I am about to be a CW dropout!

[momee]

Just venting...it was not cheap. It was a good bit of precious time spent and now I'm about to ditch it.

 

Waaah.

[johnandtinagilbert]

good to hear...it keeps me from even looking that way!

[simka2]

Don't say that we haven't officialy started it yet!!!! Noooo! ;)

[Quiver0f10]

I tried CW twice and it just didnt work for me. I went with IEW instead which was a much better fit.

[2cents]

We went partway through Homer and threw in the towel. There was sooooo much stuff in it that we found redundant for us (the grammar, since we have another curriculum we like for that). Once you take out the grammar, it didn't seem worth the $$, time and teacher intensity. I had dragged my feet about IEW but finally took the plunge and we LOVE it. I just wish I had started it earlier...like before we slogged through CW for so long. I admire people who get through CW though, it just wasn't a good long term fit for us.

[momee]

Okay, that's hysterical. I was thinking, noone will care, why post it. All these replies. I just posted at 1026 and it's 1100. Are we all in writing hysteria mode? lol

 

I love you gals :)

 

and for the one who said they're just starting, I haven't read through the whole core of late nor sat down with the information that two very sweet ladies gave me. It's some charts that say what is learned when, or something :)

That's my project for this week, but I don't even want to learn to use it.

 

 

And sad to say, I have read WTM forever ago and decided to go with IEW. Did that, then used TOG for years! with their WA program. Maybe I'm just burnt out. Can we just skip writing and science :tongue_smilie: I reallyl was hoping CW was gonna solve all my problems. I'm giving it one more shot, really learning what the program is about. Then, I'll ditch it, jk. Hopefully it will click.

Edited June 16, 2010 by momee

[elegantlion]

Didn't work for us either. Sell it and move on :grouphug:

 

I highly suggest susan's writing lectures btw. They take the complicated out of writing and they are cheep! I do believe it is the last writing "program" I will ever invest in.

 

:iagree:I love the idea of CW, we even had a blast going through Aesop. My ds crashed in Homer, partially because it was too big of a jump in ability. I think the Primers look fun and I've heard after Homer it gets better.

 

My Homer stuff is in pieces, I unbound the workbooks and put in a binder. I like some of the ideas in the core, so I'm keeping my set. I'm currently looking at ways to modify what I have to at least get my monies worth out of it.

 

I listened to SWB's lectures and decided to go back and remediate some skills use WWE. I realized my son couldn't hold a thought in his head and transfer it to paper. I realized that was my issue with the few writing programs we've tried, none addressed that foundational skill. Or maybe they did and I glossed over it, idk. All the details of CW won't help if he doesn't learn that one skill.

 

I love details, I'm a details kind of gal, but as one poster put it, CW seems to make it more complicated than need be. I think if you can pull out the important stuff (for you and your dc) and focus on that, it's a great program. But it's easy to get confused and miss the big picture.

[johnandtinagilbert]

Okay, that's hysterical. I was thinking, noone will care, why post it. All these replies. I just posted at 1026 and it's 1100. Are we all in writing hysteria mode? lol

 

I love you gals :)

 

and for the one who said they're just starting, I haven't read through the whole core of late nor sat down with the information that two very sweet ladies gave me. It's some charts that say what is learned when, or something :)

That's my project for this week, but I don't even want to learn to use the silly program.

 

 

And sad to say, I have read WTM forever ago and decided to go with IEW. Did that, then used TOG for years! with their WA program. Maybe I'm just burnt out. Can we just skip writing and science :tongue_smilie: I reallyl was hoping CW was gonna solve all my problems. I'm giving it one more shot, really learning what the program is about. Then, I'll ditch it, jk. Hopefully it will click.

I have permanently left hysteria b/c of Phonics Road, Writing Aids and Write Shop, but you know me....great language arts? Where? I can't help but love it! That's why I'm just.not.looking!

