flexibility in our writing. Each lesson takes 2 weeks to complete so there’s no need to rush through the information. Each concept is presented and built upon until the idea becomes second natural to the student. 

In each lesson, kids will work through a series of hands-on activities to help them thoroughly understand each concept:

Pre-writing activity:.

Activities that are designed to build skills, help kids understand the introduced concepts and help them feel more comfortable with new ideas.

Brainstorm & Write a Practice Paragraph:

Students will brainstorm for the upcoming assignment and construct a practice paragraph.

Jot Down a Sloppy Copy:

The sloppy copy is a great way to help kids focus on getting their pencil on paper and not worry about grammar, spelling and other details. They organize their ideas into paragraphs and add more details and information.

First Revision:

Give the kids a chance to edit their own work before you dive into it. This will put the responsibility back on the writer to find and correct mistakes.

Teacher/Parenting Edit:

Using the Teacher Checklist, editing writing has never been so easy! Simply go through the steps and make suggestions as the list suggests. You want in on a secret? Us mamas don’t have to be a word-lover to be able to edit your child’s papers. You just need the perfect creative writing curriculum. ( Hint: this is it!!! )

WriteShop also stole my heart when I found the “Addressing Errors Lesson by Lesson” section of my teacher’s manual. WOWZA! It addresses every single issue I’ve ever came across and it offers solutions to help your child become a better writer.

Final Draft:

Students will create a final draft based on the edits and suggestions of the teacher. They’ll learn new concepts and key points to becoming a better essay writer through each lesson. They’ll even be proud to show off their compositions!

Teaching with a Creative Writing Curriculum that Covers It All

If you’re anything like me, you are  struggling to find the perfect creative writing curriculum. But teaching creative writing doesn’t have to be scary or hard. I kid you not when I say that WriteShop has outdone themselves. I’ve seen plenty of curriculum and I’ve never laid eyes on a Teacher’s Manual that covers everything as completely and thoroughly as WriteShop has done. The sections it covers takes the guesswork out of teaching and editing your students’ work.  Each section is neatly organized and streamlined with only the most vital information.

Sections include:

Lesson Plans

Editing & Evaluating

Positive & Encouraging Comments

Addressing Errors Lesson by Lesson

Common Problems of Mechanics

Student Writing Samples

Skill Builder Keys

Pre-Writing & Lesson Activity Keys

Appendix A: Handy References

Appendix B: Supplemental Activities

Seriously! Have you ever seen anything so thorough? I love the fact that the folks at WriteShop want to make sure ALL of the bases are covered. They’ve thought of the issues I’ve faced, long before I’ve faced them. And even better, they’re ready and waiting with a solution right at my fingertips!

If you’re looking for a comprehensive creative writing curriculum that won’t break the bank, you do NOT want to miss WriteShop! Down to the last details, they’ve gone above and beyond to make it easier for you and your child to fall in love for writing.

Want More From WriteShop?

Grab a free gift.

You don’t want to miss this bundle! It includes a total of 480 writing and essay prompts to inspire both elementary and teen students for an entire calendar year! You get two different products with a total value of $7.00. 

Print the prompts in your choice of three formats: calendars, cards, or strips. Only available for a limited time.

Grab their “Journal All Year!” Elementary Writing Prompt Calendar Scoop up the “Journal All Year!”  Teen Writing Prompt Calendar

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Advanced Writing Exploration Program (AWE)

Summer 2024 programs.

The Advanced Writing Exploration Program invites rising 7th, 8th, and 9th-grade writers to be part of a community of dedicated, focused writers looking to explore their literary passions.

The program includes multi-genre workshops, as well as genre-specialized master class sessions. All workshops are student-driven and author-led, and writers will receive continuous feedback from their instructor and peers.

The program will prepare writers for Writopia’s popular and esteemed Creative Portfolio program for high schoolers.

This is an application-only program.

Price: $1290 Applicants can apply for need-based financial aid

Summer sessions include daily craft talks, writing exercises, and deep dives into different writing genres including poetry, memoir, playwriting, screenwriting, essay writing, fiction, comedy, and more. The session concludes with a reading and celebration.

Summer 2024 Date and Location Options:

• Upper West Side, Monday, July 29th to Wednesday, August 7th, 2024 1 PM to 4 PM ET
• Online, Monday, August 12th to Wednesday, August 21st, 2024 1 PM to 4 PM ET / 10 AM to 1 PM PT

Click here to apply for AWE!

School Year Programs

The Middle School Advanced Writing Exploration Program (AWE) invites 7th and 8th-grade writers to be part of a community of dedicated, focused writers looking to explore, expand, and deepen their literary passions. The program includes multi-genre workshops, as well as genre-specialized master class sessions. All workshops are student-driven and author-led, and writers will receive continuous feedback from their instructor and peers.

The AWE program also includes one private session in which the writer can focus on academic essay writing, admissions essays, or the creative genre of their choice.

