PygmyShrew Posted August 22, 2010 Share Posted August 22, 2010 I've never put my hands on either, so all I know is what I've read about them. So....should i go with IEW (institute for excellence in writing) OR WWE (writing with ease) OR could/should I do both with my 1st grader? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ali in OR Posted August 22, 2010 Share Posted August 22, 2010 WWE is perfect for 1st grade--I can't see why you would need more. It gets them used to writing sentences by copying well-composed models. And they get good exposure to narration too. Quite honestly I will likely jump to something different for 3rd grade (and I use something different for my older girl since she started before there was WWE), but for 1st and 2nd grade I really like WWE. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abbeyej Posted August 22, 2010 Share Posted August 22, 2010 WWE. Save IEW (if you decide to use it) for a few years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laurie4b Posted August 22, 2010 Share Posted August 22, 2010 WWE. We use IEW and while I like it for kids with learning disabilities (which is why I use it), I think there are better approaches for kids who don't need that same step-by-step approach. WWE is very solid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ma23peas Posted August 22, 2010 Share Posted August 22, 2010 I'm teaching 23 students grades 6-11 with IEW and I love it...I would save any formal writing program for much later after they've read volumes of literature...for 1-5 grades I would recommend narrations and journaling...creating their own stories, but no formal writing. HTH! Tara Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlestonmom03 Posted August 22, 2010 Share Posted August 22, 2010 I am using WWE (level 2 now for my 2nd grader) and we love it. I have both the text and the workbooks - personally, if I were to do it over again I'd get just the workbooks and skip the text (or maybe just check that out from the library, you really don't need it). We don't write in the workbooks though, I have younger children who will work from them too, so he does all the copywork on his own paper. I am very impressed with the program and I think it is much better suited for the younger ages than IEW. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom0012 Posted August 22, 2010 Share Posted August 22, 2010 Definitely WWE. I love IEW and am using it with my son but we didn't start using it until 4th grade. I think the earliest I would use it is 3rd grade. I had actually planned to wait until 5th grade and I think that would have been fine as well, but a great IEW class opened up near us so that encouraged me to get my son started a little earlier than I had planned. Lisa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PygmyShrew Posted August 22, 2010 Author Share Posted August 22, 2010 I saw where IEW doesn't recommend using it until 3rd grade. I didn't know this when i posted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PygmyShrew Posted August 22, 2010 Author Share Posted August 22, 2010 I am using WWE (level 2 now for my 2nd grader) and we love it. I have both the text and the workbooks - personally, if I were to do it over again I'd get just the workbooks and skip the text (or maybe just check that out from the library, you really don't need it). We don't write in the workbooks though, I have younger children who will work from them too, so he does all the copywork on his own paper. I am very impressed with the program and I think it is much better suited for the younger ages than IEW. What's in the text? Can you elaborate on why one wouldn't need them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlestonmom03 Posted August 23, 2010 Share Posted August 23, 2010 What's in the text? Can you elaborate on why one wouldn't need them? The text basically explains the program in general terms, whereas the workbook lays everything out. If you use the text, you have to pull your own reading selections for the narration, dictation and copywork exercises. With the workbook, this is all done for you (using very good selections from classic pieces of literature). One of the things we've enjoyed the most is finding that some of these selections are from books that we have not yet read, but now are very eager to read as the selections have roused our interest! Our reading list is really growing!:001_smile: In my opinion, you could do the program with either book or with both books. Buying the workbooks is going to cost more (because there is one for each level), whereas the one text explains all the levels. I am the type who wants really good literature selections, but find it tough to get around to selecting them myself twice a week - so we end up putting lessons off for days on end. This is why I prefer the workbooks. If you don't have that problem, the workbooks may not be worth the cost for you. Does that make sense? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlestonmom03 Posted August 23, 2010 Share Posted August 23, 2010 Oops, I forgot to add that the workbooks are scripted. That has been helpful for me because my 1st grader (last year) did not "get" the narration exercises very easily. I found it helpful to have the questions in there to ask him, I think that when I am on my own with these sorts of things I tend to either have unrealistic expectations that are too high for him, or I dumb things down too much. It was good for me to see what the author expected from the situation, and by the end of the book he was doing very well with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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