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The Elegant Essay Jr. Edition Boot Camp: Write the Right Way

In this 2-week Boot Camp younger students will learn the art of the basic essay, enhanced by description and narration, for a lifetime of writing confidence and skill. ESL friendly, CEFR level C1, C2 (Advanced). #academic
Cindy Frank
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5.0
Number of reviews:
(679)
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What's included

6 live meetings
5 hrs 30 mins in-class hours
Assignments
1-2 hours per week. All student work will be formally assessed with written comments for maximum understanding and growth. Student work will always be returned in a timely manner prior to the next class so students will be able to absorb information to benefit their work and progress on the upcoming assignments.
Assessment
A full assessment of each learner will be provided at the end of the class. If needed, a letter grade can be given as well.

Class Experience

US Grade 5 - 8
Intermediate Level
Kindly note:
This is an ESL friendly class, CEFR  level — C1, C2 (Advanced)
Please feel free to write me via Outschool email with questions.
***
THIS BOOT CAMP CLASS HAS EXACTLY THE SAME CONTENT AS THE WEEKLY VERSION 
***
Essay writing is the backbone of all great writing, the path to becoming a writer of confidence and skill.

The Elegant Essay Jr. Edition Boot Camp aims to introduce advanced younger learners to the descriptive and narrative essays, to give them the opportunity to be the writers they are meant to be.  In this 6 week class, one session per week, we will master both the descriptive and the narrative essay forms.  

The Elegant Essay Jr. is adapted from my own The Elegant Essay class, created specially for younger learners.  The class will cover the basic essay writing forms and move to enhance learner writing through a thorough understanding of descriptive and narrative techniques. 

The Elegant Essay Jr Edition  is limited to 6 learners to maximize attention that each learner receives in the classroom. Classes will involve both lecture and interactive student response to illustrative descriptive and narrative essays.  Outside assignments will be given so each learner will also receive personal attention to their specific writing needs.  Detailed responses to written assignments will be sent individually to learners after each session. 

The essay is the  backbone of all persuasive writing — from the elementary school  book report to the college essay to the flap copy on published books. This is the  essential core skill of superb communication, one of the key building blocks of ongoing success. 

Learning to think and write well through the crafting of the essay  is the cornerstone as one moves through middle school, high school and college— for Speech and Debate,  for job interviews, and for the workplace.

The Elegant Essay Jr Edition will teach each learner not just how to write well for a single essay, but how to write well for a lifetime.  Once learned, this essential skill belongs to the learner for always. 

Moreover, I will show learners how to tap into and expand on the inner spark that belongs to each and every writer, to transform writing beyond the merely competent into the memorable and never to be forgotten.

It time to learn to delight, to surprise, to persuade, and above all to communicate. It’s time for every writer to become the writer they are meant to be. In short,  It is time to write. 

***

This class will do the following:

We will examine the links between reading well and writing well, work with both reading and writing exercises to maximize comfort and skill level. There will be writing assignments both long and short all of which will work towards the weekly goal of crafting essays of style and elegance.

Students will read an essays per week which we will analyze together in class. Students will also write a complete essay per week and receive immediate personalized feedback on their work sent to them individually,

Classes will focus on discussion and analysis of assigned essays: student work will be assessed via personal communication between teacher and learner. 

***

Essays for use in this class include: 

-Good Readers and Good Writers by Vladmir Nabokov
-The Miss Dennis School of Writing by Alice Steinback (Descriptive)
-Joyus Volodoras by Brian Doyle (Descriptive)
-In Case You Ever Want to Go Home Again by Barbara Kingsolver (Narrative)
--Why I Went to the Woods by Henry David Thoreau (Narrative)
--A Thing Shared by MFK Fisher (Descriptive and Narrative)

***

Assignments will include:

--vocabulary exercises
--grammar exercises
--creative writing exercises
--essay writing assignments with prompts

Learning Goals

*To gain confidence in both creativity and organization for the essay format 
*Understand all the basic ideas of communication through essay
* To communicate effectively,  think adroitly and respond fluently in writing
* Improve memory retention and organizational skills in crafting essays
* Expand vocabulary and word usage and phrasing
learning goal

Syllabus

6 Lessons
over 2 Weeks
Lesson 1:
Reading Like a Writer
 Strategies for reading and an introduction to descriptive writing. 
55 mins online live lesson
Lesson 2:
Getting Ready to Write
 Explaination of the Five Paragraph Essay and the Thesis. Understanding descriptive writing through Alice Steinbach's The Miss Dennis School of Writing. 
55 mins online live lesson
Lesson 3:
Writing, Revising, Editing
 Learning to brainstorm an essay, how to revise, edit, and proofread with with skill, the importance of Hooks in writing, understanding descriptive writing through Brian Doyle's Joyas Volodoras. 
55 mins online live lesson
Lesson 4:
Introduction of the Narrative Essay
 Explaination of how to master narratives in essay writing, understanding narrative writing through Barbara Kingsolver's In Case You Ever Want to Go Home Again. 
55 mins online live lesson

Other Details

External Resources
Learners will not need to use any apps or websites beyond the standard Outschool tools.
Sources
The Norton Sampler: Short Essays for Composition by Thomas Cooley 8th Edition One Hundred Great Essays ed by Robert DiYanni Dreyer's English by Benjamin Dreyer Sentence Composing for College by Don Killgallon Sentence Composing for High School by Don Killgallon THESE BOOKS DO NOT NEED TO BE PURCHASED FOR CLASS.
Joined July, 2020
5.0
679reviews
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Teacher expertise and credentials
Bachelor's Degree from The University of Michigan, 1982 Honors in The History of Art, Does not Expire
In my longtime work as both tutor and teacher of both middle and high school students, and as a former book publishing professional, I  have guided writers of all ages and abilities  to give each communicator the skills to think deeply, to cultivate an individual voice and style, and ultimately to discover true confidence to write well now and for always. 

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Live Group Course
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$180

for 6 classes

3x per week, 2 weeks
55 min
Live video meetings
Ages: 9-12
2-6 learners per class

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