She Reads a Lot Posted May 16, 2016 Share Posted May 16, 2016 (edited) I can't find anything in any searches on the boards about this program. Attempting to add a link here: http://www.apologia.com/writers-in-residence-/455-writers-in-residence-volume-1-full-set-text-and-answer-key.html A local HS mom told me about it, and I've been reading through a 100+ page sample of it today. I like what I see so far. I thought I was going to use Treasured Conversations for my son in the fall (he's ADHD, dyslexic, and has SPD so we aren't at grade level for writing at all). But Writers in Residence has serious potential from what I am seeing. Now I just need The Hive to sign off on it ;-). We prefer a secular program (and we would have to skip some or all of the author profiles if the first one is representative of the others--way to Jesus-y for my son). But besides the author profiles and the intro in the student book, it seems fairly neutral and to be nicely incremental, which my kiddo needs. Thoughts? Opinions? Edited May 16, 2016 by She Reads a Lot 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kristin0713 Posted May 16, 2016 Share Posted May 16, 2016 My good friend has been using this with her 6th grade daughter for the past few months and LOVES it. That's all I know. I haven't looked at it more in depth because we are doing fine with IEW. But I wanted to share the positive review. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
She Reads a Lot Posted May 17, 2016 Author Share Posted May 17, 2016 Thank you for telling me about your friend's positive experience with the program! I know it's new but it surprises me that no one else is responding! Anyone? Anyone? Buehler? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vida Winter Posted May 17, 2016 Share Posted May 17, 2016 I am interested in this...bumping. It's quite new & would not expect to see many reviews yet. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UnlikelyHomeschoolingMama Posted May 17, 2016 Share Posted May 17, 2016 I haven't used it, but found it on a used site for $50 (and it was actually unused) so it is on my shelf for the second half of next year. My 3rd grader is a natural writer and is anxious to get moving, but I'm gonna hold off until the 2nd half of her 3rd grade year. It is written for 4-6th grades. I have looked through it and it looks amazing! My daughter is also very excited about it. Sorry it isn't a review, but I do have my hands on it and it looks amazing!! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
She Reads a Lot Posted May 18, 2016 Author Share Posted May 18, 2016 I suppose the fact that it came out in October isn't helping. Not a great time of year for people to start using a new program. I found it at Rainbow Resources for quite a bit less than the $89 at Apologia. In case that helps anyone. UnlikelyHomeschoolingMama--I prefer secular curricula. Since you own it, would you agree that the religious parts seem to mostly be in the author interviews? That's what I'm seeing in the 130-page sample. But it would help to know I'm not totally wrong. I know, it's Apologia--why am I even looking at it if I want secular? But I have looked at and tried so many writing programs (ds is dyslexic, ADHD, SPD, and probably dysgraphic), and this really looks right for us. Jealous that you found it new for $50--what a score! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiramisu Posted August 28, 2016 Share Posted August 28, 2016 Bump Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kesmom Posted August 28, 2016 Share Posted August 28, 2016 We are one week into it, so I'm not sure I can give an accurate review at this point. I gave my daughter the choice of continuing with CAP W+R (that she liked) or Writers in Residence. She browsed through the sample and fell in love with it. I think it could be used secularly. We are Christian but I usually prefer secular material. I don't like Apoligia for science but this is fine with me. I haven't read through the other author profiles to see their content. It seems like it would be easy enough to find articles or interviews with other authors if you wanted to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kolamum Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 I've been reading through that lovely big sample this week too as I'm looking at using it for my 7th grader. I did see a review for it over on The Curriculum Choice if that helps you any.. I'm curious about Readers In Residence as well.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vida Winter Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 We are going to use WWS for 7th grade - this one would have been ideal for 5th or so, and I considered it - the pages are so pretty! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wehave8 Posted September 1, 2016 Share Posted September 1, 2016 I shouldn't be, BUT... :bigear:!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carrousel Posted September 2, 2016 Share Posted September 2, 2016 Any comparison of this to CAP fable or narrative 1? