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One hardly knows where to start. A big problem is that kids are not required to read good writing so they can have a model. They are asked to read dumb stuff like The Color Purple and other politically-correct junk. Secondly, teachers are so overloaded that they are sending the kids home with tons of homework so their parents can oversee their work --- in effect, the kids are being about half homeschooled. And how do burnt-out teachers know good writing when they see it? Teachers spend all their time trying to get kids to shut up and concentrate so they send their work home. Just demanding that 'good writing' be taught is a pipe dream.

Start with the basics:
Spelling

Subject
Predicate
Direct Object

Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Conjunction
Others parts of speech

Sentence construction
Capitlization
Punctuation

Paragraph Formation - for a simple five paragraph (one hand-written page) essay
Introduction
Expand topic Paragraph 1
Expand topic Paragraph 2
Expand topic Paragraph 3
Conclusion

Move on to expansions of all the above topics.

OK, now, be honest! Did I lose any of you in that outline?

A big problem is that kids are not required to read good writing . . .

Bingo.

A couple of the young engineers in my company have come to me expressing concern that their writing skills are abysmal (the fact that they recognize this is a good sign), and I've told them that the first step to developing good writing skills is to read extensively. One of them started working on the NY Times crossword puzzle every day, too.

Just demanding that 'good writing' be taught is a pipe dream.

You're right. Fortunately, my solution is to say "Honey, can I see the kids' latest writing assignments?" My wife, who teaches the kids at home, will let me analyze for use of dangling participles or passive voice, and of course the odd spelling error (they're young, after all), which I then point out to the kids.

It helps that our homeschool association has set up a once-a-week class specifically for writing, in addition to the work they're already doing.

Am I being arrogant? Yeah, some. I have the advantage that my wife and I went into parenthood with the understanding that providing for childrens' education is the parents' responsibility, and we elected not to farm the job out.

Boy, this is a big reason(as if there weren't others) that we plan to homeschool. From what I have seen in this area, we will be homeschooling anyway--school would basically just be daycare if we sent the kids and then we'd school them at home. Parental involvement is fine, but when kids are coming home with hours of homework in lower grades, one has to wonder what is being accomplished in schools? I remember learning lessons in school and then, at least in lower grades, having a minimal amount of homework which was mostly review. Now I see second graders coming home with chapters to read and go over with their parents, worksheets, etc. Entire lessons to learn instead of just review. Things that seem like they should be covered in school.

They are asked to read dumb stuff like The Color Purple and other politically-correct junk.

I agree in part, but let me say something on behalf of The Color Purple in particular: The sister who becomes a missionary in Africa writes back in realization: I thought I was going home to 'my people' ... these are not my people... they sold us. The don't care about us, they don't love us, they don't want us back... they sold us!

I personally was very happy to see someone acknowledge this. Moreoever, Alice Walker is one of the main discoverers of and champions of Zora Neale Hurston, who was muscled out of the African American literary world by Langston Hughes and the other Marxist black separatists because she was essentially a Republican. If you read Their Eyes Were Watching God, there is very little of the evil white man in it once the days of slavery are over. It's just blacks among other blacks living their lives, and is very interesting.

Nevertheless, students also need copious doses of sophisticated writing to model their own writing on, you are right. I just wanted to throw that opinion in there.