Winning With Writing

Winning With Writing, developed by JacKris Publishing, is a secular homeschool writing curriculum designed for grades 1 through 8. The program provides a structured approach to learning various writing styles across a 36-week school year, with daily lessons aimed at improving students' writing skills in a variety of forms, from creative writing to persuasive essays​ (How Do I Homeschool?)​.

Grades The program is available for grades 1 through 8.

Cost The cost of workbooks ranges from $17.99 to $32.99 per level, with additional costs for answer keys, which are priced at $4.99 each​ (JacKris Publishing)​.

Differentiation: What Makes It Special What sets Winning With Writing apart is its affordability and its specific focus on a wide range of writing forms tailored for elementary to middle school grades. The curriculum emphasizes daily practice and gradual skill advancement, which is particularly appealing for families seeking a structured yet straightforward approach to writing education. Each lesson is designed to be engaging and accessible, supporting both independent student work and easy facilitation by parents​ (How Do I Homeschool?)​.

How to Get Started To begin using Winning With Writing, parents can purchase the curriculum directly from JacKris Publishing's website. Each level of the program corresponds to a grade level, ensuring that the content is age-appropriate and builds on previous knowledge systematically​ (How Do I Homeschool?)​.

How It Works This curriculum is designed for use over a 36-week school year with five days of lessons each week, each carefully structured to build upon the last. The lessons include a variety of writing tasks and are presented in a workbook format that allows for easy tracking of progress. Parents will find this program to be "open and go," with minimal preparation required. It is primarily designed for independent student work but can be adapted for more guided instruction if necessary​ (How Do I Homeschool?)​.

Educational Concepts Taught

  • Creative writing

  • Persuasive writing

  • Descriptive writing

  • Narrative writing

  • Expository writing

  • Grammar and punctuation basics

What’s Good About It Users appreciate the curriculum's structured yet flexible approach, which accommodates varying levels of writer's expertise and promotes consistent practice. The affordability of the materials and their effectiveness in enhancing a wide range of writing skills are frequently highlighted as major positives​ (How Do I Homeschool?)​.

What Could Be Improved Some areas for improvement noted by users include the visual presentation of the materials, which are quite basic and not as engaging as those offered by some competitors. Additionally, the need to purchase answer keys separately can be a drawback for some families looking for an all-inclusive package​ (How Do I Homeschool?)​.

Advice from Parents Parents recommend supplementing the curriculum with rich, diverse reading materials to enhance vocabulary and comprehension skills that will benefit writing. They also suggest setting a consistent daily writing routine to help students develop a habit and improve their writing stamina over time​ (How Do I Homeschool?)​.

Who It’s an Ideal Fit For This curriculum is ideal for families looking for a straightforward, effective program that promotes independent learning. It works well for students who thrive with structured tasks and clear expectations​ (How Do I Homeschool?)​.

Who It’s Probably Not a Fit For It may not be the best fit for younger students who are still developing strong reading skills or for those who require more interactive and visually stimulating materials​ (How Do I Homeschool?)​.

Ways to Get It Winning With Writing can be purchased directly through JacKris Publishing’s website or through various homeschooling supply retailers online​ (JacKris Publishing)​.

Explore More Recommended Writing Programs for Homeschoolers

Manisha Snoyer (co-founder of Modulo)

For the last 20 years, I’ve taught over 2000 children in 3 countries (of all socio-economic backgrounds). I pioneered an English language program in a conflict region in the Middle East. I’ve worked as a bilingual public school teacher at some of the highest and lowest performing public schools and in all five boroughs of NYC. I’ve tutored 18 subjects in three languages to some of the wealthiest families in NYC, San Francisco and Paris to make up for shortcomings in private schools they were paying up to $60,000 a year to attend.

Since 2015, I’ve helped hundreds of parents start microschools (way before this was a household buzzword). I founded CottageClass, the first marketplace for microschools and learning pods that was part of the Techstars 2018 class. In 2019, I created a virtual learning program to help families through the pandemic, a free online math tutoring program (masteryhour.org), and schoolclosures.org, a hotline developed in collaboration with Twilio and 80 other partners including Khan Academy, Revolution Foods and the Crisis Text Line, that served 100,000 families impacted by school closures.

I’ve climbed trees with children in forest schools in San Francisco, and tested new digital apps with kids in seven countries.

I’ve also coached dozens of families at different stages in their homeschooling journey. Most recently, I founded Modulo with homeschooling dad, best-selling author and tech entrepreneur Eric Ries, to help families curate their children’s education, social and childcare experiences drawing from a diverse array of in-person and online resources.


During the last three years, I’ve devoted much of my time to reviewing and testing secular homeschooling curriculum and other resource. I’ve spent the last three years talking to thousands of secular homeschooling families, and poring over tens of thousands of secular curriculum reviews and testing physical curriculum and digital apps for with hundreds of students to find the highest quality, most engaging, personalized learning materials for every type of learner.

I’ve spoken about homeschooling and modular learning at multiple venues including SXSW EDU, NY Tech Meetup, and on the LiberatedEd podcast.

In 2022, Modulo was one of 8 organizations who were awarded the Bridge Grant from the Vela Education Fund to expand access to homeschooling and modular learning to under-resourced communities.

My experience in education and homeschooling has led me to believe that there is no perfect education for every child, but families have an extraordinary amount of wisdom they can apply to building the perfect education for their individual child.

My goal with Modulo is to make it possible for any family to easily build a customized education that their child will love, and that will empower the whole family to thrive, taking into account, social, emotional and academic needs.

I love to answer questions from parents and receive feedback on how we can improve Modulo, so feel free to reach out anytime! I personally answer all the questions and comments readers leave on my blogs.

In my free time, I like hiking, traveling the world, tasting ceremonial grade matcha, enjoying dark chocolate.

I graduated Summa Cum Laude from Brandeis University with highest honors, with a double degree in French Literature and American Studies and minors in Environmental Studies and Peace & Conflict Studies.

And I love to learn!

https://www.linkedin.com/in/manisha-snoyer-5042298/
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