[Irishmommy]

Note to self...avoid this program.;)

[robsiew]

Didn't work for us either. Sell it and move on :grouphug:

 

I highly suggest susan's writing lectures btw. They take the complicated out of writing and they are cheep! I do believe it is the last writing "program" I will ever invest in.

 

:iagree:

 

That's what I ended up doing. I really wanted to like CW, but after listening to SWB's lectures and how SIMPLE writing instruction can be, I just couldn't justify the amount of time I would need to put into teaching 4 kids CW. We went back to WWE and R&S and will follow her recommendations for Logic when we get there. A huge weight was lifted off my shoulders when I made that decision, not to mention my ds's!

[MariannNOVA]

We ditched it in the fall of 2009 - I really LOVED AESOP, but Homer, well, I was using it with dd who was 10, and she loved it, but I did not see us moving forward with it.

 

I was able to sell it here literally within minutes of putting it on the SALE board......the only thing that sold faster than that were some extra copies of MCT that i had ordered inadvertantly and those sold within seconds.

 

fwiw, my children had already done three years and two years of STRONG IEW in private school, and much of what we saw in CW was redundant.

[momee]

This may be important/helpful to some...

 

http://www.classicalwritingtutorials.com/how-to-teach-classical-writing-registration

 

and here's incentive to persevere...

 

http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=175262

Edited June 15, 2010 by momee

[Beth in SW WA]

I gave it a good go. Dd & Ds even took Kathy's wonderful online component.

 

I kept Homer OB and will attempt CW "light" when my little girls are ready. It is a rich, delightful program if you can navigate the various elements.

 

I am beyond impressed w/ hs moms who can teach this program.

[Guest RecumbentHeart]

This may seem like a stupid question but .. where can I find SWBs writing lectures?

[JessaMae]

They can be found on the Peace Hill Website. I'll try to post a link.

 

SWB's writing lectures

 

Hope this works :)

[Guest RecumbentHeart]

They can be found on the Peace Hill Website. I'll try to post a link.

 

SWB's writing lectures

 

Hope this works :)

 

 

Thank-you. :)

[LauraGB]

I tried CW twice and it just didnt work for me. I went with IEW instead which was a much better fit.

 

Exactly how it went here, too. Tried twice, disliked it as much the second time around and went with IEW.

 

For those of you about to begin - it is a good program. The idea is brilliant and I wish it could have worked out for us. As with any program, it works better for some than others. Try it - you might be one of those families who really loves it. If not, sell it (some one will definitely buy it!) and try something else.

 

ETA - To be honest, my kids liked it a lot. *I* couldn't stand it. I didn't feel like it was paced well to keep my kids moving. (That's likely why they liked it so much, lol)

Edited June 15, 2010 by LauraGB

[StephanieZ]

I tried CW twice and it just didnt work for me. I went with IEW instead which was a much better fit.

 

Same story here. . . Though now I've added MCT to the IEW. . .

[PeterPan]

Don't know what level you're at, but Writing Tales solves the CW angst. Covers the same stuff as CW Aesop A, B, and part of Homer A, just more engagingly and with more Mom-ease. :)

[amyco]

I'm a Homer drop-out too...I really, really tried--made pages of notes, read all the online things I could--we were just confused in the end. Then I downloaded SWB's lectures and it was a breath of fresh air! That's my plan for next year. Then I heard about Lost Tools of Writing...so we're starting that adventure in another year or two.

[Cleopatra]

I've heard after Homer it gets better.

 

 

I've heard this numerous times. Moms wonder what on earth they are doing with Homer but once they hit Diogenes they see the results tenfold. I'm finding Homer more challenging to grasp than Aesop, but I do see the value. You need to read the core through before proceeding and you have to be okay with not 'getting' everything right away. I stumbled around for the first few chapters but eventually learned the pattern. I like the flexibility of it; you don't have to do everything (spelling, grammar ...) and I can drop items I don't think my dd needs to practice, or at least minimize the work. I also like that it doesn't have a million lessons (hyperbole! :001_smile:). We can break one lesson into two weeks so it isn't overwhelming and still finish at the end of the school year.

