We had a homeschool mom teach IEW classes here, and my kids took several years of her classes. They have definitely learned some good writing skills through it, but one thing that is a downside to it is how restrictive it is, and how many rules they have for writing. I did well in school in writing, and also took college level classes as part of my degree, and I have never heard of some of the writing rules this curriculum uses. It can also be very time consuming. I do like that they have courses where the kids aren't just learning writing, but learning other subjects as well. Like history and mythology. There are quite a few choices. The classes were convenient for us, but I would never take on teaching this curriculum to my kids.