The Primary course deals with basic writing needs so that children are given a strong base and clear ideas on the genres, requirements of writing, and tips on how to achieve better writing. A teacher who is well-equipped with the ‘what’ and ‘how tos’ can navigate the problems in a class (which in itself is differentiated in terms of ability and needs) with efficiency and confidence.
Here is a brief outline of the 6 papers for the Primary levels
1. Session 1. Barebones and Tools of Writing. This essentially deals with how to teach basic ideation with fundamental approaches and examples. The accent is on clean grammatical construction, and vocabulary building from oral to written language which is the big challenge at this stage. Motivators and prompts will be discussed.
2. Session 2. Description. This will look at the use of adjectives, senses, similes in description and how to use clothes, accessories and mannerisms to help create deeper descriptions of people, places, objects and events.
3. Session 3. Writing Fiction. This will look at the basics of the 5 elements of the personal, adventure, and science fiction stories. We will look at how to use the elements succinctly to avoid rambling and address lack of coherence. The grammar used in the story telling will be an important aspect.
4. Session 4. Writing Non-Fiction. Here we learn how to introduce the succinct genres of Discussion, Debate, Reports and Persuasion and frequent them to create preparation for the secondary years. How to teach the basics, create enjoyable and practical tasks, and deliver the requirements of each in a palatable way will be the focal points here.
5. Section 5. Forms of Writing. In this session we will learn how to teach the language and techniques required for the forms of the friendly letter, autobiography, advertisements and posters using authentic tools and techniques. Use of excellent topics help.
6. Section 6. Error correction and Evaluation. Here we learn how to use demonstration to teach and remedy common errors. How to construct success criteria for tasks set for students. How much to correct, and how to effectively remediate. How to start a culture of self-correction. Importance of the use of language of encouragement in reporting.