 

I'm sorry to hear that it's still driving you bonkers, Momee :blink:, but I'm glad that you're going to give it one more read through before throwing in the towel. But if you do 'drop-out', don't worry too much about it. We have to find programs that work for our dc, but we also have to find programs that work for us. There's no point in feeling stressed every time you have to teach writing. I was the same way with IEW and I changed over to CW with no looking back.

 

Best wishes! :001_smile:

[8filltheheart]

Just venting...it was not cheap. It was a good bit of precious time spent and now I'm about to ditch it.

 

Waaah.

 

I'm a CW drop-out as well. :001_smile:

 

I bought Aesops and Homer hoping for I would have to spend less time planning writing instruction. I read through the Homer core during the summer and I kept thinking, "Why the heck are they making this so complicated?" But after spending that much $$, I was determined to give it a try.

 

After about 6 weeks, we ditched it and I have never given it a second thought. I had already managed to get one into college at that point. I knew that solid writing instruction did not require torturous contortions! :tongue_smilie:

 

I believe the author of CW also over-rates the "uniqueness" of her writing instruction's outcomes. I contacted her about placement for my kids b/c I had my doubts that my kids really needed to start in Homer. (They were in 6th and 8th grade at the time.) They both had a solid background in writing. She is under the impression (or at least she was) that kids cannot enter CW w/o having completed Homer. Homer was beneath their skill level (and I still found it torturous and convoluted!)

[Peela]

I loved CW and felt so good and like we were so "rigorous" doing it...then I just burned out on how teacher intensive it was. And really...just too much. Too complicated. I think if they rewrote it and simplified it significantly, it could be a good hit. However, I think they have already put so much work- and dedication from the heart- into it. I think they are very sincere and dedicated people.

I really really wanted to love it all the way through (and I started with the download version of Aesop and Homer), but it didnt happen by halfway through Homer. If it was too hard for me to get my head around, I coulndt justify doign that to my kids, either.

But mostly it was how time and teacher intensive it was.

[Faithr]

We quit here too. I'm surprised that so many people are coming out of the closet saying how it didn't work for them. I once posted about how overly complicated and clunky I felt it to be and I got a little lecture from someone about how I was all wrong. I mean everybody has to find what works for them, but CW definitely didn't work for us (we were doing the Homer for Older Students.)

 

Now I have found WWE and Susan's Writing lectures and life is good again!! LOL!

[momee]

Just wanted to follow up and say after rereading the instructor's manual and finding a couple of things, I'm much more clear on what to do and where to go for help.

 

I took notes as I went and I think they may really help someone.

 

I'll try to post them later today. It does look like a very solid program, though a bit of a hill to learn to use the materials.

 

I also got a very quick, detailed response from the author that I just saw in my email this am. Between those two things, I think we'll be okay.

 

Worth working for I know...

[Guest suzeintn]

I have boys; not sure that has anything to do with the fact that CW did not work for us but I tried it one year and failed.....put it on the shelf for 2 years, tried again and failed. My boys hated it! not just my opinion and I was not the only one doing the whining during our efforts to use it. Still love the thought of it though. Good luck!

Suzie

[*Jessica*]

These posts make me terrified to start CW Primer next year. I was very excited about this program despite the amount of biblical content (we're secular homeschoolers.) Now I'm feeling like I really need to find something else fast so that we don't have to go through program switches mid-year.

 

Is there a pulling-your-hair-out smilie?!

[profmom]

With my oldest, we used Aesop through Diogenes-Maxim, including Poetry. Diogenes and Int. Poetry were with CW's online class this year. We're changing to The Potter's School's English next year, but only because we want her to have experience with their program before going into their Classical Track for 9th grade.

