Our Curriculum:

From first phrases to essays with depth

June Writers Academy’s curriculum is a bridge between basic physical writing skills and the higher-level analysis skills essential for learning sophisticated ideas and content. We teach the mechanics of writing, but take students much deeper. We teach kids why we use specific writing conventions and how to ground their writing in informed, complex arguments. In addition to fiction and poetry writing, children learn higher-level critical reading, how to reason from evidence, find the connections within ideas, and adapt their writing to different audiences—skills normally not taught until high school or college—even in our earliest levels. And we have fun!

Grammar &
Punctuation

Writing
Arguments,
Fiction &
Poetry

Critical
Reading

Level

Lessons

1: Complex Sentences

Consistently write complex and compelling sentences with intellectual and physical ease & master the core elements of fiction story writing

Sample Practice: Level 1

    • Writing phrases

    • Word spacing

    • Line spacing

    • Paragraph spacing

    • Punctuation spacing

    • Indentation

    • Audience

    • Brainstorming

    • Editing spacing

    • Writing phrases & sentences

    • Periods

    • Question marks

    • Exclamation points

    • Ending punctuation around parentheses

    • Ending punctuation around quotation marks

    • Multiple ending punctuation marks

    • Emoji placement (& reduction)

    • Editing ending punctuation

    • Memes

    • Audience

    • Writing sentences

    • Subjects

    • Predicates

    • Verbs

    • Nouns

    • Pronouns

    • Sentences

    • Declarative sentences

    • Interrogative sentences

    • Imperative sentences

    • Exclamatory sentences

    • Subject-verb agreement

    • Subject pronouns

    • Audience

    • Writing sentences

    • Capitalization

    • Upper case

    • Lower case

    • Mixed case

    • Common nouns

    • Proper nouns

    • Adjectives

    • Adverbs

    • Common adjectives

    • Proper adjectives

    • Editing capitalization

    • Audience

    • Critical reading

    • Story writing

    • Poetry

    • Writing poetry

    • Greek & Latin roots

    • Prefixes

    • Suffixes

    • Spelling

    • Formality

    • Dialect

    • Word sense

    • Haiku

    • Syllables

    • Audience

    • Writing sentences

    • Spelling

    • Greek & Latin word roots

    • Germanic word roots

    • Phonemes

    • Consonant

    • Grapheme

    • International Phonetic Alphabet

    • History of the English language

    • Story writing

    • Main characters

    • Main villains

    • Conflict

    • Editing spelling

    • Audience

    • Editing sentences

    • Editing mechanics process

    • Editing content process

    • Editing spacing

    • Editing punctuation

    • Editing capitalization

    • Editing grammar

    • Editing meaning

    • Editing spelling

    • Greek & Latin roots

    • Writing numbers

    • Writing sentences

    • Plurals

    • Possessives

    • Apostrophes

    • Nouns

    • Common nouns

    • Proper nouns

    • Subject pronouns

    • Object pronouns

    • Possessive adjectives

    • Possessive pronouns

    • Editing plurals and possessives

    • Critical reading

    • Poetry

    • Main characters

    • Main villains

    • Conflict

    • Writing sentences

    • Contractions

    • Formality

    • Apostrophes

    • Dialect

    • Homophones

    • Writing dialogue

    • Dialogue tags

    • Nesting quotation marks

    • History of English language

    • Editing contractions

    • Audience

    • Critical reading

    • Main character

    • Main villain

    • Conflict

    • Voice

    • Writing complex sentences

    • Compound predicates

    • Commas

    • Clauses

    • Dependent clauses

    • Independent clauses

    • Conjunctions

    • Appositives

    • Restrictive vs. nonrestrictive appositives

    • Introductory words & phrases

    • Commas and addresses

    • Direct address

    • Commas and dates

    • Commas and lists

    • Oxford commas

    • Editing commas

    • Dialogue tags and commas

    • Em dashes

    • Parentheses

    • Story setting

    • Writing dialogue

    • Writing poetry

    • Portmanteau

    • Critical reading

2: Argument Foundations

Consistently write compelling, three-layer mini-essay arguments and narratives with intellectual and physical ease

Sample Practice: Level 2

Sample Practice: Spelling

    • Multi-sentence writing

    • Lists

    • Brainstorming approaches

    • Audience

    • Formatting

    • Metaphor

    • Simile

    • Multi-sentence writing

    • Themes

    • Why Tree analysis (internal Socratic reasoning)

