Jump In: Middle School Composition

Name: Jump In: Middle School Composition
Brand: Writing with Sharon Watson

by Writing with Sharon Watson

ElaGrades 6–8

Jump In: Middle School Composition: Independent Writing Skills Workbook

Jump In is a Christian-oriented writing curriculum for grades 6-8 that teaches composition skills through 98 daily lessons covering everything from paragraph writing to research papers. Designed for independent student work with teacher guidance, it uses a workbook format with bite-sized lessons and includes daily writing prompts.

Best for

Homeschooling families or teachers seeking a comprehensive, independent writing curriculum for middle school students, particularly those comfortable with Christian content references

Evaluation Criteria

3 strengths · 2 neutral · 4 insufficient evidence

Teacher TrainingStrength

The curriculum provides substantial teacher support with evaluation guidance and flexible implementation options.

117-page teacher's guide includes detailed grading grids, evaluation examples, tips for helping struggling students, and three different pacing options (one-, two-, or three-year plans)

Direct InstructionStrength

The curriculum uses explicit instruction with clear examples and step-by-step skill development.

Watson uses direct teaching methods with examples, bite-sized chunks, activities interspersed throughout instruction, and specific checklists for each assignment type

Writing InstructionStrength

The curriculum provides comprehensive, structured writing instruction across multiple genres and includes explicit skill-building.

Covers 13 chapters with 98 lessons teaching pre-writing, paragraph writing, opinion writing, persuasive writing, research reports, and includes detailed grading grids and checklists for self-evaluation

Knowledge RichNeutral

The curriculum appears to focus on writing skills rather than systematically building domain knowledge across subjects.

Assignments include biographies, newspaper articles, and research reports, but the emphasis is on writing techniques rather than content knowledge building

Retrieval PracticeNeutral

The curriculum includes some review through daily writing practice but limited evidence of systematic retrieval practice.

Includes daily '10-Minute Writing Plunges' and students select their favorite weekly piece to polish, providing some practice but not specifically designed as retrieval practice

Text ComplexityInsufficient Evidence

The curriculum does not focus on reading complex texts as it is primarily a composition course.

While students write book reports and responses, the curriculum is designed for writing instruction rather than reading challenging texts

Systematic PhonicsInsufficient Evidence

This middle school composition curriculum does not include phonics instruction.

The curriculum is designed for grades 6-8 and focuses on composition skills; phonics is not mentioned as the target age group is beyond early reading instruction

Vocabulary BuildingInsufficient Evidence

The curriculum does not appear to explicitly focus on vocabulary instruction.

The review mentions writing skills, grammar, and mechanics but does not specifically reference vocabulary building components

Whole Books Vs ExcerptsInsufficient Evidence

This curriculum focuses on writing instruction rather than reading whole books or excerpts.

The curriculum covers writing assignments like book reports and responses, but the primary focus is composition skills rather than reading complete texts

Sources: cathyduffyreviews.com