razorbackmama Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 I tried posting this the other day, but for some reason I can't open the post and no one else can either...so strange!!! Anyway, we have been using IEW successfully for a couple of years now. My son completed SICC-B, and according to IEW's little flowchart thingie, it suggested he do The Elegant Essay next. So I bought it. Oh. My. Word. It is so different and teacher-intenstive. *When* I get to do it with him (he is a junior so I don't do any school with him except for this), I have no idea what I'm supposed to do because the teacher's guide is so vague and geared toward a classroom setting. So rather than fighting with it and getting more and frustrated or not doing it at all, I need to find an alternative. I'm looking for a semester-long program that teaches how to write a good essay and the different types of essay. I plan to go on to SICC-C after this (since, in general, IEW works for us), so it's not like I'm looking to switch to a completely different writing program forever. Just something to take the place of TEE. Suggestions??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hikin' Mama Posted March 27, 2014 Share Posted March 27, 2014 I haven't used this yet because I'm still working on some other writing skills with my dyslexic daughter, but I purchased The Lively Art of Writing on Amazon for, I think, 99 cents. I've read through part of it and I really like how it coaches the reader through the essay writing process. As far as I know, it doesn't cover different types of essays. It is an easy read and has exercises at the end of each chapter. It has 15 chapters. It might be worth a look. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThisIsTheDay Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 I also recommend The Lively Art of Writing. I will be spending quite a bit of time with my ds on this, but this might be helpful, particularly if you would like to see what he can do on his own. link for PDF workbooks, teacher and student, for LAoW by WTMer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joyful_Journey Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 I agree - we are plowing through Elegant Essay right now and finding it a real mess to teach. I'm not entirely confident that it will truly benefit her in the end, so my plan is to move into Lively Art of Writing next year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WishboneDawn Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 I'd second LAoW but I would add in Jensen's Format Writing. LAoW will address a lit off style and basic structure issues but Jensen's gets into the sentence-by-sentence, nuts and bolts of putting together first paragraphs and then essays of different types. They really complement each other well. My daughter finds that one will cover what the other lacks. We did LAoW last year and she's doing Jensen's now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
razorbackmama Posted March 28, 2014 Author Share Posted March 28, 2014 I'd second LAoW but I would add in Jensen's Format Writing. LAoW will address a lit off style and basic structure issues but Jensen's gets into the sentence-by-sentence, nuts and bolts of putting together first paragraphs and then essays of different types. They really complement each other well. My daughter finds that one will cover what the other lacks. We did LAoW last year and she's doing Jensen's now. Would the 2 be too much to do in one semester? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WishboneDawn Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 Yes. We're doing Jensen's this year after spending last year with LAoW. My daughter ended up doing few of the exercises in LAoW and instead mostly just read it and worked what it covered into her other writing. I could see doing both in a year if you approached LAoW as she did... I think the two would make a good finishing course and in that light I'd probably not think in terms of a semester. Rather it would be about working at them until the forms were mastered and the writing quality was good. If you need something for a transcript I might do LAoW one semester and Jensen's the next. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dina in Oklahoma Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 Thanks so much for the additional resource! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
razorbackmama Posted March 28, 2014 Author Share Posted March 28, 2014 I also recommend The Lively Art of Writing. I will be spending quite a bit of time with my ds on this, but this might be helpful, particularly if you would like to see what he can do on his own. link for PDF workbooks, teacher and student, for LAoW by WTMer I finally had time to sit down and open your link. This may be exactly what I'm looking for! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1Togo Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 Another option. The Write Foundation Use Level 2 if your son needs to work on paragraph construction and basic essays. If not, use Level 3, which covers different types of essays, the research paper, and timed writing. Level 3 would be a good fit for the junior year as prep for ACT and SAT writing. TWF teaches composition and style. It uses highlighting, graphic organizers, and outlining for the prewriting phase. The author of TWF used IEW and other popular curriculum, so elements of the material will be familiar to you. TWF is easy to teach even though it does not have dvd instruction. Level 2 instruction is as follows: Monday - set up the week, Tuesday - read/discuss model with student or write model using provided brainstorm info, Wednesday and Thursday - independent writing by student, Friday - poetry writing. TWF is thorough, so after finishing it, you can move on to literature analysis if your son has not done that combined with writing across the curriculum. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
razorbackmama Posted March 28, 2014 Author Share Posted March 28, 2014 Another option. The Write Foundation Use Level 2 if your son needs to work on paragraph construction and basic essays. If not, use Level 3, which covers different types of essays, the research paper, and timed writing. Level 3 would be a good fit for the junior year as prep for ACT and SAT writing. TWF teaches composition and style. It uses highlighting, graphic organizers, and outlining for the prewriting phase. The author of TWF used IEW and other popular curriculum, so elements of the material will be familiar to you. TWF is easy to teach even though it does not have dvd instruction. Level 2 instruction is as follows: Monday - set up the week, Tuesday - read/discuss model with student or write model using provided brainstorm info, Wednesday and Thursday - independent writing by student, Friday - poetry writing. TWF is thorough, so after finishing it, you can move on to literature analysis if your son has not done that combined with writing across the curriculum. Interesting - I'll check it out! Level 3 is where he'd need to be. He can write 5-paragraph essays well - just needs work on different types of essays and such. It's nice to know it covers timed writing as well. I was wondering how to fit in IEW's timed essay writing course. How long does it take to complete it? A year? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
razorbackmama Posted March 28, 2014 Author Share Posted March 28, 2014 Where can I find The Write Foundation to even look at it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