    • Critical reading

    • Argument structure

    • Argument sentences

    • Conclusions

    • Subclaims

    • Supporting details

    • Deep connections between subclaims

    • Idea connections

    • Outlining

    • Drafting arguments

    • Paragraphs

    • Mini-essays

    • Outlining

    • Bubble webs

    • Argument organization

    • Idea connection

    • Writing poetry

    • Greek & Latin roots

    • Prefixes

    • Suffixes

    • Spelling

    • Formality

    • Dialect

    • Word sense

    • Haiku

    • Syllables

    • Audience

    • Writing fiction stories

    • Spelling

    • Greek & Latin word roots

    • Germanic word roots

    • Phonemes

    • History of the English language

    • Fiction plot arcs

    • Character development

    • Main character

    • Villain

    • Opening image

    • Catalyst

    • Paragraphs

    • Midpoint

    • Finale

    • Audience

    • Editing paragraphs

    • Editing mechanics process

    • Editing content process

    • Editing spacing

    • Editing punctuation

    • Editing capitalization

    • Editing grammar

    • Editing meaning

    • Editing spelling

    • Greek & Latin roots

    • Writing paragraphs

    • Narrative paragraphs

    • Organizing arguments multiple ways

    • Chronology

    • Connecting ideas

    • Connecting words and phrases

    • Punctuating clock & date time

    • Audience

    • Writing paragraphs

    • Persuasive writing

    • Classical tools of rhetoric

    • Ethos

    • Logos

    • Pathos

    • Kairos

    • Genre

    • Incorporating quotes

    • Audience

    • Writing paragraphs

    • Genre

    • Style

    • Word choice

    • Punctuation and structure of sentences and paragraphs

    • Formatting

    • Content and tone

    • Similes

    • Metaphors

    • Audience

3: Texts Under Scrutiny

Consistently write compelling and fully-reasoned essays based on a deep critical reading of a text

Sample Practice: Level 3

Sample Practice: Roots

    • Writing paragraphs

    • Audience

    • Using the main tools of classical rhetoric (ethos, logos, pathos, kairos) to connect with your audience

    • Making logic equations

    • Mapping pathos

    • Choosing ethos sources wisely

    • Selecting and synthesizing the most effective tools of rhetoric to connect with your audience

    • Writing multi-paragraph analytical texts

    • Critical reading

    • Audience

    • Analyzing the main classical tools of rhetoric (ethos, logos, pathos & kairos) in a text

    • Common logical fallacies

    • Incorporating quotes

    • Analyzing texts through writing

    • Writing essays

    • Expository essays

    • Persuasive essays

    • Outlines

    • Critical reading

    • Classical tools of rhetoric: ethos, logos, pathos & kairos

    • Analyzing texts through writing

    • Critical reading

    • Elementary reading

    • Inspectional reading

    • Analytical reading

    • Comparative reading

    • Assumptions

    • Coming to terms

    • Special words

    • Identifying the conversation

    • Genre

    • Writing poetry

    • Greek & Latin roots

    • Prefixes

    • Suffixes

    • Spelling

    • Formality

    • Dialect

    • Word sense

    • Sonnets

    • Critical reading

    • Audience

    • Writing narratives

    • Spelling

    • Greek & Latin word roots

    • Germanic word roots

    • Phonemes

    • History of the English language

    • Fiction plot arcs

    • Character development

    • Main character

    • Villain

    • Opening image

    • Catalyst

    • Paragraphs

    • Midpoint

    • Finale

    • Audience

    • Editing multi-paragraph texts

    • Editing mechanics process

    • Editing content process

    • Spotting logical fallacies

    • Spotting logical leaps

    • Editing spacing

    • Editing punctuation

    • Editing capitalization

    • Editing grammar

    • Editing meaning

    • Editing spelling

    • Greek & Latin roots

    • The Believing Game

    • Analytical reading

    • Summarizing

    • The rhetorical role of a section of text (fine grain)

    • Tools of rhetoric (ethos, logos, pathos & kairos)

    • Argument

    • Audience

    • Straw men vs. steel men

    • The Doubting Game

    • Analytical reading

    • Summarizing

    • The rhetorical role of a section of text (fine grain)

    • Tools of rhetoric (ethos, logos, pathos & kairos)

