For any child, gaining the ability to express his thoughts in writing is a huge step on the path to becoming an adult. The Heron Basics Lower School Writing Program (for six- to nine-year-olds) teaches a child the fundamentals of writing. Its format is a daily writing period made up of three tightly interwoven “legs”: a handwriting leg (in which a child learns, drills and uses good penmanship), a writing leg (in which he does a lot of written expression) and a spelling leg (in which he learns basic spelling facts and words useful to his writing). First he tackles the basics of letter formation. As soon as he has learned this, he is afforded many opportunities for written expression. Notes, lists, letters, stories, poems, plays, books—these are what writing is really for, and further instruction in handwriting, spelling, punctuation and sentence structure are all done in the context of such “real” writing.
By the end of the program a student has a strong interest in writing. He can, with little difficulty, clearly express his own thoughts and ideas using good handwriting, spelling, simple punctuation and correct sentences.