Eva Goldstein-Meola's IEW writing classes - reviews?

[Familia]

Looking into a research writing class for next year.   Her website looks promising.  Anyone use her classes here?

Thank you!

[matrips]

I have friends that have done her classes for the past four years. They are very happy with her.

[Familia]

I have friends that have done her classes for the past four years. They are very happy with her.

 

Thank you!

[OnMyOwn]

We had an okay experience, but there were some problems. I'll pm you.

[Homeschoolmom3]

We did the summer intensive here and thought it was great! No experience with yr. round class though.

[Alice]

My son did a live class with her. He hated it but it all fairness, he hates writing and I think the IEW method was not the right one for him. He found the classes really boring but I think that was going to be true of almost any writing class. I know lots of others who have taken the live classes and really liked them and felt like they were responsible for their kids becoming much better writers. 

 

She is very organized, almost to a fault. I came away not really loving the IEW method, although I wasn't completely sure how much of that was her and how much was the method since we had not otherwise used IEW. One example of what bugged me: Each week for the assignment they would have a list of elements they needed to put in their paragraph. I can't remember all the acronyms but it would be thinks like "one as...if clause" , "two prep phrases" "two gerund phrases". Then my son would write what I thought was a perfectly good paragraph and if he didn't have the assigned clauses or phrases he would spend a bunch of time trying to insert them. Often I felt like this made his writing stilted and unnatural sounding. But if he didn't insert them she would comment that he was supposed to have put them in there. Same thing for the "banned word" list which is a list of words you aren't supposed to use. I understood the concept of trying to avoid using blah words but he would spend a bunch of time trying to come up with another way to say "said" or "good"and in the end it would just sound stilted. Those both may have been part of the method but I ultimately just decided I didn't agree with it as a way of teaching writing. 

 

 

Edited March 3, 2016 by Alice

[Familia]

 

She is very organized, almost to a fault. I came away not really loving the IEW method, although I wasn't completely sure how much of that was her and how much was the method since we had not otherwise used IEW. 

Thanks for sharing your experience.

The strict adherence to the IEW  method was probably responsible for most of what you did not like about the class.  I've found that I had to be flexible with each child's use of the checklist.  This child would not do well with strict enforcement of those pesky dress-ups.

What I am looking for is someone to walk her through research papers and walk her along slowly from where she is now in her writing.

Last time we used a tutor, after all of the revisions, she felt like the paper was no longer her own.  I've gotten her to keep writing a little, but her writing is not maturing under my tutelage. 

[TheAttachedMama]

I do not have experience with this IEW writing instructor, but I cannot say enough good things about Jennifer Kimbrell.   She is my "little known" secret in the IEW world.   She has written all of her own materials that go along with the IEW method but also add in SO much more.   She walks through just about every type of writing a student will ever have to do in their writing career--- with the possible exception of a lab report.   (Even timed, handwritten essays.) 

Here is her website:  https://writingwithjennifer.com

Here classes remind me a lot of the writing equivalent of the Clover Valley or Clover Creek science classes.  Her attitude is always cheerful and positive, many kids say she is their favorite teacher---- but her classes are not easy!  She has standards that she does not bend on.  Yet, any student *can* be successful because she so clearly lays out her expectations and takes students along in small baby steps.   Here is a recent blog article that she wrote:  https://writingwithjennifer.com/2021/10/29/not-a-wishy-washy-english-teacher/

 

Edited November 11, 2021 by TheAttachedMama