    • Argument

    • Audience

    • Logical fallacies

    • Logical implications of claims

    • Theories of facts

    • Writing essays

    • Forming an informed opinion

    • Valid vs. sound argument

    • Conversation

    • Debate

    • The Believing & Doubting Games

    • Healthy doubt

    • Logical fallacies

    • Logical extensions

4: Grammar & Punctuation for Life

Consistently use grammar choices, punctuation, and rhetorical tools to communicate subtle meaning in advanced analytical essays and fiction writing

Sample Practice: Level 4

    • Writing multi-paragraph texts

    • Prescriptive versus descriptive grammar

    • Word classes

    • Phrase classes

    • Sentence role of a word/phrase

    • Sentence order

    • Direct objects

    • Indirect objects

    • Preposition phrases

    • Subject pronouns

    • Object pronouns

    • Active voice

    • Passive voice

    • Auxiliary verbs

    • Modal auxiliary verbs

    • Prepositions

    • Antecedents

    • Antecedent-pronoun agreement

    • Collective nouns

    • Analytical writing

    • Personal writing

    • Fiction writing

    • Writing short stories

    • Commas

    • Restrictive vs. nonrestrictive appositives

    • Compound predicates

    • Interdependent clauses

    • Run-on sentences

    • Sentence adverbs

    • Coordinate vs. non-coordinate adjectives

    • Dialogue commas

    • Interrupters

    • Run-on sentences

    • Fused sentences

    • Comma splices

    • Polysyndeton

    • Sentence adverbs

    • Transitional adverbs

    • Coordinate adjectives

    • Non-coordinate adjectives

    • Morphology

    • Direct address commas

    • Dialogue tags

    • Critical reading

    • Creative writing

    • Verb tense

    • Simple verb tenses

    • Perfect verb tenses

    • Continuous verb tenses

    • Perfect continuous verb tenses

    • Dangling participles

    • The subjunctive

    • The conditional

    • Negatives

    • Fluff statements

    • Editing for meaning

    • Audience

    • Grammatical moods

    • Point of view

    • Allegory

    • Writing plays

    • Writing speeches

    • Word valence

    • Bolding

    • Italics

    • Underlining

    • All caps

    • Emoji

    • Font

    • Literary devices

    • Euphemisms

    • Pathos-based logical fallacies

    • Alliteration

    • Allusion

    • Anaphora

    • Assonance

    • Conflict

    • Epiphany

    • Imagery

    • Metaphor

    • Onomatopoeia

    • Sibilance

    • Simile

    • Caricature

    • Hyperbole

    • Lampoon

    • Irony

    • Parody

    • Satire

    • Dogmatism

    • Faulty analogies

    • Scare tactics

    • Sentimental appeals

    • Slippery slopes

    • Civics

    • Assumptions

    • Writing advertisements

    • Writing rebuttals

    • Audience

    • Critical reading

    • Writing fiction

    • Punctuation valence

    • Hyphens

    • En dashes

    • Em dashes

    • Parentheses

    • Ellipses

    • Soft hyphens

    • Hard hyphens

    • Compound adjectives

    • Dialogue

    • Omissions

    • Critical reading

    • Writing poetry

    • Greek & Latin roots

    • Prefixes

    • Suffixes

    • Vocabulary

    • Odes

    • Literary techniques

    • Apostrophe

    • Analytical writing

    • Reading philosophical texts

    • Word sense

    • Audience

    • Critical reading

    • Writing short stories

    • Spelling

    • Vocabulary

    • Greek & Latin word roots

    • Germanic word roots

    • British vs. American spelling

    • Phonemes

    • History of the English language

    • Analogies

    • Extended metaphor

    • Argument analysis

    • Rhetorical analysis

    • Synthesis

    • Play writing

    • Critical reading

    • Writing pitch-perfect sentences

    • Choosing punctuation with care

    • Dashes

    • Ellipses

    • Parentheses

    • Commas

    • Ending punctuation

    • Grammar

    • Punctuation and meaning

    • Stronger and weaker punctuation marks

    • Rooting punctuation in the real world

    • Punctuation as metaphor

    • Extended metaphor

    • Writing essays

    • Argument analysis

    • Rhetorical strategy

    • Reading contracts

    • Critical reading

    • Writing legal documents

    • Colons

    • Semicolons

    • Multiple punctuation

    • Single vs. double quotation marks

    • Punctuation as metaphor

    • Audience

    • Critical reading

    • Editing grammar and mechanics

    • Advanced punctuation

    • Editing argument

    • Editing marks

5: Advanced Solo Editing

Consistently use a deep argument editing, line editing, and style editing process on your own essays and be able to read and write anything at a high level

