At Culver School, we set high standards for student academic growth — especially in the core areas of reading, writing and math.
This year, a key academic goal is to build students’ writing endurance. Rather than writing short pieces on different topics, many times a day or month, students are going deeper on fewer pieces. They draft, read and revise until they have a strong final product.
Across all grade levels, teachers have emphasized writing stamina and methods for students to tell their audiences more. For example, if a student loves music, soccer and traveling, we encourage that student to choose one and go deeper, describing all the senses that accompany that passion. If the student writes about music, they may describe what they hear, feel, touch and see while listening to music. We ask students to tell us more about “when” and “where.” They can employ specific details, comparisons, examples and definitions. Students experiment with vocabulary and sentence structure as they expand their writing.
Culver’s Writing Committee, consisting of staff representing every grade, meets monthly to discuss schoolwide writing goals and ways to encourage student writers while pushing them to become better and feel more confident. “The Culver staff works very hard to bring out the very best writer in each child,” said Culver Principal Erica Smolinski. “It is very encouraging to see our students putting so much effort into their writing.”
Writing is a lifelong skill, and writers are never done honing it. Even accomplished authors, when they finish a novel, can always find ways to improve. Through redrafting and really thinking about their pieces, students are becoming better writers.
Ask your child to see a recent writing sample. We are proud of our writers, and we see their growth each day they work with the written word.
