“Jump In, 2nd Edition” by Writing with Sharon Watson – Review

Writing has always been a subject I’ve enjoyed teaching. For the most part, as homeschoolers, we’ve taken advantage of authentic writing experiences and audiences and kept journals of all kinds. I’ve noticed, however, that while my kids are really good content writers, there are a few areas that they could make stronger – and that’s why I’m excited for the opportunity to review Jump In, 2nd Edition by Writing with Sharon Watson.

The first thing I noticed about this curriculum is the format of the pages. Most textbooks for kids in Grades 5-8 pack a lot of information on the pages. There isn’t as much white space as there is for younger students, and clip art or other fun elements are at a minimum. Jump In, 2nd Edition is quite different. The elements on the pages aren’t always in straight lines, and there’s lots of white space on the pages that the kids write on. I love that! It feels friendlier and is much less intimidating this way.

Perhaps that’s because this curriculum is targeted (in part) for reluctant writers. It’s not designed only for them, as the other half of the tagline states that it’s for eager readers, but I think that page layout is important. As an elementary teacher and the mom of a kid who gets very intimidated by tiny lines and busy pages, these are beautiful. (Of course, that does mean that there are more pages to print, but to me that’s a happy trade for a comfortable kid who’s not stressed by the lessons.)

Writing isn’t the favorite subject of My Little Man, although he does well, but he was okay working through this curriculum because of the bite-sized pieces and how approachable each page appeared. The random alignments and bits of clipart and graphics really adds to the appearance of the pages.

My Big Helper, on the other hand, is a fantastic writer and she loves it. She’s hoping to write a novel this summer based on research that she did this past school year! She was still intent on each lesson, often going beyond what was required for it. I love that this curriculum allows for that kind of personalization!

Another thing I liked about this curriculum is that it jumped right in with opinion writing. That’s one of the areas I wanted my kids to practice, and it was nice to hit that first, right off the bat. The types of writing that can be rather formulaic, at least in the beginning, are at the front of the book. That kinds of writing that require more creativity and constructs that take place over a longer piece of writing are towards the end. We don’t often teach it that way in school, but it makes sense to me, and it’s working for us so far.

The lessons are broken down into very manageable bits, and they’re very kid-friendly. I’ve been asking my kids to read certain pages and making the assignment, and they go, do it, and then bring me their work. They’re able to do it all very independently, and I can break the lessons into chunks that works for each of them easily – because they both have a different amount of work they’re able to handle at one time when it comes to writing. This made it all very easy for me and comfortable for them.

The lessons continue in much the same vein. They’re a great mix of technical information in kid-friendly formats. Almost every page has some sort of interactive part, whether you’re jotting notes, underlining key information, or making a list to contribute your own thoughts to the lesson. The students aren’t being asked to write paragraphs or essays this frequently – just adding or interacting with the information in ways that will help it stick. I think this is key.

Moving onward throughout the book, there are lessons about some common types of writing that all students need to understand. From persuasive writing and newspaper articles to fairy tales and poetry, Jump In, 2nd Edition teaches kids the basic skills they need to be confident writers at a wide range of types of writing. Best of all, though, it’s all done in a way that makes the student comfortable and confident.

I’m looking forward to having My Little Man continue with this curriculum next school year. I love the comprehensiveness of it, but also that it gives him solid skills to add to his toolbelt.

If you have a writer who could use a bit of polish or confidence, give Jump In, 2nd Edition a try – but don’t take my word for it. Read more reviews on the Homeschool Review Crew’s roundup by clicking on the graphic below.