Does your child struggle with handwriting or spelling? Do they have trouble writing well-structured sentences, paragraphs, or essays? If so, they may benefit from writing tutoring. Writing tutoring can help your child in the following ways:
Sentence structure
Before learning how to write paragraphs or essays, students need to learn how to write a well-structured sentence. Your child’s writing tutor can teach them that a basic sentence consists of a subject and a predicate, such as Ella runs. As part of the writing tutoring, your child may look at models of well-written basic sentences and highlight the subject in one color and predicate in another color. When your child is ready, their writing tutor can teach them how to expand their sentences with adjectives and adverbs, like Ella runs quickly. Your child will practice writing many basic and expanded sentences to gain proficiency. Later, their writing tutor can teach them how to write four different types of sentences, including declarative, imperative, interrogative, and exclamatory sentences. They can also learn how to further expand their sentences by writing compound and complex sentences.
Simple Paragraphs
When your child is ready, their writing tutor can teach them how to write a simple paragraph. A simple paragraph consists of a topic sentence, three detail sentences, and a conclusion sentence. An example might be:
There are many different types of desserts. First, you can eat cake. Next, you can eat ice cream. Finally, some people like eating fruit for dessert. I love dessert!
Simple paragraphs can be simple, but they should be organized. During writing tutoring, your child can look at models of well-written simple paragraphs and highlight the topic sentence in one color, detail sentences in another color, and conclusion sentence in a third color, before working on writing their own simple paragraphs. Their writing tutor can teach them how to write example, process, reason, and compare/contrast paragraphs, and should give them a lot of practice brainstorming, writing, and self-checking numerous paragraphs.
Extended Paragraphs
Once your child has grasped how to write a simple paragraph, their writing tutor can teach them how to write an extended paragraph. An extended paragraph expands a simple paragraph while maintaining its organization. In doing so, the student adds three supporting detail sentences after each detail in a simple paragraph to form an extended paragraph. Your child’s writing tutor can teach them how to write example, process, reason, and compare/contrast paragraphs, but now in the form of an extended paragraph.
Five Paragraph Essays
After your child has learned how to write well-structured sentences, simple paragraphs, and extended paragraphs, they should be ready to learn how to write five paragraph essays. A five paragraph essay contains an introduction paragraph, three body paragraphs, and a conclusion paragraph. In the introduction paragraph, your child’s writing tutor will teach them how to write an opening, lead-in, and thesis statement.
They will also learn how to integrate transition words and sentences. Furthermore, they will learn how to write various types of five paragraph essays, including example, process, reason, and compare/contrast essays.
Writing is one of the most important skills for success in school. Writing tutoring can help your child build this critical skill and thrive academically.