 

All that to say, I sold most of our CW materials this year, but the Homer core (my most worn book) didn't sell with the others. I don't mind because, looking through it, I remember some great writing discussions/lessons on the couch with my dd! The 6 sentence shuffle stands out to me as very valuable, along with lessons on starting the story at different points in the plot. We had a very profitable year with Homer -- good memories too!

[Beth in Central TX]

I've gone through CW Aesop, Homer, Poetry for Beg, and Diogenes Maxim, and I really like this writing program. It has been difficult at times (like the last part of Homer B), but even though I haven't used the program perfectly, I see continued improvement in my boys' writing assignments. In addition, my older boys are looking forward to doing Intermediate Poetry next year. They really enjoyed the imitation part of the Poetry for Beg book and had fun reading their poems aloud. They developed an appreciation of poetry through CW (because they certainly didn't get it from me!) which says a lot about a program in my book.

 

momee--I hope you can find a writing program that fits your homeschool. I'm still looking for that magical history program myself. I have a new series for next year, but only time will tell if it's a good fit for us.

[momee]

I'm not going with anything new right now. I'm sticking it out with CW :)

 

My main reason for venting was just that, venting that homeschooling is hard and I'm having to teach myself and I don't wanna and wah wah wah kwim?

Edited June 16, 2010 by momee

[siloam]

Just wanted to follow up and say after rereading the instructor's manual and finding a couple of things, I'm much more clear on what to do and where to go for help.

 

I took notes as I went and I think they may really help someone.

 

I'll try to post them later today. It does look like a very solid program, though a bit of a hill to learn to use the materials.

 

I also got a very quick, detailed response from the author that I just saw in my email this am. Between those two things, I think we'll be okay.

 

Worth working for I know...

 

I do understand how you feel. I find it is getting harder and harder to keep up with things here. I have started actually scheduling a week every 6 weeks just for me to keep ahead of the kids. They do their independent work, and I study. :001_huh: I used to be able to do that during school weeks, but my schedule has gotten so heavy that I just don't have the energy to care at the end of the day.

 

But I do love what I am seeing in my oldest dd's writing. She has been writing a book, and it actually is pretty good. Her descriptions are pretty well developed and it is an interesting story (though a little predictable, she is 12 :) ). I agree that Homer can be tedious, how much they do the same thing over and over again, but I think it builds a fluency, an ease in playing and changing words that makes writing more enjoyable. Well once you finish with Homer, that is. My oldest can see the benefits in her writing, but she still doesn't love doing the work.

 

The good news is once you have gone through it with one child you pretty much own it and it is much easier to deal with the 2nd student.

 

Heather

[Guest schoolmarmee]

Ladies,

I found CW about 8 months ago and believe it has the potential to change the world. It's hard because we have all become accustomed to the watered down programs we have been spoon fed for over a hundred years now. Did you know that 2 Harvard professors in 1897 decided that programs like CW were too hard for the masses (that's us, by the way) and began the dumbing down of university and public school curricula? Now taxpayers in Texas will pay over 200 million dollars next year to provide remedial courses for incoming college students who can't write, or do basic math, etc.

 

I used IEW for years until CW came along and I was thrilled to see that these authors had resurrected the Progymnasmata and developed a program that could really teach my children the true art of writing.

 

It isn't really that hard to use - but it does take some effort on our part to learn how to use properly. Start with the Instructor's guide and then read the section in the core referenced by the gray boxes on the daily work schedule. Not so hard, but a little reading is required.

 

Finding two 30 minutes sections a day to devote to writing? Well, that's a matter of priority. Let me reference the book "Do Hard Things" by the Brett? boys (Unsure of authors at present - will check that).