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wehave8 Posted September 3, 2016 Share Posted September 3, 2016 I've been reading through that lovely big sample this week too as I'm looking at using it for my 7th grader. I did see a review for it over on The Curriculum Choice if that helps you any.. I'm curious about Readers In Residence as well.. Okay, it was bad enough I looked at WIR. Did you have to mention RIR, too?! I sure hope someone tries these out and gives us a full report soon! Pam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiramisu Posted May 23, 2017 Share Posted May 23, 2017 Bumping this older thread to try to get more reviews. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoCal_Bear Posted May 23, 2017 Share Posted May 23, 2017 (edited) I just heard Debra Bell (AIM Academy and author of WIR/RIR) talk about this on an online Christian homeschooling seminar and the vision and mission of the program.I think people should be aware that this is a distinctly Christian curriculum and the intent is to instill a biblical worldview through language arts. There's a faq video here about it on her website. https://debrabell.com/product-category/curriculum/writers-in-residence/ That being said, Cathy Duffy says that it is mild in the first volume and can be used by secular user. Whether or not that will increase in future volumes remains to be seen. If you are aware of their intent (I listened to her speak about this), and it increases in content, you should not be surprised. I think it depends on who you are and how you feel about using anything remotely religious or the intent of a program. Some people feel very strongly about this...others aren't as bothered. http://cathyduffyreviews.com/homeschool-reviews-core-curricula/composition-and-grammar/ungraded-multi-level-resources-comprehensive/writers-in-residence Edited May 23, 2017 by calbear 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Insertcreativenamehere Posted May 23, 2017 Share Posted May 23, 2017 We tried this at the beginning of the year and didn't continue past the first 6 weeks. It was just too wordy and moved too slowly for my taste. We went back to Writing and Rhetoric and that is going well. Sent from my Moto G (4) using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meganrussell Posted May 24, 2017 Share Posted May 24, 2017 We love it at our house. My daughter and son used it in 7th and 5th grades. I am using Readers in Residence now with my 4th grader. It's very similar so I know we will love it too. Also, it's $57 on Christianbook.com. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CAtoVA Posted May 25, 2017 Share Posted May 25, 2017 Would love more reviews of WIR and, since I am looking hard at Readers in Residence for my rising 4th grader, any reviews on that would be great too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meganrussell Posted May 25, 2017 Share Posted May 25, 2017 Here is my review on WIR - http://myfullhandsandheart.blogspot.com/2016/04/writers-in-residence-tos-review.html Hope it helps! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kesmom Posted May 25, 2017 Share Posted May 25, 2017 I posted early in this thread, but now that we are nearly finished I can offer a review. It hasn't been a favorite for us. I found it really tedious and cumbersome - so much flipping around in that giant book. The scoring system is ridiculous and I'm glad that my daughter can also roll her eyes at it now lol. My biggest complaint is that the amount of parent involvement required is inconsistent and I never know which lessons will need more of my time. While it hasn't been so bad that we ditched it, I think it is overpriced and I'm so ready to be done. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blue plaid Posted May 25, 2017 Share Posted May 25, 2017 My 5th grader did WIR for maybe 10 weeks before we quit. We found it slow and repetitious. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joyful_Journey Posted May 25, 2017 Share Posted May 25, 2017 We also gave it a try at the start of the school year, but then abandoned it before reaching the midyear mark. I also felt as if it moved very slowly and just didn't seem to be "enough" in terms of writing instruction. Perhaps it would be a good fit for a younger student (my daughter is 6th grade) or a student who is somewhat hesitant when it comes to writing assignments. In those cases, the instruction and pace may be a good fit. It was a flop for us though which is disappointing since the program is fairly expensive. :mellow: We went back to using some Writing and Rhetoric chapters and certain writing assignments from her Rod and Staff grammar book. For next year, we are going to move on to the Lively Art of Writing which I've found is a great guide to writing instruction for middle school and older students. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiramisu Posted May 30, 2017 Share Posted May 30, 2017 Thanks for all the replies. I'm thinking we might be better off with something that has worked for my other kid in the past as is less of an investment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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