Claire Baker
Convince Me! Fun Debate & Writing ClubMy Children really enjoyed this class, we signed them up for more!
No Active Sessions Currently Scheduled
We'd love to hear about times that work for you!
Course Description
Should kids be allowed to stay up all night? Would a gorilla beat 100 cats? Should humans live on Mars? In this fun and interactive ongoing class, students will strengthen persuasive writing, speaking, and critical thinking skills through silly debates and high-interest discussion topics designed especially for upper elementary learners. Each week, students will explore a brand-new, funny, or thought-provoking debate topic. Together, we will discuss ideas, share opinions, defend our thinking, and practice respectful conversation skills. Students will then complete a short persuasive writing activity connected to the debate of the week. This class is designed to feel engaging and low-pressure while still building important academic skills. Students who are reluctant writers often feel more comfortable participating because the topics are creative, funny, and discussion-based rather than worksheet-heavy. Skills practiced may include: - Persuasive and opinion writing - Supporting ideas with reasons and examples - Public speaking and discussion skills - Listening and responding respectfully - Organizing thoughts clearly - Building confidence in writing and speaking This class is especially great for students who: - Enjoy sharing opinions - Love funny or unusual questions - Benefit from interactive learning - Need confidence with writing - Prefer discussion-based learning over traditional worksheets Each class will include: - A funny warm-up question - Group debate and discussion - A mini writing lesson - A short persuasive writing challenge - Optional sharing time No prior debate experience is needed. Students are encouraged to think creatively, have fun, and respectfully defend their ideas while building real writing and communication skills.
Meet Your Teacher
Kristen Freeman
Elementary Teacher | Orton Gillingham Trained | Reading, Writing, Grammar, and Phonics | Bachelor's in Education | Passionate Teacher for Fun Interactive Learning
Reviews
Candice
Master Speller Academy: Word Patterns, Strategy & ConfidenceI feel like this class really was a game changer for my daughter with spelling! Spelling is not my favorite thing to teach, and my daughter just is not into it and has low motivation to learn about it. Putting her into this class helped so much. I think having Ms. Kristin teach her helped my daughter to know that spelling is important and not just because I say it is! Her classes always have hands on and visual activities that are so much fun, so I feel like it helps when you have learners that need a bit more hands on approaches to things like this. She also learned more about word patterns, and is recognizing those patterns more frequently now! It's nice having some other kids in the class, too. She is pretty social, so enjoys learning about this with Ms. Kristin and other students! She feels safe to make mistakes and learn from them in Ms. Kristin's class, which is huge!
Show moreCandice
Spell & Play: A Game-Based Spelling Adventure Part 1Spelling is not my favorite subject to teach! It is not my kids favorite subject to learn about either. Ms. Kristin made this into a fun gamified class, which I kind of feel like can be hard with spelling (at least for me). It was really nice to be able to have someone else teach this class and give me a bit of a break to work on other subjects with my other kids! I can tell they are recognizing more spelling patterns now, which is awesome! They really learned a lot!
Show moreCandice
Grammar, Writing & Reading Mastery: Comprehensive 4th–5th Grade Language ArtsThis is such a great class! This was such a great help in getting some deep LA lessons in for my oldest daughter, and she really does better in a class because she likes bouncing ideas off of others in subjects like this. It really made Language Arts a lot more fun and engaging, and it took something off of my plate which was a huge help!
Show moreTaylor Hamel
History Builders: Famous Americans Brick BuildingMy girls look forward to this class every single week. It's such a fun way to learn history, getting to build what they're learning so the historical figures actually stick. They come running out after class every week to show me what they've built and tell me all about the history behind it.
Show moreErin M.
Customized Tutoring for Reading, Writing, and more!Mrs. Kristen manages to make reading tutoring fun and engaging for my (very) ADHD daughter! She's grown in ability and confidence and always looks forward to her time with Mrs. Kristen.
Jennifer
God’s Amazing Animals: Ocean Wonders – Crafts, Facts & Fun for Kids!Such a fun class! I loved seeing what my daughter created each week and how much she learned!
Jennifer
Bible Buddies Thankful Turkey: Learn and CraftOk this was the cutest! We love these holiday classes! Awesome class!
Cavender Family
Draw, Build, Discover! Arctic Animal Family Unit Study (Part 1)My two girls loved this class! They really liked the STEM challenge and guided animal drawing each week. Living in the Arizona desert heat, it was fun to learn about arctic animals. Their little brother was interested in overhearing all the animal facts too! Kristen was very engaging and a joy to have as a virtual teacher. :-)
Natalia
Anne of Avonlea Novel StudyThis Anne of Avonlea class was another wonderful experience for my daughter! She loved continuing Anne’s journey and seeing her grow from a dreamy girl into a young teacher. The class made the story come alive through thoughtful discussions and engaging activities, and it deepened her appreciation for the characters and themes of friendship, imagination, and growing up. It was a delightful and meaningful class, and we can’t wait for the next book study in the series!
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