your experience with IEW please

[marbles]

I'm picking an English curriculum for 6th and 4th graders. They don't like writing but are good readers. They have a solid base of grammar. We tried the Good and the Beautiful last year and didn't finish it, I found it to be just busy work they couldn't see the sense of and way too time consuming and their idea of what is good and beautiful was just too restrictive. Kid was bored. So having said that, someone recommended IEW for kids who found English to be boring. I'm looking at it and it looks very structured and complete. Those who have used it, what do you think of it? Good and bad! Things in my life are upside down so I'm doing this late, I know. Help me please! Is it religious? Is it a bunch of memorizing without context? Is it bunches of flash cards? I also live in a camper so space is limited and one kid is autistic, they don't do well with a list of 5 things to do each day per subject.

[graciousmomma]

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.

[rdsmommy]

I used it when my dc were in those same grades. Dd who is creative and likes to write, hated it. Ds who couldn't get words on paper, thought it was ok. I think it's a good program for teaching kids who aren't creative how to write. It helps them learn the mechanics of organized writing without making them come up with ideas to write about. Each lesson gives an essay for them to work with and paraphrase. They take notes on the essay and then rewrite it in their own words while also adding extras to make it more interesting and to include a wider vocabulary.

[heartofjoy]

IEW has several products but they teach 9 units in total. They focus both on structure and style.

The Units vary from report writing to fiction, so it's not really accurate to say that every week is rewriting someone else's work. The way they teach story writing is interesting and helps kids figure out what to say. One unit is "Writing from the Brain" which could be more report-like but only comes from stuff you already know about.

The style "rules" are rigid, but you can drop them if your child already has a nice natural and mature writing style.

Some products like the Student Writing Intensive encourage the use of a thesaurus. Other products, like the theme books, have vocabulary words to match the lesson and kids are encouraged to use them. It's an easy amount. Not overwhelming.

I would encourage people using IEW for the first time to use a Student Writing Intensive because it has teaching videos. Although keep in mind that these do not cover all 9 units. OR watch the Teaching Writing with Structure and Style DVDs that were made to teach parents how to teach the curriculum. It's much easier to use the theme books if you already understand what IEW is trying to ultimately DO with the young writer. All of the clunky rules are not intended to be forced onto already good writing, but to offer practice to the writer who is at a basic level. If you child is beyond those rules, then they should be dropped. Too many parents quit IEW or complain about it because it produces clunky writing. The idea is to get kids to Write! and then with practice, fluency and beauty develop. You rarely get a kid who just inherently writes well from their first paragraph in third grade!

[Stonebeck Farm]

MY now 21 yo son loved IEW Student Intensive Writing Video's. He liked the structure and the quirky humor of the teacher. My DD did not appreciate his teaching style and just went with me teaching and then community college classes. BY 3rd did Essential in Writing and loved it and we will be doing it again with him and with his sister.


I do not remember IEW being strongly religious at all.

[marbles]

Originally Posted by Stonebeck Farm

MY now 21 yo son loved IEW Student Intensive Writing Video's. He liked the structure and the quirky humor of the teacher. My DD did not appreciate his teaching style and just went with me teaching and then community college classes. BY 3rd did Essential in Writing and loved it and we will be doing it again with him and with his sister.


I do not remember IEW being strongly religious at all.

I'm looking at essentials in writing, it looks like it might fit us more. For $90 per grade, is it mostly reusable? Like I would just have to buy another workbook or something?