CKS Roars!

Typically when we think about the roar of a lion, we think of the sound produced by its voice. One other way we would like our students to think about their roar and voice is in their writing.

CKS has a long tradition of producing students who are strong writers, so it shouldn't come as a surprise that one of our school-wide projects this year is the implementation of a new writing program we call CKS Lions Roar.  This standards-based curriculum provides a strong, age-appropriate foundation on which to build each year and gives us an opportunity to prepare all of our students for continued success with the rigor and challenge of timed-writing tasks.

Why an emphasis on writing?  Here are three main reasons:

1. Preparation for High School--8th grade students wishing to go to area private schools or public magnet or IB schools must submit a writing sample as part of the admissions process.
2. Preparation for the SAT and ACT--You can see a sample SAT prompt here and a sample ACT prompt here. These sample prompts indicate the type of writing expected of college students, hence their inclusion on these college readiness exams--a type of writing that focuses on students compiling and evaluating information on a topic, forming their own ideas, and being able to articulate those ideas to others.
3. Preparation for College--Most universities require an essay to be submitted as part of the application process. Other universities strongly encourage it--which we all know really means "if you want to be accepted you better submit it." An example of the writing prompts for UF can be found here.

I know high school and college may seem like a long way off, especially for students like the writer pictured here:

Writing, though, like any skill, should start with an early foundation and be built upon with continued practice. Plus, if you ask Mrs. Fogarty in KB, everything worth learning is learned in kindergarten anyway!

   

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