Sample Practice: Level 5

    • Playing the Believing Game on your own essays

    • Audience

    • Rhetorical tools

    • Summary

    • Rhetorical roles

    • Changing your mind

    • Reading science

    • Critical reading

    • Playing the Believing Game on your own essays

    • Summaries

    • Rhetorical roles

    • Steelmen

    • Strawmen

    • Analyzing statistics

    • Coming to terms

    • Philosophical texts

    • Comparative reading of texts

    • Re-writing essays

    • Playing the Doubting Game on your own essays

    • Doubting Game

    • Logical fallacies

    • Rhetorical weaknesses

    • Informed opinion

    • Deep content editing

    • Analyzing sources

    • Reading statistics

    • Audience

    • Writing plays

    • Comparative reading

    • Re-writing essays

    • Playing the Doubting Game on your own essays

    • Logical fallacies

    • Rhetorical weaknesses

    • Informed opinion

    • Media literacy

    • Source analysis

    • Deductive vs. inductive reasoning

    • Primary vs. secondary sources

    • Credibility

    • Critical reading

    • Writing poetry

    • Greek & Latin roots

    • Prefixes

    • Suffixes

    • Spelling

    • Formality

    • Dialect

    • Word sense

    • Limericks

    • Poetry rhythm & meter

    • Couplets

    • Stanzas

    • Iamb

    • Trochee

    • Dactyl

    • Anapest

    • Spondee

    • Feet

    • Dimeter

    • Trimeter

    • Tetrameter

    • Pentameter

    • Hexameter

    • Audience

    • Writing essays

    • Critical reading

    • Writing sentences

    • Spelling

    • Greek & Latin word roots

    • Germanic word roots

    • Phonemes

    • History of the English language

    • Metaphor

    • Extended metaphor

    • Aphorisms

    • Satire

    • Parody

    • Trust

    • Synthesizing frameworks of analysis

    • Audience

    • Speeches

    • Rhetorical strategy

    • Writing essays

    • Comparative reading

    • Editing

    • Prose rhythm

    • Parallel construction

    • Eliminating unnecessary words

    • Style choices

    • Preposition placement

    • Proverbs (secular)

    • Analytical writing

    • Critical reading

    • Editing your essays for word rhythm and precision

    • Editing fiction stories

    • Prose rhythm

    • Word choice

    • Parallel construction

    • Eliminating unnecessary words

    • Style choices

    • Editing character development

    • Editing plot points

    • Plot continuity

    • Critical reading

    • Polishing your culminating essays

    • Writing sentences

    • Word choice

    • Parallel construction

    • Eliminating unnecessary words

    • Style choices

    • Research methods

    • Creating a research question

    • Types of sources

    • Matching source type to a research question

    • Navigating different types of libraries

    • Finding primary versus secondary sources

    • Dewey Decimal System

    • Library of Congress system

    • How much to research

    • Civics

    • The role of media in a republic

    • Editing multi-paragraph texts

    • Editing for words and flow

    • Editing argument

    • Editing grammar and mechanics

    • Citations

    • Reference notes

    • Footnotes

    • End notes

    • Author-Date citations

    • Bibliographies

    • Chicago style

    • MLA style

    • Style guides

    • Plagiarism

    • Paraphrasing

Featured Authors

Abraham Lincoln, Albert Einstein, Aristotle, Bill Gates, Charles Darwin, Edgar Allen Poe, Emily Dickinson, Frances Hodgson Burnett, Guy Steele, Jane Addams, John Keats, Justice Louis Brandeis, Lewis Carroll, Lord Alfred Tennyson, Martin Luther King, Jr., Plato, Robert Frost, Thomas Jefferson, The U.S. Congress, The United Nations, Voltaire, W.H. Auden, William Blake, William Shakespeare, Winston Churchill, Yosa Buson, and many more.

Programs

Full Member Program

For parents and students.

A rigorous but affordable digital program featuring comprehensive feedback within 24 hours on your child’s writing.

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Print Lessons

For parents and students.

The print versions of our digital curriculum, designed for families who prefer paper and pencils and self-directed learning.

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Teachers & Tutors

For teachers and tutors.

Ready-to-use curriculum (including free daily editing puzzles) for your gifted students and classrooms.

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