Before your child or teen (elementary, middle, or high school student) enrolls in my writing classes, they should complete a writing assessment with me so that I can identify the holes in their writing foundation and, in turn, create a customized writing program for them and have a targeted approach with their writing instruction.

Writing assessment details:

During my meeting with your child or teen, I will assess their spelling skills (elementary and middle school students) and observe them writing a paper.

After the meeting, I will spend approximately 20 minutes reviewing their completed editing document(s) so that I can assess their understanding of grammar and level them for editing work.

The writing assessment also includes a ten-minute parent phone call the day after the student meeting so that I can discuss my observations and initial writing instruction recommendations with you.

What’s included:

– 30-minute student meeting

– 20 minutes of writing assessment document review (completed after the student meeting)

– Written initial writing instruction recommendations

– 10-minute parent phone call

Writing assessments start at just $59!

Spelling is the foundation of writing—if your son or daughter doesn’t have strong spelling skills, they cannot have strong writing skills. My spelling course will fill in holes in that foundation, strengthening it so that it can be built upon.

Course details:

After I determine which high-frequency words your child or teen needs to learn, I will use those words to teach them how to spell all other English words. Phonics and word analysis will be discussed during this process.

Expected outcomes:

By the end of this spelling course, your son or daughter will understand the importance of spelling words phonetically and looking at them analytically. They also will have mastered how to spell the 1,200 words used most frequently in writing!

What’s included:

– Weekly 25-minute private goal-focused online classes

– 15 minutes of weekly spelling test review and document updating (completed after each class)

– Individualized spelling instruction

– Assessments to track your child’s or teen’s progress

– Purposeful, individualized homework

– 10-minute parent check-in phone call with me every trimester

Weekly tuition: $60

To be able to write logical and meaningful sentences consistently, your son or daughter must have a solid grammar foundation. My 6-month grammar course will build that foundation by establishing a comprehensive understanding of sentence structure and the following parts of speech: nouns, pronouns, adjectives, verbs, adverbs, and prepositions.

Course details:

During each class, I will introduce new grammar rules to your child or teen; however, before I do, I will conduct an oral review of recently taught ones so that I can assess student understanding of them. Between classes, your child or teen will study and apply the newly learned grammar rules.

Expected outcomes:

Upon finishing this 6-month grammar course, your son or daughter will be able to identify, write, and correctly punctuate simple, compound, and complex sentences; they will also be able to identify nouns, pronouns, adjectives, verbs, adverbs, and prepositions in sentences and understand those words’ roles in the sentences.

What’s included:

– Weekly 25-minute small group (or private) goal-focused online classes

– Curricular materials

– Oral and written assessments to track your child’s or teen’s progress

– Purposeful homework

– 10-minute parent check-in phone call with me every trimester

Weekly tuition: starts at $30

Your son or daughter must be able to properly edit their own writing so that they don’t assign that job to their readers. My editing courses will teach them how to do that using a systematic approach.

Course details:

After I determine your child’s or teen’s editing level and get them up and running with editing, they will edit a 2-page document between classes, and their work (e.g., standard proofreading marks, capitalization and punctuation rules, etc.) will be reviewed and discussed during their upcoming class.

Expected outcomes:

Upon completing my Editing II course, your son or daughter will be able to independently make editing corrections based on rules and explain those rules to other people; they will also be able to consistently edit Editing II two-page documents with an approximately 95% accuracy rate.

What’s included:

– Weekly 25-minute small group (or private) goal-focused online classes

– Curricular materials

– Oral and written assessments to track your child’s or teen’s progress

– Purposeful homework

– 10-minute parent check-in phone call with me every trimester

Weekly tuition: starts at $30

Vocabulary is a key component of writing. It is important for your son or daughter to have knowledge of inspiring, powerful words and be able to use them properly. My Advanced Vocabulary course will introduce your preteen or teen to the study of words, teach them how to use new words properly in their speech and writing, and create less of a size difference between their passive vocabulary (the words they “understand”) and active vocabulary (the words they use), helping them take their writing to the next level.

Course details:

During the 1st week of each month, your preteen or teen will learn 10 words (i.e., spelling, pronunciation, part of speech, definition, usage, etc.). For the last 3 or 4 weeks of every month, they will participate in a fun, interactive activity that will help them learn the words introduced at the beginning of the month and assess their progress in learning them.

Expected outcomes:

As a result of taking this course, your son or daughter will understand the importance of using a dictionary—a reputable one—when writing. They also will know how to use one properly, ensuring they, in turn, use words properly. In addition, they will integrate more advanced words into their speech and writing!