razorbackmama Posted March 28, 2014 Author Share Posted March 28, 2014 Found it! And I found a little blip where it talks about how the author learned to write essays from....The Lively Art of Writing! LOL!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
razorbackmama Posted March 28, 2014 Author Share Posted March 28, 2014 OK question for both Lively Art of Writing and The Write Foundation...how much time does it take FROM ME AS A TEACHER each day? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kareni Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 Found it! And I found a little blip where it talks about how the author learned to write essays from....The Lively Art of Writing! LOL!!!!! That's so funny it made me go browsing the site. Here's a link to that mention. It sounds like a nice program. Regards, Kareni Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1Togo Posted March 29, 2014 Share Posted March 29, 2014 TWJ lessons on Monday, Tuesday, and Friday will need about 35 to 45 minutes of teacher time. On Wednesday and Thursday, the student will need input on his writing. Each essay has an editing checklist. There is no teacher prep time for TWF. Btw, I also have "The Lively Art..." TWF is a more comprehensive curriculum because it covers different types of essays, extended essays, research papers, poetry writing, and timed writing. It does not need to be supplemented. Each level has 30 lessons, usually one per week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TechWife Posted March 29, 2014 Share Posted March 29, 2014 Anyway, we have been using IEW successfully for a couple of years now. My son completed SICC-B, and according to IEW's little flowchart thingie, it suggested he do The Elegant Essay next. So I bought it. Oh. My. Word. It is so different and teacher-intenstive. *When* I get to do it with him (he is a junior so I don't do any school with him except for this), I have no idea what I'm supposed to do because the teacher's guide is so vague and geared toward a classroom setting. I agree - we are plowing through Elegant Essay right now and finding it a real mess to teach. I'm not entirely confident that it will truly benefit her in the end, so my plan is to move into Lively Art of Writing next year. Can I stop feeling bad that we never made it through this program now? I've not heard anyone articulate this before and it makes me so happy to hear I'm not the only one, especially when we've had much success with other IEW materials. We are slowly working our way through WttW right now and loving it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
razorbackmama Posted March 29, 2014 Author Share Posted March 29, 2014 Can I stop feeling bad that we never made it through this program now? I've not heard anyone articulate this before and it makes me so happy to hear I'm not the only one, especially when we've had much success with other IEW materials. We are slowly working our way through WttW right now and loving it! I tried asking and expressing my feelings (politely) on the IEW yahoo group, and let's just say I was pretty much shot down. They weren't rude about it, but it was made very clear that the problem is not the program but me. I actually own WttW...can it take the place of TEE? I thought it was a literature curriculum? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RootAnn Posted March 29, 2014 Share Posted March 29, 2014 I actually own WttW...can it take the place of TEE? I thought it was a literature curriculum? They are both written by the same person, so I'm interested that TEE didn't work for TechWife but WttW is. An IRL friend of mine is slowly working her way through WttW with her son and "rewriting" it as she goes because she's so frustrated. She looked through my TEE copy and felt she could find better materials because she'd have the same frustrations (with the format). I'm :bigear: because I have TEE & hope to use it at some point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TechWife Posted March 29, 2014 Share Posted March 29, 2014 I tried asking and expressing my feelings (politely) on the IEW yahoo group, and let's just say I was pretty much shot down. They weren't rude about it, but it was made very clear that the problem is not the program but me. I actually own WttW...can it take the place of TEE? I thought it was a literature curriculum? Yes, it is a literature curriculum, but tucked within it is instruction on how to write literary analysis essays. They are both written by the same person, so I'm interested that TEE didn't work for TechWife but WttW is. An IRL friend of mine is slowly working her way through WttW with her son and "rewriting" it as she goes because she's so frustrated. She looked through my TEE copy and felt she could find better materials because she'd have the same frustrations (with the format). I'm :bigear: because I have TEE & hope to use it at some point. What makes WttW work for us is the fact that I am using Jill Pike's "A Syllabus for Introduction to Literary Analysis" - it has lesson plans, teacher helps, student worksheets and additional assignments that make WttW workable for us. I really, really like WttW, but I am not sure if I would like it without Jill's syllabus. The syllabus is included in the purchase of WttW now, but purchased it separately a year or two ago. I am thinking of using some of the Classical Academic Press materials to teach argument writing, but I haven't looked at them closely enough. Does anyone have any experience? Should I start a new thread? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted March 30, 2014 Share Posted March 30, 2014 I am thinking of using some of the Classical Academic Press materials to teach argument writing, but I haven't looked at them closely enough. Does anyone have any experience? Should I start a new thread? :bigear: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarolynMR Posted March 30, 2014 Share Posted March 30, 2014 What is WttW? Have any of you used Write with the Best? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RootAnn Posted March 30, 2014 Share Posted March 30, 2014 What is WttW? Windows to the World - An Introduction to Literary Analysis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
razorbackmama Posted April 25, 2014 Author Share Posted April 25, 2014 Update: We have started using The Lively Art of Writing with the workbook and TG that were posted earlier. I think this is going to work MUCH better. The materials are much easier to understand and are laid out way better. This is going to definitely be a challenge for my son - he has opinions but isn't good enough at language to express them. ("Why do you think such and such?" "I dunno...." ) But it's a good challenge, and I really think this will help his writing tremendously. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swimmermom3 Posted April 25, 2014 Share Posted April 25, 2014 I want to add another suggestion that isn't often talked about on this board. It's a great place to start in the essay writing process if you want or need something very straight forward. Several years ago, I bought an older version of Bonita Lillie's Hands-On-Essays for something like $10. We followed it with The Lively Art of Writing and I have never regretted those choices. The $17 for the two programs took us way further with less effort than many of the other pricey writing programs that I have purchased over the years and they are much easier to implement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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