Typing Rough Drafts for IEW Medieval?? Moving ahead?

[abrightmom]

Do you require your student to write their rough drafts by hand? I do and ask them to double space, leaving room to make corrections. Today my son REALLY wanted to type his rough draft and I said no. Final Drafts, yes. But rough drafts of a paragraph in length are easily written by hand. He says it's too hard to think and write that way and it takes him so long because he is a slow writer. For now, I have stood my ground and told him this is a hill worth dying on for me and that I believe there is value in writing out his rough draft in this manner. HOWEVER, I also told him I'd consider the typing of rough drafts and ask on the HOD Forum. I want to tow the line but come alongside my son in reasonable ways ....

Admittedly, he doesn't see the point in writing KWOs; we've done them in the past. He feels so constrained and longs to write write write! I told him that I believe IEW is good for him because it DOES constrain him. He grinned sheepishly when I confessed that I had an inkling he'd buck under the requirements because of how they would limit my creative writer. He asked me what he is learning when he already knows how to use the dress ups (this is true, he does it quite well). He is at an age where anything that feels unnecessary is questioned by him. So, I told him that while these beginning lessons are easy for him we will soon be doing NEW Units within IEW that he hasn't done. So, he asked if we can SKIP the beginning Unit with the KWOs and move to the new material. I am also considering pumping up the writing with the Level B assignments (though use of time IS a factor and is keeping me from doing so) ***Do you think skipping Unit I is okay or should I view this is an opportunity to train well to do his work according to the directions?*** I can tend to be extreme and either loosen up too much leading to poor habits OR be completely unmovable in an area where a bit of grace can unlock the learning. ANY counsel is appreciated!

[Mibellesmom]

I do allow my son to type his rough drafts and often times I allow him to dictate it to me. My son struggles with writing. On the other hand, my daughter loves to write, but every now and then she asks me to type her rough draft. She does not struggle, but sometimes the physical act of writing or typing is a distraction. We are working on keyboarding and hopefully that will become easier.

I don’t recommend skipping an unit. At first, my kids thought it was dumb, but now they see the value of the outlines. They will use it for research papers later on, etc We’ve been using IEW for a few years and intend to use it for at least another year.

[abrightmom]

I do allow my son to type his rough drafts and often times I allow him to dictate it to me. My son struggles with writing. On the other hand, my daughter loves to write, but every now and then she asks me to type her rough draft. She does not struggle, but sometimes the physical act of writing or typing is a distraction. We are working on keyboarding and hopefully that will become easier.

I don’t recommend skipping an unit. At first, my kids thought it was dumb, but now they see the value of the outlines. They will use it for research papers later on, etc We’ve been using IEW for a few years and intend to use it for at least another year.

This is interesting . How do you include marking of dress-ups in the margin? Does he write them there after printing? How do you handle the editing session? Does he double space and print so you can go through it together as though he'd hand written it? My son would likely LOVE this but I am still coming to grips with conceding .

[Mibellesmom]

Yes, I have them type MLA style, doubled space. After they have a skeleton rough draft, I ask them to use their check list and begin adding dress ups. They print rough drafts and I edit and make recommendations. Most of the time, I sit next to them and help with dress ups, going through the checklist. With both kids sometimes we have re-write sentences or combine sentences. They mark with a pencil or pen all of the dress ups in the final draft, including sentence openers on the left margin. Both of my kids take writing in a class once a week. ( separate classes) They are required to attached KWO, rough draft, final draft, and the rubric on top.

[crlacey]

My daughter has been typing most of her work for awhile now. She is dyslexic, so the process of correctly writing each word is tough for her. She still does some copy work for the handwriting practice. So for anything that requires her to think while she is writing, I let her type. Then she saves it and has me review it. Since she's done other levels of IEW, she normally doesn't need to edit. But if she does, we meet together, go over it on the screen and then she prints it. If it's been a busy day, I'll have her print it and then I'll make any corrections or suggestions on the page. She'll then correct those and print it out again.

[LynnH]

My ds types all of his rough drafts no matter what writing program we are using due to his dysgraphia. He does do much better work if he is typing it and doesn't have to think about the physical act of writing. When he goes to edit it he just does it on the screen. I don't remember exactly how we did it with IEW, but I think that is what we did then also. He would just type in anything he was supposed to add. My daughter who is in college and has no learning or writing issues also types all her rough drafts and then makes corrections to them in Word. She often will then send a copy to my dh so he can proof her final rough draft and he will make corrections on Word. If she goes to the writing center at her university for help they want the rough draft to be in digital form also. So maybe if you look at it as a skill that he will need in the future it won't feel so much like giving in .

Now as far as skipping lessons that I wouldn't do.

[abrightmom]

Thanks ladies! You have been a big help in moving me along the path of knowing when to come alongside my son and be reasonable. I anticipate that this concession will grease the wheels and enable him to move forward. . It will save time too which is something he needs. . God is good!!

[abrightmom]

Oh, and I wanted to mention that we won't skip ahead. We will keep doing what is scheduled but might add the extensions. If use of time improves he will want to add them. He loves to write . I won't require it though ...