What’s included:

– Curricular materials

– Purposeful homework

– Assessments to track your preteen’s or teen’s progress

Monthly tuition: starts at $50

My Writing Critique course will provide an invaluable opportunity for your son or daughter to write regularly. It will keep them working on one step of the writing process (i.e., prewriting, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing) at all times, expose them to other students’ writing ideas, and provide them with goal-oriented positive and constructive feedback during the classes.

Course details:

Your preteen or teen will work on writing a nonfiction paper between classes. During the weekly classes, their work will be critiqued and discussed. They will leave each class with feedback regarding what they did well when writing and what they need to improve upon. This process will continue weekly until they are ready to start a new paper.

Expected outcomes:

After taking my writing courses, your son or daughter will understand how to choose the “right” writing topic and how to progress through the different steps in the writing process: prewriting, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing. In addition, they will independently be able to complete a prewriting document; create and format a Google Drive document; use a polished prewriting document to draft a paper; and revise their writing, taking into account others’ feedback. They also will be able to use the Suggesting feature in Drive to critique writing.

What’s included:

– 85-minute small group (2–6 students) goal-focused online classes

– Purposeful homework

– 10-minute parent check-in phone call with me every trimester

– *10 minutes of weekly Revision Review (detailed written feedback provided by me between classes) *(added upon request)

Weekly tuition: starts at $75

My private paragraph and essay writing classes are ideal for elementary and middle school students who need one-on-one writing instruction before enrolling in a Writing Critique class or have a schedule conflict that temporarily prevents them from attending a Writing Critique class. They are also ideal for busy 9th graders.

Course details:

In these classes, your child or teen will learn how to choose the “right” topic to write about and how to properly structure and organize, draft, revise, and edit a paragraph and/or essay. They will meet with me privately for 25 minutes once a week to discuss their current nonfiction writing piece. During the weekly classes, I will provide them with written and verbal feedback on their homework revisions. I will also provide them with instructions for their next round of revisions. This process will continue weekly until your child or teen is ready to start a new paper.

Expected outcomes:

After taking my private writing classes, your son or daughter will understand how to choose the “right” writing topic and how to progress through the different steps in the writing process: prewriting, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing. In addition, they will independently be able to complete a prewriting document; create and format a Google Drive document; use a polished prewriting document to draft a paper; and revise their writing, taking into account others’ feedback. They also will be able to use the Suggesting feature in Drive when revising their writing.

What’s included:

– *Weekly 25-minute private goal-focused online classes

– Purposeful homework

– 10-minute parent check-in phone call with me every trimester

– *10 minutes of weekly Revision Review (detailed written feedback provided by me between classes) *(added upon request)

Weekly tuition: starts at $60

Revision Review is an add-on service for my Writing Critique and private paragraph and essay writing classes. It will help your son or daughter complete papers for their writing classes twice as fast because they will receive teacher feedback on their prewriting or draft revisions twice a week instead of just once a week.

Revision Review details:

Your preteen or teen will submit their 1st round of weekly revisions to me by the end of Sundays. Then on Mondays, I will provide them with written feedback on those revisions so that they can complete a 2nd round of weekly revisions before their next writing class.

Expected outcomes:

Your son or daughter will understand the importance of completing multiple rounds of writing revisions, and not at the last minute.

What’s included:

- 10 minutes of weekly written feedback.

Weekly tuition: $20

Writing is an invaluable skill, especially in today’s world where the predominant means of communication is written. For your son or daughter to have strong writing skills in college and the work world, it is essential that the holes in their writing foundation be identified and properly filled in by the end of high school, which may mean your teen needs to devote extra time during the summer to learning how to write.

Program details:

I will create an individualized summer intensive writing program for your middle schooler or high schooler based off of their writing assessment results and/or most recent work in classes with me. The program will consist of a combination of the following instruction depending on your teen’s personal needs: spelling, grammar, editing, advanced vocabulary, and/or paragraph and essay writing. Then, I will begin meeting with your teen 1–3 times a week throughout the summer (June–August) for a minimum of 75 minutes a week.

What’s included:

– 75+ minutes of weekly small group and/or private goal-focused online classes

– Curricular materials

– Oral and written assessments to track your teen’s progress

– Purposeful homework

–10 minutes of written writing revision feedback provided by me between classes (if enrolled in Revision Review)

– A 10-minute parent check-in phone call with me

Weekly tuition: starts at $120

Read My Elementary Students’ Writing

Read My Middle School & High School Students’ Writing