Jump to content

Menu

WTMA Rhetoric, Write at Home, Bravewriter, Bluetent...


Recommended Posts

It would be helpful to many people to have the reviews (both positive and negative) of these main online writing course providers in one place (like a comprehensive list / reference). 

My dd (going into 9th grade) is passionate about literature and writing. She thinks she wants to major in English, so we’re looking for something solid but enjoyable. So if you’ve used any of these, please share your experience, including which class. Or if you've had success with other online writing classes, please feel free to share.

Did the students enjoy the classes?

Did his/her writing noticeably improve?

Did they provide adequate preparation for college level writing (and / or AP Language class)?

I can start: Her older brother took Bravewriter’s Expository Essay class and loved it. I believe it did improve his writing but he’d have to take many BW classes to reach the comprehensive result we’d hope for. (We didn’t do more writing courses because he had several rigorous STEM courses). He took a few DE classes at Clovis Community college and his essays were well written. 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Bumping for you! I'm interested, too.

DD15 is taking Bravewriter's Expository Essay class and she really likes it! She has loved every Bravewriter class.

She is also in WTMA's Creative Writing class. It really changed everything for her. She, too, wants to be an English major. ?

 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

My dd really enjoyed WTMAs Creative Writing class, too!  Wished she could have continued it 2nd sem but the time for 2nd sem didn’t work for her. 

ETA: I should have included the teacher’s name since the teacher really makes or breaks any class. My dd had Mr. Hummel. I think he definitely “made” the class. 

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

My son took the Expository Writing class at Bravewriter. I had read many positive reviews and thought I would give it a try. We seem to be in the minority however, as ds did not care for the course and he's usually not too picky. While the teacher did provide quite a lot of feedback, he felt the feedback was rather formulaic and overly rigid. He also wasn't fond of the overall structure of the course and thought the written instruction was sometimes contradictory and not all that clear. My understanding was that Bravewriter tries to bring out each student's unique voice but in ds' case it seemed to produce the opposite effect for some reason. After reading his essays from the class, we were both disappointed with them even though he worked hard to incorporate the feedback - definitely not as inspired as some of his previous work. I will say the feedback was extensive and timely and ds enjoyed reading the work of other students but we will not be doing Bravewriter again especially given the high cost.

For the middle school/early high school level, I can recommend the Write Shop course with Wendy Reed at Big River Academy. The course uses the Write Shop text and covers several different types of essays as well as some grammar. The pacing and workload are very reasonable requiring only a few hours a week. The feedback was encouraging, timely, and targeted. There were about 10 students enrolled and about 6 participated in the live online class meetings. My DS watched the recorded lectures due to the time difference but really enjoyed the online instruction. Wendy Reed does a very nice job creating a convivial and engaging classroom through a mix of icebreakers, break out sessions, and traditional instruction. DS who is a reluctant writer and very picky found this to be a good course and it improved his writing. This is a good gentle introduction to formal writing especially for reluctant writers or those who prefer live interaction with students and instructor. It is also a very affordable option.

We also tried the Lost Tools of Writing program with Coram Deo Tutorials. I liked the instructor but  both ds could not stand the LTOW program. They had previously taken two essay writing courses and found the assignments and pace excruciatingly simple and slow.  I understand the program ramps up later but we dropped it after the first semester. I think LTOW has some good techniques but I feel they could be condensed into a two or three week seminar for those with previous writing experience.  Coram Deo and Circe LTOW classes both suggest it is for high school students but I think it is a better fit for middle school. 

 

 

 

  • Like 4
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thank you all so much for the detailed reviews! My DS enjoyed Expository Essay but because I was hands off with him, I can’t really tell if the format of the classes improved his writing noticeably or not. Keep them coming! I’m all ears!

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

My kids have enjoyed and improved tremendously with Brave Writer.

My oldest is writing phobic, did great with BW, and now is at a highly selective college and managing the writing alongside his STEM passions.

My second did great in BW and went on to AP English.

My creative writer also loves BW. 

 

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

×
×
  • Create New...