Review: Institute for Excellence in Writing

It’s not always easy to find curriculum that works for both the parent/teacher and the student.  In fact, it can feel downright impossible at times.  But every now and then, you find a curriculum that really works well for everyone involved, and that curriculum seems to change the whole dynamic of your homeschool – at least for that subject area.  Institute for Excellence in Writing (IEW) was that curriculum for us.

Munchkin is quite the creative story teller, but something happened when she tried to put it all on paper.  The mechanics of writing just seemed to slip through her grasp.  It exasperated her.  It frustrated me.  I searched for a way to help her make the connection between her beautiful story telling and a nicely written story.  We would start to make some progress, but eventually, we would hit another wall.  It just wasn’t working.  I was at a loss on how to help her.

I had heard great things about IEW, but it just seemed rather complicated.  I didn’t know if it would work for us, and it was a pretty decent investment.  I went back and forth on it, but never truly looked into purchasing it for our homeschool until we had the opportunity to review the Teaching Writing: Structure & Style and Student Writing Intensive B package.

When the package arrived, I was impressed with the quality of all of the products included in the TWSS/SWI-B combo package.  The binders were not the flimsy, cheap binders.  They included the dividers needed to properly set up the binders.  The dvd cases allow for easy storage of dvds.  The combo package ($239) includes:

• Teaching Writing: Structure & Style dvd set (9 dvds)
• Seminar Workbook (binder with handouts)
• Tips and Tricks dvd
• Student Writing Intensive B dvd set (4 dvds)
• Student Notebook (binder with dividers, handouts, checklists, and lesson plans)

After looking over the contents of the package and assembling the binders, I started to feel rather overwhelmed by the whole thing, so I set it aside for a few days.  It just looked complicated and a bit intimidating.  Because I knew that it wasn’t necessary to complete all of the teacher’s training dvds prior to starting the program, I finally took a deep breath, picked up the student portion, and jumped into the program.

From day one, Munchkin adored the program.  She enjoyed Andrew Pudewa’s teaching style as he captured her attention.  He helped her break away from some of the perfectionism that held her back in her writing.  He encourages kids to write in pen and make a mess of their papers.  No erasing is allowed.  While it may sound a little crazy, it totally worked for her.  He also recommends typing the papers as it’s much easier for a child to have a typed paper corrected than it is for a hand-written copy to be marked up.  After all, it doesn’t take as much effort to quickly make corrections on the computer and print out a new copy.

The program broke everything down into manageable, easy to digest portions.  The small assignments with simple to follow instructions and composition checklists made it easier for Munchkin to learn to write.  The method of breaking down the sentences and paragraphs followed by rewriting the text in her own words seemed to click with her.  I watched as her confidence in her writing skills increased with each lesson.  The creative writer in her blossomed, and she began to want to write.  She went from dreading writing to looking forward to her writing classes.

Munchkin was on a roll with her studies, so I really needed to get cracking on watching and learning how to properly utilize the IEW program.  (Side note: Munchkin got a kick out of the fact that I also had schoolwork to do. lol!)  Mr. Pudewa is a passionate, entertaining instructor.  He really believes in the power of the complete program.  While the Teaching Writing: Structure & Style isn’t essential to using the Student Writing Intensive program, I personally found it extremely valuable for me.  With his help through these dvds, I was able to see the big picture of the program and become more confident that Munchkin would excel with this program.  The curriculum was truly laid out in a sequential manner which set both of us up to succeed.

If desired, I could take what I had learned and apply it to my own source texts in any subject.  I could, in theory, teach the program.  Unfortunately, I do believe that I might have a little Munchkin rebellion on my hands if I took Mr. Andrew Pudewa’s teaching out of the picture.  His lessons are part of the key for Munchkin.  If you’ve ever listened to one of his seminars, you probably know what I’m talking about when it comes to his teaching style.  (Side note: if you don’t already subscribe to the IEW magalog (magazine/catalog hybrid), you will want to sign up for it. They have free download codes in the magalog.)

One of the things that really stood out in my mind with the teacher seminars was the above statement by Andrew because it really is something with which I personally struggle.  I’m always wondering if I am helping Munchkin too much, but Andrew points out that we can never help someone too much.  When they don’t need help, they will let us know.  I believe that thought of never being able to help too much nicely sums up the program.  IEW helps kids learn to write by allowing them to focus on the mechanics of writing rather than the “what should I write” aspect.  The teacher’s program helps parents learn how to effectively help their students reach their communication goals.  Ultimately, we want to give our students the skills needed to be confident in their writing and to be able to effectively communicate their thoughts to others.

IEW Student Writing Intensive is a writing program, not a grammar program.  Grammar study will need to incorporated through another curriculum source.  However, you can easily incorporate other studies into this program by using source texts based upon the subjects being studied.  Instead of using the paragraph or story from the program, you could pick a paragraph or story from the student’s history, literature, or science text.  (We did this a few times with Munchkin, and she really enjoyed having that flexibility when she didn’t care for the current source text.)

As you can see, IEW has been a wonderful program for us.  There are many different options available for all grade levels.  IEW has a wide range of products to help with various areas in language arts.  Don’t forget to head over and check out their magalog as well as their other products.  I’m looking forward to our homeschool convention in July where I’ll be able to check out the Student Writing Intensive Continuation Course.  Munchkin says that she would be thrilled if we can keep moving forward with this program.

I received a copy of this program as a member of the TOS Crew to help facilitate the writing of a frank and honest review. A positive review is not guaranteed, and all opinions are my own.