Anybody used Understanding Writing by Susan Braderick?

[wy_kid_wrangler04]

If so, what do you think of it? :bigear:

[wy_kid_wrangler04]

:bigear:

[Free Indeed]

Here is a thread I found with good discussion of it: http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=12429&highlight=%22understanding+writing%22

[mama25angels]

Thanks for that link, I had been wondering if anyone used Understanding Writing as well. I have not used it, but it was gifted to me so i'm planning to try next year. I hope you get some more responses.

[Guest ruthypoo]

 

Hello All,

I never actually used Understanding Writing, but a friend of mine did and loved it, and her children are excellent writers.  She did explain what she did and I used the concept.  If I understand it correctly, the parent models writing for the children.  Initially, just to get my children to write, I would have them write or copy out a verse from the Bible.  I picked verses that I thought would help them throughout life.  By the time they were in the older grades for elementary students, I had them dictate to me (as I sat at the computer) a book report, answers to essay questions, etc.  Then the "fun" :) would begin, although, at that age, they didn't think of it as fun.  We would go through sentence by sentence and I would talk about their grammar, mechanics, etc.  I tried not to be too critical.  The papers need to have their handprints on them, so encourage your children as you do this.  Make learning fun!  About the subjective stuff: wording, phrasing, and how I would do it, I offered actual examples and ideas for clarifying a concept.  They never wanted to create a sentence exactly like mine, but it would get them to think about wording things more clearly, so that they could convey the actual meaning they wished to show the reader.  We worked like this through the ninth or tenth grade, and by the time they were in high school they were writing their papers with almost no assistance.  They would periodically ask my husband or me if we would proof their papers, which we gladly did.  When they went off to college, they all did very well.  One received a writing scholarship, three of the four tutored other students and the fourth child was asked to tutor but was afraid to do it.   Our oldest son is in business management, our two daughters are nurses and our youngest son is going to college to tentatively become an optometrist. Modeling good writing skills is probably the best and simplest way to teach writing.  I hope this helps.  Blessings~ 

[Mavy]

I am using it with my 2nd grader and Kindy this year. We are in level 2, and so far it has been wonderful. They are enjoying writing time and I am very impressed with what they have learned. I have read the whole book and really like the progression it makes through the levels. I am such a newbie to it I may not be able to answer your questions, but I am happy to try.

[Ellie]

I didn't use it,either, as it was written after my dc were past the age when I could reasonably start anything (one was already attending community college by then), but I *love* the way it teaches, and wish I could have done it with mine. I love the fact that it doesn't teach formulas (e.g., each paragraph must have at least three sentences: and opening sentence, a closing sentence, and one supporting sentence. That kind of formula is only true in *some* kinds of writing.); it teaches children to use strong nouns and verbs instead of boatloads of adjectives and adverbs; it teaches children to determine who their audiences are. I love the way that it teaches children to focus on a small event and write well about it, rather than writing sparsely about the whole event (e.g., describing the prize cow in detail instead of glossing over the whole fair).

 

I think the best thing for you to do is to read through the whole thing yourself and see if you can imagine yourself teaching it and your children doing the activities and learning from it. You're the only one who can tell if it will work for you or not. :-)

[...................]

We tried it. It is thorough. Clear. Easy to use. Builds upon itself logically. Goid value for your money. Godly.

 

But..

 

Boring. Boring. Boring.

 

And Repetitive.

 

Blah.

[birchbark]

Happy users here.

[mom@shiloh]

We used it.  We liked it.  I have a copy for sale if you're interested.....

[Hunter]

I have used it. In the right circumstances, I would certainly use it again. I learned a lot by using the curriculum and reading ahead to the parts I didn't use. I gifted my copy to someone else in the still ongoing book purge. I need to just keep what I need NOW, and not horde books, that can be used NOW by others. I gave it away mostly because I think it's really good and thought it would be a good fit for the other person.

 

It's not a terribly time consuming curriculum, but it does take time and steady attention. It was more than I have time for right now.

 

Exodus Books often has used copies for a good price.

[mama25angels]

Happy users here.

What level are you using for your 12yo? My Ds is 11and I'm thinking of starting him in level 2, in order to get him familiar with the program. Thanks

[birchbark]

What level are you using for your 12yo? My Ds is 11and I'm thinking of starting him in level 2, in order to get him familiar with the program. Thanks

 

We began last year in level two. He is blitzing through and is just about done with four. I expect him to get through the rest of the pre-high-school levels by the end of this school year since he knows his grammar pretty well. The workload is fairly light in the earlier levels, so I found it necessary to add additional writing practice in other subjects, but I love the instruction in here.

[mama25angels]

We began last year in level two. He is blitzing through and is just about done with four. I expect him to get through the rest of the pre-high-school levels by the end of this school year since he knows his grammar pretty well. The workload is fairly light in the earlier levels, so I found it necessary to add additional writing practice in other subjects, but I love the instruction in here.

 

Thank you, I still have my copy of this and think we'll give it a try after our holiday break.