 

While IEW is easy, it is so small in scope that to consider it a complete writing program is, in my humble opinion, naive. I have met Mr. Pudewa and love him - he's an awesome person and devoted to his goals. But he, and we, have been ignorant of how writing should be taught for so long that when something different comes along that is not as easy - we balk at it. But when it has been modeled after teachers like Quintillian and writers like Homer, I for one feel it is worth making an effort to learn to use it. I know Mr. Pudewa is ramping up his books as he learns more about how writing should be taught since his recent association with Andrew Kern and the Circe institute. BTW, The Lost Tools of Writing by Mr. Kern, is also hard to learn to teach.

 

Let me encourage you - don't ditch it. Use it. If for no other reason than that average is never good enough, and "fast food" education will never give your kids the opportunities they deserve to achieve greatness.

 

With heartfelt sincerity and the hope to encourage...

Rene

[calandalsmom]

Greatness being...what, exactly?:confused:

 

If a program is not working, move on.

[8filltheheart]

Ladies,

I found CW about 8 months ago and believe it has the potential to change the world. It's hard because we have all become accustomed to the watered down programs we have been spoon fed for over a hundred years now. Did you know that 2 Harvard professors in 1897 decided that programs like CW were too hard for the masses (that's us, by the way) and began the dumbing down of university and public school curricula? Now taxpayers in Texas will pay over 200 million dollars next year to provide remedial courses for incoming college students who can't write, or do basic math, etc.

 

I used IEW for years until CW came along and I was thrilled to see that these authors had resurrected the Progymnasmata and developed a program that could really teach my children the true art of writing.

 

It isn't really that hard to use - but it does take some effort on our part to learn how to use properly. Start with the Instructor's guide and then read the section in the core referenced by the gray boxes on the daily work schedule. Not so hard, but a little reading is required.

 

Finding two 30 minutes sections a day to devote to writing? Well, that's a matter of priority. Let me reference the book "Do Hard Things" by the Brett? boys (Unsure of authors at present - will check that).

 

While IEW is easy, it is so small in scope that to consider it a complete writing program is, in my humble opinion, naive. I have met Mr. Pudewa and love him - he's an awesome person and devoted to his goals. But he, and we, have been ignorant of how writing should be taught for so long that when something different comes along that is not as easy - we balk at it. But when it has been modeled after teachers like Quintillian and writers like Homer, I for one feel it is worth making an effort to learn to use it. I know Mr. Pudewa is ramping up his books as he learns more about how writing should be taught since his recent association with Andrew Kern and the Circe institute. BTW, The Lost Tools of Writing by Mr. Kern, is also hard to learn to teach.

 

Let me encourage you - don't ditch it. Use it. If for no other reason than that average is never good enough, and "fast food" education will never give your kids the opportunities they deserve to achieve greatness.

 

With heartfelt sincerity and the hope to encourage...

Rene

 

Rene,

 

I can't speak for the other posters, only for myself. But you completely misunderstand my position. It isn't that I think that CW is hard to teach. It is simply that excellent writing instruction does not need to take the form of CW. It isn't a matter of deciding not to do something "hard." I actually find that insinuation rather insulting. My kids put forth a tremendous amt of effort in their writing assignments.

 

Rather, I find CW's approach to writing gives the impression to the unsure of being better writing instruction precisely b/c it is so cumbersome and unnecessarily complicated. However, if you know that helping form good writers with excellent rhetorical skills does not require its gyrations, you can look at it and say with confidence that writing instruction does not require such laborious contortions. (I can't help using the word contortion b/c it is the most accurate description I can think of.)

[LauraGB]

Let me encourage you - don't ditch it. Use it. If for no other reason than that average is never good enough, and "fast food" education will never give your kids the opportunities they deserve to achieve greatness.

 

 

 

I agree that a "fast food education" will not give my kids the opportunities they deserve. That is why I home educate.

 

Not all programs are for everyone. Some definitely lack quality where others surpass expectations. However, there are several wonderful, thorough programs available to choose from, and CW is just one of the many. And with all programs, if the student/teacher dislike it, it's time to choose one from which all involved with profit.

 

Thank you for your input. And welcome to the boards.