The program will inspire and challenge middle school writers, as well as prepare them for Writopia’s popular and esteemed Creative Portfolio program for high schoolers.

This is an application-only program. We are currently accepting applications on a rolling basis.

Tuition: $645 (Limited financial aid available)

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Who knew writing could be so much fun?

Engaging for students. | Easy for parents. | Fosters a love of writing.

WRITING PROGRAMS:

Middle School  

Cover Story writing students are led, step by step, through the process of creating content for their own magazine. They write short stories, nonfiction articles, poems, and many other short pieces. Engaging video lessons!

High School

Award-winning author Daniel Schwabauer leads students through the process of writing their own novel . Both eager writers and reluctant writers can have their skills transformed! In-depth video teaching and several support resources .

Byline puts students in the role of a 1930s-era newspaper reporter  as they dig up stories from the past. Daniel Schwabauer guides them into compelling journalistic writing . In the process, students are equipped to write great academic essays!

NEW : Other Worlds

Other Worlds: Writing Fantasy & Science Fiction  – This is a NEW , greatly expanded curriculum! With TRIPLE the video lessons, an added textbook, and more , this program takes students through the unique qualities of both fantasy and science fiction. Pre-requisite: The One Year Adventure Novel

“Daniel Schwabauer is one of the most insightful, inspiring teachers I have encountered. The concepts he taught me have changed the way I approach writing—both creatively and analytically.”

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Time in Elektrostal , Moscow Oblast, Russia now

• Tokyo 04:10AM
• Beijing 03:10AM
• Kyiv 10:10PM
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Time zone info for Elektrostal

• The time in Elektrostal is 8 hours ahead of the time in New York when New York is on standard time, and 7 hours ahead of the time in New York when New York is on daylight saving time.
• Elektrostal does not change between summer time and winter time.
• The IANA time zone identifier for Elektrostal is Europe/Moscow.

Time difference from Elektrostal

Sunrise, sunset, day length and solar time for elektrostal.

• Sunrise: 04:06AM
• Sunset: 08:40PM
• Day length: 16h 34m
• Solar noon: 12:23PM
• The current local time in Elektrostal is 23 minutes ahead of apparent solar time.

Elektrostal on the map

• Location: Moscow Oblast, Russia
• Latitude: 55.79. Longitude: 38.46
• Population: 144,000

Best restaurants in Elektrostal

• #1 Tolsty medved - Steakhouses food
• #2 Ermitazh - European and japanese food
• #3 Pechka - European and french food

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The 50 largest cities in Russia

Elektrostal

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Elektrostal

Elektrostal Localisation : Country Russia , Oblast Moscow Oblast . Available Information : Geographical coordinates , Population, Area, Altitude, Weather and Hotel . Nearby cities and villages : Noginsk , Pavlovsky Posad and Staraya Kupavna .

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Elektrostal Demography

Information on the people and the population of Elektrostal.

Elektrostal Geography

Geographic Information regarding City of Elektrostal .

Elektrostal Distance

Distance (in kilometers) between Elektrostal and the biggest cities of Russia.

Elektrostal Map

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Elektrostal Nearby cities and villages

Elektrostal weather.

Weather forecast for the next coming days and current time of Elektrostal.

Elektrostal Sunrise and sunset

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Elektrostal Hotel

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Elektrostal Nearby

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Elektrostal Page

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Geographic coordinates of Elektrostal, Moscow Oblast, Russia

City coordinates

Coordinates of Elektrostal in decimal degrees

Coordinates of elektrostal in degrees and decimal minutes, utm coordinates of elektrostal, geographic coordinate systems.

WGS 84 coordinate reference system is the latest revision of the World Geodetic System, which is used in mapping and navigation, including GPS satellite navigation system (the Global Positioning System).

Geographic coordinates (latitude and longitude) define a position on the Earth’s surface. Coordinates are angular units. The canonical form of latitude and longitude representation uses degrees (°), minutes (′), and seconds (″). GPS systems widely use coordinates in degrees and decimal minutes, or in decimal degrees.

Latitude varies from −90° to 90°. The latitude of the Equator is 0°; the latitude of the South Pole is −90°; the latitude of the North Pole is 90°. Positive latitude values correspond to the geographic locations north of the Equator (abbrev. N). Negative latitude values correspond to the geographic locations south of the Equator (abbrev. S).

Longitude is counted from the prime meridian ( IERS Reference Meridian for WGS 84) and varies from −180° to 180°. Positive longitude values correspond to the geographic locations east of the prime meridian (abbrev. E). Negative longitude values correspond to the geographic locations west of the prime meridian (abbrev. W).

UTM or Universal Transverse Mercator coordinate system divides the Earth’s surface into 60 longitudinal zones. The coordinates of a location within each zone are defined as a planar coordinate pair related to the intersection of the equator and the zone’s central meridian, and measured in meters.

Elevation above sea level is a measure of a geographic location’s height. We are using the global digital elevation model GTOPO30 .

Elektrostal , Moscow Oblast, Russia