summerreading Posted November 17, 2014 Share Posted November 17, 2014 My DS11 doesn't like to write. Brave Writer seems good and I like the idea of outsourcing writing for a little bit, just to give us a boost. The $$ is a little steep for me, so I'd love to hear if you tried it out and thought it was amazing or just not worth the cost... Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scrapbabe Posted November 20, 2014 Share Posted November 20, 2014 Bump Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluedarling Posted November 20, 2014 Share Posted November 20, 2014 We did one bravewriter class. It was very very good, but not worth the cost for us to continue beyond it. The main thing I got out of it was that I needed to participate in the writing with my children. It amazed me to see how much writing I could get out of my resistant boys when I simply shared in the writing of a story! My boys that I normally struggled to get a single sentence out of were suddenly writing 6-8 sentences, without complaining! I got a lot of really great information, but applied very little of it. It wasn't a "plan" enough for me to take the amazing things I learned and apply it on a regular basis. It was quickly forgotten, and therefore very expensive. If I'd been able to learn, and then take that and apply it on my own, I would have been happier with the cost. So, I would recommend it hesitantly, depending on your personality....if you learn you need to sit and write with your kids and have a couple tools to do that, are you likely to take those tools and work with them (without a daily plan that tells you what to do each day?) If not, pass. If so, give it a go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoJosMom Posted November 20, 2014 Share Posted November 20, 2014 My DD has taken three Bravewriter classes and loved them. She is an enthusiastic writer, but seems to respond better to...outside criticism. We tried Mini-Reports first (I believe it's now middle school writing or something similar). DD was 11 and it was a perfect fit. For us, it was well worth the cost. It got done and she learned a lot. We're doing Cover Story now, but I have every intention of using Bravewriter classes in the future. HTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MerryAtHope Posted November 20, 2014 Share Posted November 20, 2014 Have you seen The Writer's Jungle? the Kidswrite Basic class is pretty much the middle chapters. I sat in on one but didn't have my kids go through it. One, especially, would have needed more modeling and a more visual approach. I like the approach because it's how I was taught in college and how I've always approached writing--it just doesn't work as well for my son who wants something very structured and incremental. I did take a Copywork/Dictation class (different name now...) which was awesome, but the price was about half what it is now, and I wouldn't have been nearly as happy taking it at the higher price. But really, so much depends on what you want, finances etc... I think if I was to look into BW now, I'd seriously consider the partnership book she has now. That concept was very helpful in working with my kids and is one I incorporated as I tried different curricula. I found that while I easily write in the BW style, teaching it was a very different thing for me, and I needed more than what BW gave me to be an effective teacher for my oldest. Maybe the partnership book would have been that, I'm not sure. That said, what's really worked for my reluctant writers: -mastering at least 1000 spelling words (writing started to become easier after that point--we used All About Spelling, which also incorporated a gradual progression in dictation to increase writing stamina and help kids hold more words in mind--all of which translates into making writing a bit easier) -Essentials in Writing (by Matthew Stephens). Short, video lessons, models the writing process, breaks things down so kids can work on one thing at a time, topics my kids were interested in but that also gave them freedom to choose and make it their own, focus on learning sentences, then paragraphs, then essays (in levels 7-10--haven't used the lower levels). Hope you find something that's a good fit for you and your son! Merry :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie of KY Posted November 20, 2014 Share Posted November 20, 2014 Brave Writer online classes has been exactly what my reluctant writer needs. We've done some of the family classes as well as a couple of the high school classes. My son has responded way better to someone else telling what to do and the constructive criticism. I also know I cannot give that type of feedback. I haven't done any classes with my middle schooler (other than family classes). He's a much more natural writer, but I am no good at guiding him. They are very expensive, but I've given myself permission to spend money in this area. It's been amazing how my son's writing has improved. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carol in Cal. Posted November 20, 2014 Share Posted November 20, 2014 I mostly taught writing myself, but Bravewriter online classes were helpful for us twice--once to get DD over the hump of making her revise/correct her work, and the second time to take the high school essay class in 8th grade in preparation for transitioning to a brick and mortar high school. I used other Bravewriter techniques and ideas a lot, but those two things were when I felt like I couldn't quite do it myself. They were great. One real advantage is that the kids all get to see what the other kids are writing, and also the corrections that they are offered (that was also helpful to me as a teacher). This is different from 'real school', where you might get feedback on your own work, but usually don't see anyone else's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
summerreading Posted November 20, 2014 Author Share Posted November 20, 2014 Thanks for all the great replies. I do have The Writer's Jungle. I guess I will take some time to try and work through that before deciding to outsource. He seems motivated with online classes to stay up to date with assignments, and I would rather have someone else give him feedback. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brownie Posted December 19, 2014 Share Posted December 19, 2014 In a similar position right now trying to decide what to do... I REALLY want my advanced 12 year old to take the Expository Essay class based on the description. I sent a sample and she said the writing was good but pushed me to take the Intermediate course instead because of his age and then follow it up with EE. Well I can hardly swallow paying the price for 1 of their online courses, and I was really hoping to do the online course to keep us/him on track and for the outside feedback, otherwise I would just buy the book for $80. I looked at her sample for intermediate and honestly I think I've done similar stuff with him already on my own. So now I'm confused... Brownie BTW did you know the books are 50% off at the homeschoolbuyers coop? I just might get Help for High School to do the Intermediate chapters and at least if I'm not impressed we won't do the essay course. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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