Storycraft Communications'
Personalized Writing Program
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Looking for help teaching your students to write?
Consider A Personalized Student Writing Program
Storycraft Communications has developed an exciting new resource for parents of young writers.
More than just a curriculum, it's an opportunity for your children to sharpen their writing skills through
a combination of great literature (the way Benjamin Franklin learned to write!) and personalized
mentoring by a professional editor in the Christian publishing industry.
The mentoring is what truly makes this program so unique. While most writing programs require
parents to read, check, and grade their children's work, this program actually employs a professional
editor to review, correct, offer instruction, and even grade your student's writing!
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Storycraft
Communications'
Professional
Editor:
Drew Zahn
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Drew Zahn is a former staff editor with
Christianity Today, International, the
magazine company founded by Billy
Graham, and freelance editor for
homeschooling personalities like Terri Camp
and Lorrie Flem of TEACH magazine.
As an editor, Drew has shaped the writing of
Christian personalities like Chuck Swindoll,
John Ortberg, and U.S. Senate Chaplain
Barry Black. As a dad, Drew has shaped the
lives of 11 growing blessings and tutored and
mentored dozens of others through
homeschooling cooperatives in Iowa.
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Why consider this program?
- Based on great literature
- Developed by a professional editor in the Christian publishing industry
- Emphasizes writing ability and mechanics over grammar lessons and terminology
- Personalized instruction, based on your student's actual writing
- Helps your student improve skill, while preserving his or her unique style
- Ease of use: constructing assignments, correction, and even grading done for you
What does "personalized" mean?
"Personalized" means your student's writing will be reviewed and corrected by our professional editor. Then, he will provide suggestions, tips, and
encouragement based on your students' writing skills and performance. Our editor will work directly with your student's work to affirm and accentuate
your students' writing strengths and improve your students' writing weaknesses. Even our optional grading plan is based on the improvement your young writer
demonstrates. All this means that Storycraft's personalized writing program helps your student improve his or her writing skill while maintaining his or
her own style and voice.
How does it work?
Storycraft's personalized writing program is available at two levels: "Tutor" and "Teacher's Aide," depending on your needs. Let's look first at the "Tutor" level:
"Tutor" level of Storycraft's personalized writing program:
Storycraft's program is based on a two-week assignment that works like this:
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Week 1
- Storycraft Communications emails you three selected passages from classic and great literature, each
customized to be instructional at your student's academic level.
- Your student studies the first selection, noting challenging spellings, punctuation, etc.
- Your student's partner (you or a sibling) then reads the passage to your student while he or she writes it out, without looking at
the original.
- The partner looks over your student's shoulder, immediately correcting any errors.
- Throughout the week and at your own pace, complete the process with all three literature passages.
This process introduces your student to great writing, gives your student practice in writing like the masters of literature, and
prepares your student for their personalized writing assignment in week 2.
Week 2
- Storycraft emails you a writing assignment based on the previous week's work.
- Your student then writes a full page (single-spaced) or two pages (double-spaced), which amounts to
roughly 600 words, according to the assignment.
- You email the writing assignment back to Storycraft Communications in MS Word format.
- While your student is working on their next "Week 1" assignment, Storycraft's editor goes to work reviewing, correcting, and
providing instructional feedback on your student's writing using MS Word's "Track Changes" feature (if you're unfamiliar with
this feature, Storycraft's editor can train you in five minutes or less).
- Storycraft Communications returns your student's writing via email, complete with correction, encouragement, advice,
and instruction based on your student's actual work and progress!
- If you would like, Storycraft Communications also offers an optional grading system for your student's work.
Each month, your student will complete two of these two-week cycles. Of course, some months have more than four
weeks, which means every so often, your student will enjoy a week off! Through this program, your student will submit two
papers each month (about 1200 words total per month) for correction, personalized instruction, and grading (optional).
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What if I already have a writing curriculum I like?
That's where the "Teacher's Aide" level of this program comes in. If you already have a writing curriculum in place, desire a less intensive program, or are
simply looking for a less expensive option, the "Teacher's Aide" level may suit your needs better. Here's how that works:
"Teacher's Aide" level of Storycraft's personalized writing program:
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"Tutor" level of Storycraft's personalized writing program:
Storycraft's program is based on a two-week assignment that works like this:
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- You provide the basic instruction and assignments for your student's writing development.
- Then, once per month, you email a single page (single-spaced) or two pages (double-spaced), about 600 words of your
student's writing, in MS Word format to Storycraft Communications.
- Storycraft's editor goes to work reviewing, correcting, and providing instructional feedback on your student's writing using
MS Word's "Track Changes" feature (if you're unfamiliar with this feature, Storycraft's editor can train you in five minutes or
less).
- Storycraft Communications returns your student's writing via email, complete with correction, encouragement, advice,
and instruction based on your student's actual work and progress!
- If you would like, Storycraft Communications also offers an optional grading system for your student's work.
The "Teacher's Aide" level offers the same, personalized instruction from a professional editor as the "Tutor" level,
but allows you the flexibility of using a writing program you already have and at less cost!
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What about grading?
- At no additional cost at either the "Tutor" or the "Teacher's Aide" level, Storycraft's professional editor can gauge your student's progress in skill
development and provide a numerical analysis and letter grade for each reviewed piece of your student's writing.
- This a completely optional service.
- Grading is based on progress, not perfection (otherwise a fifth grader would rarely aspire to an "A" when compared to professional industry standards).
As your student demonstrates growth and increased skill in writing, he or she can expect high marks.
- The grading scale is based on your student's individual writing level, not an arbitrary standard based on "grade level." Homeschooling parents
often disregard the school system's insistence on labeling children's academic level according to "grades," and Storycraft Communications understands
that decision and will work with parents on developing a more personalized grading scale.
How do I order?
Storycraft Communications' personalized writing program is a service conducted entirely by email. There are no books to buy, no materials to gather, and no
work necessary for parents except to print out the weekly assignments! Here's how to order:
Email us at drew@storycraftcommunications.com. Let us know whether you'd like to order the "Tutor" level service or the "Teacher's Aide" level
service, how many children you want to enroll, and whether or not you'd like to use our optional grading service.
We'll email you a comprehensive file that explains how to use the service, how to get the most out of it, how our grading system works in detail, and
how and to use MS Word's "Track Changes" feature. We'll also ask for a sample of your student's writing to use as a baseline for grading (only if
you opt to utilize the grading service).
Included in our email will be an invoice for services. Our program is calculated on a monthly charge ($35 per month for the "Tutor" level; $15
per month for the "Teacher's Aide" level; with a $5 per month, per student discount* on each additional child from the same family).
You may pay by personal check through the mail or through Paypal. You may pay monthly or may designate a certain term of months and pay for
the whole term at once.
When we receive both your email requesting enrollment and your first month's payment, we will send you a congratulatory confirmation of
enrollment and, if enrolled in the "Tutor" level, your first set of Week 1 student assignments.
* How does that discount work?? The first child from a family enrolled in the "Tutor" level costs $35 per month. Each additional child from the same family costs
$30 per month. At the "Teacher's Aide" level, the first child is $15; additional children are $10. Likewise, if you mix levels within the same family, the first child is
always full price, each additional child receives the $5 discount, regardless of level.
