Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I spent a year homeschooling a gifted 5th grader- there are a lot of higher level short stories online. Langston Hughes "Yes Ma'am" is my favorite for a 6th grader, and I also like "The Scholarship Jacket." Really great discussion points in both of these stories. "Eleven" is another good story.
You might consider ordering the past Wordmasters tests. That's an amazing mental exercise. Newsela for both kids- it's free and you can change the lexile levels for age.
You asked about writing prompts- if it's simply creative writing prompt there are many free lists.

Thank you - these are excellent suggestions. I am ok with creative writing and have found lots of ideas for that online. I think it's easier said than done to determine what will be the appropriate level of challenge. Many of the prompts I fond for creative writing look like a really easy way out for my older one....My bet is that she could use more practice with persuasive writing and also what you describe where you have to write about a passage. Thanks!!

NP here. This isn't for prompts at home but FYI: The Northern Virginia Writers Project's Student Summer Institute based at GMU has summer day camps for kids starting I think around fourth grade and possibly younger. Camps go up to rising seniors. There may even be space in this summer's sessions if they have one in later July (though registration was on the spring). My DD did these camps for several summers and loved them. Looks like one begins on July 10--if your kid would like it, contact them in case they're not full. I found them very easy to work with and if they still have space they might just admit new kids. Can't hurt to ask.

The NVWP young writers program also hosts one-day Saturday writing workshops for kids and teens throughout the school year. You can do just one or several.

Anonymous wrote:I spent a year homeschooling a gifted 5th grader- there are a lot of higher level short stories online. Langston Hughes "Yes Ma'am" is my favorite for a 6th grader, and I also like "The Scholarship Jacket." Really great discussion points in both of these stories. "Eleven" is another good story.
You might consider ordering the past Wordmasters tests. That's an amazing mental exercise. Newsela for both kids- it's free and you can change the lexile levels for age.
You asked about writing prompts- if it's simply creative writing prompt there are many free lists.

Thank you - these are excellent suggestions. I am ok with creative writing and have found lots of ideas for that online. I think it's easier said than done to determine what will be the appropriate level of challenge. Many of the prompts I fond for creative writing look like a really easy way out for my older one....My bet is that she could use more practice with persuasive writing and also what you describe where you have to write about a passage. Thanks!!

Have them read and respond to newspaper articles.

Just google, there are literally dozens of lists of 100+ ideas by grade.

I spent a year homeschooling a gifted 5th grader- there are a lot of higher level short stories online. Langston Hughes "Yes Ma'am" is my favorite for a 6th grader, and I also like "The Scholarship Jacket." Really great discussion points in both of these stories. "Eleven" is another good story.
You might consider ordering the past Wordmasters tests. That's an amazing mental exercise. Newsela for both kids- it's free and you can change the lexile levels for age.
You asked about writing prompts- if it's simply creative writing prompt there are many free lists.

There’s plenty of prompts on Pinterest. You can also buy prompts on teachers Pay Teachers.

I don't homeschool, but have a schedule for the summer that requires my kids to write a page per day in a journal. I'm looking for some writing prompts that are challenging and include things like persuasive writing. My 6th grade daughter is in to Hamilton, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings...3rd grade son is interested in Star Wars and Legos. Anyone have suggestions? Thank you!!